Human Resources Manager

This is a hands-on generalist role. You own HR infrastructure and the full employee lifecycle: policies, records, performance management, employee relations, and day-to-day systems administration. HR is the primary intake point for all employee matters; if something arrives elsewhere it routes to you. You are also the primary process owner for all workflows that touch payroll and benefits. Bookkeeping executes payroll and cash movement based on inputs you confirm. Keeping that boundary clean is central to how the role works.

1. HR Leadership and Operating Infrastructure

• Translate leadership priorities into HR plans with clear timelines and outcomes.
• Advise on staffing, org design, culture, and sensitive people decisions.
• Co-author and maintain the employee handbook and policy set with the Director of Operations and the Extensis HR PEO team as your primary technical partner; manage version control; route every substantive revision to the Director of Operations for review and approval before publishing.
• Lead a company-wide job description audit and rewrite in partnership with the Director of Operations, producing a consistent set with common format, leveling language, decision rights, and handoffs; HR owns drafting coordination and version control; Director of Operations provides final approval on the baseline set and any material changes going forward.
• Periodically evaluate HR systems and administrative processes across the gallery, identify gaps, and bring recommendations for improvement to the Director of Operations.

2. Performance Management and Annual Review Cycle

The governing principle is that HR runs the machinery and drafts; managers own the judgment and delivery.

HR owns:

• The annual review calendar, tools, templates, and support to both managers and general staff.
• Collection of structured inputs: self-reviews, manager input, and optional contextual input.
• Drafting written reviews from the input pack, with attention to consistency, tone, and risk; in practice this responsibility is shared with the Director of Operations and select managers, with the expectation that a strong candidate will grow into taking on a greater share of this work over time.
• Review ratings across all staff to make sure no manager is systematically grading too high or too low, and that similar performance is being recognized consistently across teams; these calibration conversations may also include the Executive Director, who benefits from periodic high-level guidance on her sales team.
• Documentation standards, file completeness, and follow-through tracking.
• Work with the Director of Operations to establish a consistent review style and delivery approach that improves on prior cycles and can be sustained year to year.
• Where performance concerns are serious or sustained, HR drafts the appropriate written documentation: verbal warning records, written warnings, and performance improvement plans as warranted; the Director of Operations is consulted before any formal document is issued.

Managers (with DOO consultation) and the Executive Director (sales) own:

• Managers are responsible for providing the specific examples and observations that support each rating; HR drafts the language, managers supply the substance.
• Rating selection and next-cycle priorities.
• Delivery of the review conversation, with HR present as needed.

Mid-cycle requirements:

• A formal mid-cycle check-in process is being introduced and will be built out in partnership with the Director of Operations; the goal is to create a consistent, structured touchpoint for all staff that reduces end-of-year surprises and supports a healthier, more communicative workplace.
• One to two documented feedback notes during the cycle for any staff rated Developing or Not Meeting expectations.

Sales exception: Upper-level sales performance management and review delivery are owned by the Executive Director. HR supports sales reviews as a process and documentation partner when requested.

3. Employee Relations, Risk, and Compliance

• Lead employee relations matters: performance issues, conduct, conflict, and complaints.
• Manage investigations with clear steps, documentation, and defensible outcomes.
• Coach managers on feedback, accountability, and documentation habits; this is considered a core competency of the role, and candidates with real, applicable experience in this area will be best positioned to earn staff trust and build a credible, participatory HR function.
• Serve as a resource for individual staff members: periodic one-on-ones as needed, guidance on professional questions, and support for personal development where appropriate
• Maintain the gallery’s compliance posture across applicable employment law and regulatory requirements: paid leave, workers’ compensation, OSHA, EEOC, harassment prevention, and related areas.
• Ensure required training and education is current and documented for all staff.
• Monitor for changes in New York State and City employment law and flag implications to the Director of Operations in advance of effective dates.
• Maintain compliance-related records in a state of audit readiness at all times.
• Conduct regular market compensation research drawing on sources including NYFA, Glassdoor, and comparable industry benchmarks; work in close collaboration with the Director of Operations to develop and maintain documented salary bands, advancement structures, and longer-range compensation forecasting.

4. Systems and Employee Lifecycle Administration

• Own day-to-day administration of Extensis and connected onboarding and offboarding portals; the expectation is thorough, self-directed mastery of both Extensis and BambooHR and a commitment to using each to its full potential.
• Own time and attendance administration in BambooHR, the gallery’s platform for tracking hours, PTO, and absences.
• Maintain accurate records of staff vacation, sick leave, and other absences; manage and track PTO requests and approvals in accordance with gallery policy.
• Oversee the gallery calendar with respect to staff scheduling, and determine and communicate gallery-wide holidays in coordination with the Director of Operations.
• Flag attendance patterns or concerns to the relevant manager and Director of Operations.
• New hire onboarding: collect required documents, support employee completion, confirm readiness for payroll.
• I-9 workflow and E-Verify compliance: ensure compliant completion, maintain audit readiness.
• Employee records: create profiles; maintain job, department, and status fields; update leave flags; reflect terminations and status changes promptly.
• Ensure all HR-driven changes are entered in the appropriate system and communicated to Bookkeeping in a usable format.

5. Payroll, Benefits, and Bookkeeping Interface

HR and Bookkeeping have explicit, non-overlapping lanes.

• HR provides Bookkeeping with confirmed payroll-impacting changes: start dates, termination dates, leave start and return dates, eligibility and status changes, and required deduction starts and stops.
• HR maintains a standard handoff format and submits changes by 12:00 pm two business days before payroll; items submitted late default to the next cycle unless the Director of Operations approves an exception.
• Bookkeeping remains responsible for payroll runs, deposits, and payments.
• Bookkeeping does not troubleshoot Extensis or BambooHR for HR inputs; that responsibility stays with HR.
• Employee matters that arrive in Bookkeeping first are forwarded to HR the same day.
• HR maintains routing rules for what must be communicated by email, what is stored physically, and when leadership must be copied.
• Benefits administration (401(k) roster via Ameritas): own roster accuracy, address changes, status updates, and terminations in the portal or via the vendor; ensure the roster remains current to prevent participant and compliance issues; Bookkeeping continues bi-weekly deposits.
• Workers’ compensation: own incident intake, claims reporting, and broker and vendor coordination; keep the Director of Operations and Bookkeeping informed when claims affect leave status, premiums, or payroll timing.

6. Leave, Court Orders, and Absence Administration

• Own paid family leave and leave of absence administration end to end: guide employees through the process, forms, and documentation requirements; track official leave dates and maintain leave status in Extensis and BambooHR.
• Communicate confirmed leave start and return dates to Bookkeeping using the standard handoff format.
• Own all casework for garnishments and child support orders: open and maintain a documented case file for each order; manage communications with the employee, vendor or system contacts, and agencies as required; provide Bookkeeping with effective dates and deduction instructions once confirmed.

7. Decision Rights, Approvals, and Hiring Support

• Offer letters: Director of Operations issues; HR provides compliance signoff before release, using a checklist.
• Org structure and compensation bands: Director of Operations and Executive Director design; HR memorializes, publishes, and maintains job architecture records.
• Outside employment counsel: HR may consult only with prior approval from the Director of Operations or Executive Director.
• Extensis HR PEO support team: HR may engage directly for system and process administration.
• Most hiring at the gallery is managed departmentally with Director of Operations oversight; HR provides administrative support to keep the process organized and moving: scheduling interviews, managing candidate communications, and handling related paperwork; for more complex or senior searches, HR may take on a broader coordinating role in partnership with the Director of Operations and Executive Director.

• Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources, or related field.
• 6–10 years of experience in HR Manager, Generalist, or similar role in the PEO industry.
• Strong knowledge of HR compliance, employment law, policy interpretation, employee communications, E-Verify, workers’ compensation, and legally sound documentation to ensure the organization operates within regulatory requirements.
• Ability to manage sensitive employee matters with professionalism, discretion, and diplomacy, while building trust, handling conflict constructively, and maintaining credibility across diverse staff groups.
• Experience creating and standardizing HR frameworks such as job descriptions, employee handbooks, career progression structures, and performance management processes to strengthen organizational consistency and culture.
• Hands-on proficiency with HR platforms and outsourced HR environments, including PEO models, HRIS systems, time and attendance tools, and platforms such as BambooHR, with the ability to independently manage records, approvals, and workflows.
• Exceptional writing skills for producing clear, accurate, and professional HR correspondence, policies, letters, and employee-facing materials with minimal oversight and strong attention to tone and detail

• Part-time, permanent, two days per week: one day on site, one day remote.
• Compensation: $70-$80 per hour, commensurate with experience.

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