HR Business Partner

Opportunity Profile

Location: Michigan

Position Title: HR Business Partner

The Opportunity:

This HR Business Partner role represents a mission-critical opportunity at one of the organization’s most strategically significant North American operations. The site is not only the largest manufacturing employer in its region, but also a cornerstone asset in the company’s long-term strategy to transform its U.S. footprint from traditional legacy products toward higher-growth packaging and specialty offerings.

The individual in this role will be embedded in a large, complex, and unionized manufacturing environment supporting approximately 860 employees across multiple labor groups. The operation is fully integrated, capital intensive, and operating in the midst of sustained investment and change. As a result, the HR Business Partner will have a direct and visible impact on business performance, workforce stability, leadership effectiveness, and the pace at which the organization successfully executes its transformation agenda.

This is not a traditional or transactional HR role. The HR Business Partner will serve as a trusted advisor to site leadership, helping leaders navigate organizational change, labor dynamics, workforce planning, and employee engagement while reinforcing a strong safety-first culture. As the company continues to invest in new capabilities, equipment, and ways of working, this role will be central to aligning people strategies with operational priorities and ensuring the workforce is prepared, engaged, and supported through change.

Labor relations are a defining aspect of the opportunity. The site operates in a multi-union environment that has seen meaningful improvement in recent years, including a significant reduction in grievances and stronger day-to-day relationships. The HR Business Partner will play a key role in sustaining and further strengthening these relationships by promoting transparency, consistency, and mutual accountability between leadership and the unions. This role offers the chance to work in a challenging but constructive labor setting, where thoughtful HR leadership can materially influence outcomes.

Equally important, the role offers the opportunity to help shape culture and leadership capability during a pivotal period. With a relatively young workforce, recent retirements among senior leaders, and an increased focus on succession planning and people development, the HR Business Partner will help build the next generation of site leadership. This includes reinforcing a simplified and values-driven culture and translating those values into everyday leadership behaviors on the floor.

For an HR leader who wants to be close to the business, influence real outcomes, and leave a lasting mark on a flagship manufacturing operation, this role offers scope, visibility, and long-term impact. The person who succeeds in this position will not only support current operations, but will help shape the future of a critical asset within the company’s North American growth strategy.

The Company:

The organization is a global leader in paper and packaging materials made from primary fibers, serving customers in more than 100 countries with thousands of employees across multiple continents. It is publicly listed and widely recognized for its commitment to sustainability, operational excellence, and customer value.

In North America, the company has established a strong and growing footprint following a major acquisition that positioned the region as its primary growth platform. This strategy is supported by substantial capital investments and a long-term commitment to U.S. manufacturing.

The site associated with this role is a cornerstone asset within that strategy. Operating for more than a century and deeply embedded in the local community, it is the largest manufacturing employer in the region and produces hundreds of thousands of tons of product annually across multiple grades. The facility is fully integrated, produces its own pulp and power, and is undergoing staged investments to support future packaging and specialty production.

The company’s culture has evolved significantly in recent years, with a sharper focus on transparency, safety, people development, and performance. Labor relations have improved materially, grievances have declined, and leadership is committed to building a stable, respectful, and high-performing workplace.

The Boss:

This role reports into a leadership team that is closely aligned across regions and deeply focused on long-term transformation, safety, and people leadership. The leadership culture emphasizes accountability, follow-through, and genuine care for employees, supported by a simplified and clearly articulated set of values.

The HR Business Partner will work with leaders who are actively managing capital projects, operational change, and workforce transitions, and who rely on HR as a strategic partner rather than an administrative function. The environment favors HR leaders who are visible, credible on the floor, and comfortable influencing in a unionized manufacturing setting.

The Position:

The HR Business Partner is a hands-on, site-based role that operates at the intersection of people, labor, and operations within a large manufacturing facility. The position requires a strong presence in the facility, with regular interaction on the production floor, in meetings with operational leaders, and in direct engagement with employees and union representatives. Success in this role depends on credibility, accessibility, and the ability to balance empathy with accountability.

The HR Business Partner is responsible for translating enterprise HR programs, policies, and initiatives into practical, site-relevant solutions that work in a 24/7 manufacturing environment. This includes adapting corporate frameworks to the realities of a fully integrated operation while maintaining alignment with broader organizational standards and expectations.

The role partners closely with front-line supervisors, managers, and functional leaders, supporting them through day-to-day people decisions and more complex employee relations matters. The HR Business Partner is expected to coach leaders in real time—helping them navigate performance management, attendance, discipline, and employee engagement with confidence and consistency.

In addition, the position plays a key role in supporting site-wide HR processes such as talent reviews, leadership development discussions, onboarding, and workforce planning activities. The HR Business Partner helps ensure these processes are executed with rigor and integrity, while also serving as a sounding board for leaders as they build and develop their teams.

This role requires sound judgment, resilience, and the ability to operate effectively amid ambiguity. The HR Business Partner must be comfortable addressing difficult issues, facilitating challenging conversations, and maintaining trust across all levels of the organization. Over time, this position becomes a central connector—linking employees, leadership, and HR resources to support stable operations and continuous improvement at the site

Essential Functions (Other duties may be assigned):

• Serve as a strategic HR partner to site leadership, aligning people strategies with business objectives
• Support labor relations activities within a unionized environment, contributing to constructive and transparent relationships
• Lead and support workforce planning, succession planning, and talent development initiatives
• Champion a safety-first culture and zero-injury aspiration
• Guide leaders through organizational change associated with capital investment and operational transformation
• Support employee engagement, communication, and culture-building initiatives
• Ensure HR policies and practices align with company values and operational realities

Qualifications:

• Experience supporting HR functions in a large, complex manufacturing environment
• Demonstrated ability to partner with operational leaders in a unionized setting
• Strong credibility with both hourly and salaried employee populations
• Ability to operate effectively during periods of change and transformation

Education and Experience:

• Relevant education and progressive HR experience supporting industrial or manufacturing operations
• Background working with labor unions and employee relations in a production environment

Competencies:

• Strategic thinking and business acumen
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills
• Change leadership and resilience
• Integrity, accountability, and follow-through
• Commitment to safety, people development, and continuous improvement

Work Environment:

This role is based at a large, fully integrated manufacturing site encompassing approximately 2,000 acres. The environment is highly operational, safety-driven, and community-oriented, with strong ties between the facility and the surrounding region.

Compensation:

The company offers a competitive and comprehensive total rewards package consistent with its commitment to attracting and retaining high-quality talent.