Vice President, Talent & Culture
| Req Number: | LUHQHD |
| Location: | Los Angeles, CA |
| Posted: | 8/14/2025 |
| Category: | Government/Not-For-Profit : Not-For-Profit |
| Job Type: | Permanent |
| Compensation: | USD 400,000.00 - 420,000.00 Yearly |
WHO WE ARE
APPLY NOW
At the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, we work every day, in close partnership with our grantees, to reduce human suffering. We focus our funding in the US on children, youth and families living in disadvantage. Internationally, we fund work in Africa and Latin America on safe drinking water, refugees, and early childhood. And, we support the work of Catholic Sisters around the world. Our headquarters are located in Westlake Village, California with individual staff globally positioned for strategy implementation. International hotelier Conrad N. Hilton established the grantmaking foundation that bears his name in 1944 to help people living in poverty and experiencing disadvantage worldwide. The Foundation is a family foundation and one of the world’s largest, with approximately $7 billion in assets. Since our founding in 1944, we have awarded grants to date totaling more than $3.7 billion, with $330 million approved in 2024. Please visit www.hiltonfoundation.org for more information.
Over the past six years, the Conrad Hilton Foundation has taken strategic steps to advance its mission to serve as a global leader in addressing human well-being. In 2019, the Foundation’s assets doubled through a bequest by Conrad Hilton’s son, Barron Hilton. The Foundation increased its staff from approximately 60 to nearly 160, seeking to maintain a vibrant and dynamic culture in alignment with the core values of Conrad and Barron Hilton – integrity, compassion, stewardship, humility, and thinking big. The past five years have witnessed the development of “Strategy 2025,” focusing on seven Initiatives and setting ambitious-but-feasible goals within them. The Foundation has approximately tripled its annual grantmaking since 2019. In addition, the Foundation awards the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize. Currently, at $2.5 million, it is the world’s largest annual humanitarian award presented to a nonprofit organization judged to have made extraordinary contributions toward alleviating human suffering.
THE OPPORTUNITY:
A CHANCE TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL IMPACT IN THE LIVES OF INDIVIDUALS AND COMMUNITIES AROUND THE WORLD
The Vice President, Talent and Culture (VPTC) is a key leadership role at the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. This is an exciting opportunity for a seasoned human resources professional who is skilled in creative best practices and change management to help shape the culture and support the people behind one of the world’s most impactful philanthropic organizations.
Reporting to the President and CEO, the VPTC serves as a core member of the Foundation’s Executive Management Team (EMT) and leads the vision, development, and implementation of the Foundation’s human resources strategy. This leader will oversee all HR functions and serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO, board, executive peers, and managers across the organization on all aspects of people and talent, including talent management, organizational design, benefits, and culture. The VPTC plays a pivotal role in attracting, developing, and retaining a high-performing, mission-driven staff. In addition to maintaining strong HR operations, the VPTC will foster a culture of performance, trust, and accomplishment, ensuring that the
Foundation’s people practices measurably contribute to its mission to reduce human suffering.
The VPTC will help culture and strategy work in tandem, amplifying one another to increase the Foundation’s impact. This role requires a strategic, collaborative thinker who can bridge organizational objectives with a talent-forward approach, strengthen employee engagement, and lead with integrity, clarity, and innovation.
The VPTC leads a dedicated Talent and Culture team of six full-time professionals who support an evolving and globally distributed programmatic and operational structure. This leader will also play an integral role in the planning and design of the Foundation’s new headquarters, with a move anticipated in the next 12 to 18 months. A regular on site presence of at least three days per week is essential to ensure that staff feel connected, supported, and empowered.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES
Strategy, Culture and Performance
- Review and implement Talent and Culture strategies and initiatives aligned with the Foundation’s mission and organizational and departmental goals.
- Act as business partner and advisor to Foundation leadership on performance, skill sets, competencies, and talent management.
- Lead employee engagement initiatives and cultivate a positive workplace culture, including collaboration with the Foundation’s Communication team.
- Foster an inclusive and values-driven organizational culture that celebrates different perspectives and promotes belonging.
- Develop and analyze people-related metrics to drive decision-making and improve the Foundation’s impact, effectiveness, accountability and efficiency.
Recruitment and Retention
- Manage the recruitment and selection process to attract and retain top talent, reflective of the Foundation’s global mission.
- Oversee employee onboarding, offboarding, development, and performance management programs.
- Manage employee relations and resolve issues in a fair and timely manner.
- Foster a positive organizational culture that promotes employee engagement and collaboration.
- Lead performance management processes, including goal setting, accountability, feedback and professional development initiatives.
- Drive initiatives that promote employee purpose and accountability.
Operations and Compliance
- Oversee compensation and benefits, including retirement plans and a total rewards program designed to maintain the organization’s competitive position in the marketplace, sustainability and with financial impact acumen.
- Oversee payroll, 401k and 457b processes and ensure efficient and accurate delivery of services.
- Provide guidance and support to managers and employees on Talent and Culture policies, procedures, and best practices.
- Ensure compliance with labor and employment laws and regulations.
- Oversee the development and implementation of the Talent and Culture budget, in collaboration with the Finance Department.
Team Leadership
- Lead and mentor the T+C team to ensure effective service delivery to the organization and staff development.
- Drive HR technology initiatives to streamline processes and enhance employee experience.
PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS AND PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
Building a high-performing, purpose driven organization requires a leader who is an effective, influential change agent and a high impact, emotionally intelligent professional. The Vice President should ideally possess the following set of professional qualifications and personal attributes.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field; Master’s degree or HR certification preferred.
- 10+ years of progressive HR experience with at least 5 years in a senior leadership role.
- Experience in a mission-driven organization is desirable. Backgrounds from nonprofit, philanthropy, corporate, public sector, and cross-sector will all be closely considered.
- Strong knowledge of human resources practices, processes, employment laws, labor laws, and compliance requirements both domestically and internationally.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
- Strategic mindset with strong decision-making and problem-solving abilities.
- Demonstrated ability to lead and develop teams with ability to lead change and foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
- Experience engaging with a board.
- Proficient in HR software and Microsoft Office Suite.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a data driven approach to decision making.
- Commitment to the foundation’s mission and values with a passion for social impact and foundation impact goals.
Personal Attributes
- A visionary motivated equally by the Foundation’s values and its mission of alleviating human suffering, and by the desire to create a vibrant, inclusive place to work.
- Driven by an “optimism and courage to seek bigger solutions.”
- A person who has demonstrated humility, grace, stewardship, and compassion in their life.
- An ability to build dynamic teams and to motivate them to work well together.
- Ability to make and implement high quality, transparent decisions and steward them with purpose and efficiency.
- Personal creativity and strategic vision coupled with an ability to listen to others and learn from their best ideas – a sense of inquisitiveness and eagerness to improve.
- Persuasive communicator with excellent listening, speaking, and writing skills.
- Personable, articulate, and diplomatic, but also honest in identifying challenges, problems, and risks. Strong ability to align management and staff needs.
- Intellectually humble, open to constructive feedback and personally grounded.
COMPENSATION
Compensation for the Vice President, Talent and Culture includes a salary of approximately $420,000, and an excellent package of health and employee benefits.
TO BE CONSIDERED
Interested candidates should submit a resume and cover letter, responding specifically to the experience and qualifications required to: HiltonVPTC@kornferry.com.
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Korn Ferry shall provide equal employment opportunity to all qualified candidates, and will refer candidates without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran status or any other legally protected basis.
