Human Resources Manager

HR Manager

Location: Newton, MA

Work Arrangement: Fully On-Site

Experience: 5–10 years

Industry: Hospitality experience strongly preferred

Position Overview

A growing, privately held organization in Newton, MA is seeking an experienced HR Manager to lead and manage the day-to-day Human Resources function. This is a highly visible, hands-on role for an HR professional who enjoys working closely with employees and leadership while helping build scalable processes for a growing organization.

The HR Manager will oversee a broad range of responsibilities including employee relations, HR operations, benefits, onboarding, compliance, performance management, recruiting support, and HRIS administration. A major component of the position will be ownership and optimization of UKG Ready, making prior hands-on experience with the platform highly desirable.

The ideal candidate will bring approximately 5–10 years of progressive Human Resources experience and be comfortable operating as both a strategic partner and hands-on HR resource. Experience within hospitality, restaurants, hotels, or another high-volume/service-oriented environment would be particularly valuable.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the day-to-day Human Resources function and serve as a primary HR resource for employees and management.
• Administer and optimize UKG Ready, including employee data, reporting, workflows, onboarding, time and attendance, and related HR processes.
• Partner with leadership on employee relations matters, providing practical guidance and helping resolve workplace issues consistently and professionally.
• Manage employee onboarding and offboarding, ensuring a positive employee experience and accurate HR documentation.
• Support benefits administration, annual enrollment, employee questions, and relationships with benefit providers and outside partners.
• Oversee HR policies and procedures and ensure compliance with applicable federal, state, and local employment regulations.
• Support performance management, employee development, corrective action, and other employee lifecycle activities.
• Partner with managers on recruiting and hiring needs and help improve processes for attracting and onboarding employees.
• Maintain accurate employee records and HRIS data while developing reporting that provides leadership with greater visibility into workforce trends.
• Identify opportunities to improve and automate HR processes, workflows, controls, and reporting.
• Partner cross-functionally with Finance, Payroll, Operations, and senior leadership.
• Support organizational growth and other HR initiatives and special projects as needed.

Qualifications

• Approximately 5–10 years of progressive Human Resources experience, ideally including experience operating in a hands-on HR Manager or similar capacity.
• Hands-on UKG Ready experience strongly preferred, with the ability to navigate and utilize the system effectively rather than relying exclusively on outside support.
• Hospitality industry experience strongly preferred; experience supporting a high-volume, service-oriented, hourly employee population is also highly relevant.
• Broad knowledge of employee relations, benefits, HR operations, performance management, recruiting, compliance, and HR best practices.
• Strong understanding of Massachusetts and federal employment laws and regulations.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with employees and managers at different levels of an organization.
• Strong judgment and discretion when handling sensitive employee matters.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Comfortable working in an entrepreneurial environment where priorities can change quickly and the HR Manager is expected to be both strategic and hands-on.
• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related discipline preferred.

Ideal Profile

The strongest candidate will be an approachable but confident HR professional who enjoys being close to the business and employees. They will have enough experience to independently manage employee relations and HR operations while remaining willing to roll up their sleeves and handle the details themselves.

Someone coming from the hospitality industry could be especially successful given the importance of responsiveness, employee engagement, operational partnership, and supporting a fast-moving workforce. Prior UKG Ready experience will be an important differentiator, particularly for someone who has used the platform to improve HR processes, reporting, and overall efficiency.