What Does An HR Program Manager Do?

WHAT DOES AN HR PROGRAM MANAGER DO?

Published: Jul 25, 2025 - The Human Resources (HR) Program Manager leads multiple complex, cross-functional projects, driving execution through detailed planning, communication, and change management. This role analyzes global talent trends to identify gaps, recommends, and implements strategic program enhancements. The manager also creates and delivers content, collaborates across teams, and ensures high-quality, data-driven outcomes.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for HR Program Manager

1. HR Program Manager Duties

Workforce Analysis: Partner with business leaders to understand their workforce planning requirements and provide insights from data analytics on talent strategies.
Decision Support: Key influencer/business owner for workforce planning decision support systems.
Thought Leadership: Provide input and thought leadership on new tool capabilities and feature enhancements.
Talent Forecasting: Partner with Talent Acquisition, HR, and Finance partners to create short-term and long-term talent forecasts.
Team Leadership: Lead a team of Workforce Strategists to build workforce and location plans to drive talent pipelines aligned with business strategy and demand.
Technology Assessment: Assess technology needs to support global workforce planning requirements.
Service Scalability: Create visibility about workforce planning service across Worldwide Consumer teams, develop standard operating procedures, and identify ways to scale the service.
Talent Strategy: Partner with Worldwide Consumer corporate teams to build robust talent recommendations and workforce strategies.

2. HR Program Manager Details

Project Delivery: Deliver complex, large-scale pay solutions projects from initiation through delivery.
Project Management: Independently manage project plans, strategies, and execution of pay initiatives, and coordinate with cross-functional teams to identify and address dependencies with key partners.
Stakeholder Engagement: Influence and partner with WW Consumer HR business stakeholders, payroll, HR Services, Employee Services, Workforce Staffing, A to Z and technology teams to deliver pay initiatives.
Risk Evaluation: Identify and evaluate potential risks and opportunities in order to scale and grow Pay solution programs, prevent pay defects, manage dependencies, and identify the path forward.
Program Reporting: Provide regular program status updates, escalate, and address issues/risks on time.
Customer Focus: Dive deep into customer pain points and make recommendations for scalable solutions, and be the voice of the customer to conduct user research, perform site visits, data analysis, and lead process optimization sessions.
Communication Strategy: Manage and execute communication and engagement strategies for pay solution initiatives.
Change Management: Lead transition and change management activities across multiple lines of business.
Program Leadership: Demonstrate strong program and stakeholder management, organizational, and leadership skills to facilitate effective, collaborative project meetings and business governance cadences.
Business Responsiveness: Respond to ad hoc and urgent business needs by balancing short-term delivery with long-term thinking, focusing on defect prevention and defect correction.
Process Improvement: Develop mechanisms to systematically address recurring business challenges.
Technology Assessment: Identify PxT technology and process deficiencies impacting Amazon's ability to provide an exceptional associate experience as it relates to time and pay.

3. HR Program Manager Responsibilities

EVP Development: Responsible for strategically developing a unique, relevant, and compelling Employment Value Proposition (EVP) to attract, engage, and retain the best talent.
Brand Messaging: Grow the brand’s EVP messaging to create employment brand awareness and following with current staff and external job seekers.
Content Creation: Leverage the stories of the brand and create authentic content to create brand champions and raving fans.
Social Engagement: In partnership with Marketing/Communications, create engaging social media content that enables future employees to understand the unique culture and EVP.
Content Monitoring: Monitor employment-related content on BW Connect and share tips and advice.
Site Management: In partnership with the Recruiting Team, manage and regularly refresh the Best Western careers site to ensure talent attraction for corporate and hotel jobs.
Diversity Initiatives: Develop and grow diversity and inclusion initiatives, as well as community partnerships, in alignment with the Company’s employment brand vision and strategy.
Scholarship Management: Manage the Company’s scholarship program and develop school relationships that support EVP.
People Operations: Serve as the key point-of-contact for supporting people operations programs for Best Western hotels (e.g., recruiting, retention).
Resource Development: Create related tools and resources for hotels, to include hosting periodic webinars on how to attract and retain workers.

4. HR Program Manager Job Summary

Leave Consultation: Meet with employees who request leave of absence or are out of work for more than one week, with anticipated leave required.
Disability Management: Disability and Leave Management Administration, including FMLA, DBL, PFL, and ADA.
Claim Processing: Work with Leave Management and benefit providers to process claims, including monitoring of approval status and length of leave.
Status Communication: Communicate change of status to HR,the employee’s department, and carriers.
Benefits Advising: Advise employees on eligibility and other matters related to benefits before, during, and after leave.
Leave Guidance: Provide guidance and support to associates, managers, and People Partners on leave of absence processes.
Compensation Education: Provide education and administration regarding Workers’ Compensation claims.
HRIS Administration: Manage the administration of employee changes in HRIS and off-boarding logistics.
HR Inquiry Response: Respond to HR inquiries and requests from employees.
HR Coaching: Provide HR policy, process, and/or program advice and coaching to employees and managers.
Contractor Compliance: Develop, drive, and coordinate the contractor compliance and management process.
Exception Processing: Responsible for exception request processing around return to office plans and updates.
Project Leadership: Lead new projects that come online and drive operational excellence.
Workday Implementation: Key member of the team on the operational front during Workday implementation.
Deadline Orientation: Detail-oriented with the ability to meet deadlines.

5. HR Program Manager Accountabilities

Strategic Influence: Influence strategy and shape the program approach across a series of projects or component activities, building stakeholder buy-in around plans, commitments, and changes.
Program Delivery: Drive program delivery proactively, balancing scope, schedule, interdependencies, budget, and risks.
Collaboration Practice: Work in collaboration with other HR specialists, ensure the leverage of best practices.
Solution Execution: Define and execute on any proposed solutions, mitigating any associated risks or actions.
COE Engagement: Essential and critical to seeking wider COE/SME engagement.
Compliance Adherence: Ensure that both business and HR adhere to the regional/global interlocks with respect to project engagement or development of key solutions and actions.
Risk Management: Manage key actions such as risk and control management.
Metrics Tracking: Dashboard, metrics tracking.
Action Planning: Action planning based on HR Operations metrics.

6. HR Program Manager Functions

Project Management: Independently manage multiple and concurrent program-related projects, as well as ad hoc projects, that range in size and complexity.
Change Strategy: Create project plans and communication, and change management strategies.
Talent Research: Using a global perspective, research talent management trends, integrate them with RH's talent management strategy, and make recommendations for new programs or changes to existing programs based on gaps within program offerings.
Cross-Functional Leadership: Lead cross-functional project meetings and taskforces, manage and execute project deliverables and deadlines independently and/or through others, and ensure delivery of high-quality services.
Materials Development: Directly and/or in conjunction with others, create presentations, communications, training, and rollout material.
Process Documentation: Create program/process documents.
Audience Delivery: Identify and deliver to appropriate audiences.
Data Analytics: Use internal and external data and metrics, such as trends, benchmarking, employee satisfaction, retention, and industry research to support the performance enablement focus.
Project Consultation: Provide consultation and advice on project execution based on best practice research and partner with HR or internal clients to roll projects out to appropriate global audiences.
Budget Management: Develop and manage budgets for various programs.
SME Networking: Develop a network of appropriate subject matter experts/departments to partner with to ensure program and project deliverables are met.

7. HR Program Manager Job Description

Compensation Strategy: Work with the team to design, develop, and oversee the implementation of comprehensive benefits, compensation, and executive compensation strategy and programs, ensuring alignment with business objectives and balancing market conditions, internal equity, and long-term vision.
Operations Oversight: Oversee the day-to-day operations of Total Rewards and people administration.
Program Innovation: Using knowledge of leading practices and market trends, continuously improve and innovate total rewards programs that support the engagement of GS1 Canada and reflect GS1 Canada values.
Gap Analysis: Actively identify gaps, propose, and implement changes necessary to cover risks.
Solution Facilitation: Facilitate the management team to bring the best solutions for employees.
Performance Improvement: Act as a performance improvement driver and provoke positive changes in the HR processes.
Expense Tracking: Track and report on budget expenses related to Human Resources management.
Policy Development: Contribute to the development of policies and best practices for Human Resources programs and services, conducting research, gathering information and expertise from relevant sources, and providing comprehensive reports and recommendations consistent with the mandate and objectives of the HR Strategy.

8. HR Program Manager Details and Accountabilities

Compensation Analysis: Provide analysis, market research, and recommendations on compensation practices such as salary administration, group benefits, and other rewards and recognition programs, including performance review process and pay equity compliance and administration.
Business Partnership: Partner with business leaders to act on insights gained from analysis of HR metrics and ensure people plans are executed as agreed.
Metrics Reporting: Be responsible for delivering HR metrics and reporting to the leadership teams and the GS1 Canada board.
Benefits Administration: Manage administration and communication of benefit programs, policies, and procedures, including GRRSP, STD & LTD, group benefits, EAP, etc., and liaise with group benefit carriers to resolve employee concerns.
Program Evaluation: Measure the usage and effectiveness of these programs.
Project Execution: Execute on all major annual and ad-hoc HR programs/initiatives, acting as Project Manager.
Trend Awareness: Maintain awareness of emerging HR trends and thought leadership and apply knowledge in the business.
Program Communication: Prepare and develop communications to promote HR programs and initiatives (i.e., presentations, how-to-guides, announcements).
Capability Development: Support the development of Human Resources capability through the sharing of best practices and the active management of the HR Administrator.

9. HR Program Manager Roles

Stakeholder Management: Effectively builds and leverages relationships with key stakeholders to develop and promote department programs, get buy-in to change efforts, and provide ongoing consultation within the departmental scope of service.
Peer Mentoring: Serves as a role model and mentors peers.
Improvement Recommendation: Recommends opportunities for improvement of department score for turnover, retention, and employee engagement.
Tool Development: Develops tools and materials for professionals, managers, and other key stakeholders to effectively leverage and consistently administer the programming offered by the department within its scope of services.
Needs Assessment: Conducts assessments and gathers information and feedback using various techniques, including interviews, surveys/forms, documentation review, etc., within the scope of services of the department.
Program Coordination: Plans, prioritizes, organizes, coordinates, and monitors special programs as assigned by management.
Subject Expertise: Serves as subject matter expert, supporting employees through the process of engaging the department for services, ensuring timely response and processing of requests, including collaboration with other departments.
Critical Evaluation: Uses exceptional critical thinking skills to evaluate employee requests within the scope of the department and identify appropriate, often creative solutions, while maintaining compliance with policies and standards of practice.
Internal Consulting: Serves as an internal consultant for various levels throughout the organization.
Consultant Activities: Consultant activities include assessment, intervention, follow-up, evaluation, and measurement of outcomes.
Policy Development: Develops, implements, and communicates systemwide policies and standards of practice, standard operating procedures, reporting systems and processes that align the people and quality strategies of the department with organizational goals, in coordination with management.

10. HR Program Manager Essential Functions

Transparency Management: Ensures timely updates to information that requires transparency to other Human Resources teams to resolve inquiries and for reporting capabilities.
Evaluation Strategy: Develops, implements, and maintains an ongoing evaluation strategy for programs.
Solution Measurement: Measures the effectiveness and efficiency of solutions and monitors their ongoing impact.
Metrics Reporting: Provides data for metrics and quarterly reports.
Trend Analysis: Analyzes and shares trends and key learnings and provides recommendations based on the findings.
Resource Management: Uses department resources wisely and manages time efficiently and effectively, and helps other team members to do the same.
Project Oversight: Effectively manages the scope, schedule, and budget of all assigned projects from in process through completion.
Cost Optimization: Monitors trends and recommends cost-saving and waste-elimination opportunities.
Best Practice Identification: Uses report data, analytical skills, and internal/external benchmarking information to identify opportunities for best practices and improvements within the department's scope of responsibilities.
Committee Participation: Participates in cross-functional committees and teams to identify opportunities to support employee development and advancement to drive Houston Methodist's diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies.
Self-Development: Seeks opportunities to identify self-developmental needs and takes appropriate action.
Career Management: Ensures own career discussions occur with appropriate management.
Development Planning: Completes and updates the My Development Plan on an ongoing basis.

11. HR Program Manager Key Accountabilities

Needs Assessment: Directs the needs assessment for HR initiatives to enhance employee performance in achieving the company’s strategic goals.
HR Program Management: Plans, directs, and administers human resource programs related to recruiting, onboarding, training, performance management, job progression, and compensation.
Best Practice Integration: Identifies and incorporates best practices and lessons learned into program plans.
Data Analysis: Researches, analyzes data, and prepares quarterly reports on HR trends, new HR project suggestions, and current program goals and progress.
Policy Development: Develops, reviews, and revises program policies and procedures.
Program Advising: Provides advice and counsel to managers and staff on administering and interpreting programs.
HR Training: Designs and delivers HR training programs for management and employees.
Training Coordination: Coordinates the design and delivery of non-HR training, using internal resources or external training providers.
Learning Material Development: Develops learning activities, audio-visual materials, job aids, and other support materials.
Hiring Strategy: Facilitates success profiling and hiring strategy for positions across the organization.

12. HR Program Manager Responsibilities and Key Tasks

Expansion Roadmapping: Develop a strategic, high-impact global expansion program roadmap and execute against it.
Data-Driven Improvement: Use data to establish and drive Amazon's HR expansion vision and delivery program and process improvements, focusing on scalability, quality, and employee/customer experience.
Strategic Collaboration: Collaborate closely with business and HR leaders to inform expansion strategy across HR functional work streams.
Process Advisory: Develop deep knowledge of HR processes and advise the business on process requirements and best practices.
Project Delivery: Develop and deliver projects with large data sets, utilizing technical tools and systems needed to work with them.
Communication Skills: Maintain excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate across business functions and levels of leadership.
Change Management: Develop change management strategies by identifying key stakeholders, approach, and communication plans for the implementation of new processes, technology, and/or tools.
Recognition Facilitation: Communicate effectively and facilitate senior-level discussions and decisions around Employee Recognition programs.
Global Leadership: Lead across a complex global organization with matrixed teams reporting.
Organizational Awareness: Monitor the "pulse" of the organization and look around corners to identify issues and obstacles as well as to develop risk mitigation plans.
Priority Management: Manage multiple priorities simultaneously with a bias for action oriented on results.
Executive Interface: Interface at all levels of the organization, including executive-level stakeholders.
HR Innovation: Passion for innovative HR solutions and process improvement.

13. HR Program Manager Duties and Roles

Collaborate with researchers and others in strategic planning discussions to coordinate and prioritize high-impact interventions
Help establish and run qualitative research studies that capture employee experience pain points and generate actionable insights
Facilitate global workshops to coordinate the collection of global business requirements, including identifying gaps between current and future-state experiences, and turn them into detailed business requirements
Communications to project members and stakeholders on progress, issues, and risks, including regular status updates and periodic white papers
Roll out coordination, intervention, and assessment programs related to employee experience initiatives
Working with regional and global PXT teams and the HR Director to establish and track goals for the year, KPI reviews, and monthly and quarterly business review doc assembly.
Partnering with Sr. HR Leaders across the organization to ensure operational planning is on track for successful completion.
Support peak preparation and lessons learned review.
Creating structure, establishing processes, and enabling efficiencies within the PXT org (execute/update Rhythm of Business quarterly).
Partner with PXT partner teams, including TA, ER, Employee Services and HR4HR to understand partnership wins and challenges that allow low-hanging fruit and broader topics to be celebrated/ tackled.
Track, support and at times own executive escalations

14. HR Program Manager Roles and Responsibilities

Program Ownership: Own and develop programs/projects, as defined by the leadership team and based on data.
Action Planning: In partnership with HR teams, create specific action plans to drive resolutions of the highest priority issues.
Metrics Management: Responsible for developing, auditing, and communicating success metrics to the business and HR leadership.
Project Handling: Independently handle multiple projects and competing priorities across a diverse set of stakeholders.
Stakeholder Collaboration: Collaborate with subject matter experts across the HR service areas (HR business partnering, Learning and Development, recruitment, diversity programs, compliance, compensation, etc.) on various metrics to promote data governance and improve overall insight.
Policy Governance: Establish the overall compensation policy governance model and manage the overall process of policy creation, review/update, implementation and deprecation.
Policy Inspection: Inspect existing compensation policies to discover policy gaps and implementation defects and create a solution to address them.
Process Improvement: Review compensation practices to identify process improvement opportunities and create/enhance tools to further automate the process.
Requirement Support: Provide support to product managers to write accurate business requirements to support policy implementation.
Change Communication: Assess change management needs and create an overall communication plan for policy rollout.
Compliance Management: Program manage and partner on legal and compliance projects to ensure Amazon is in compliance with federal, state and local compensation laws and regulations.

15. HR Program Manager Details

Program Administration: Oversee and administer a broad range of Canada HR programs and policies.
Structured Management: Establish a structured approach to managing HR programs.
Training Delivery: Develop and deliver communications and training for the HR team, employees, and leaders to maximize the impact of programs and effect change.
Collaboration Facilitation: Liaise and collaborate with HR team members and leaders to foster awareness of programs, gain sponsorship, ensure successful execution, and optimize effectiveness.
Program Development: Lead the development and implementation of changes to existing HR programs and policies, and of new HR programs in support of corporate strategy.
Data Analysis: Research, analyze, and communicate data and trends to the HR leadership team to influence program planning, establish program goals, and evaluate results.
Process Improvement: Proactively identify and recommend process, program, and policy improvements.
Project Planning: Responsible for formulating the project/program plan, in consultation with management and other parties.
Resource Organization: Responsible for organizing the resources to be used (quality, time, budget, and information) and specifying the quality standard in the processes.
Risk Management: Define the risks of the project/program and develop scenarios to overcome these risks.

16. HR Program Manager Overview

Initiative Development: Support in brainstorming, piloting, and developing new initiatives.
Program Leadership: Serve as the lead for assigned active program(s).
Change Facilitation: Facilitate change management and communications to support programs.
Stakeholder Management: Manage various stakeholders associated with program success.
KPI Tracking: Identify KPIs of programs, track metrics, and report out.
Process Improvement: Identify improvement opportunities to enhance the team member or stakeholder experience and streamline processes.
Framework Creation: Create frameworks and structure through ambiguity.
Implementation Management: Responsible for implementation and realization according to the project/program plan (specification, quality, time, money, information) and organization.
Progress Reporting: Report on the progress of the project/program with an agreed frequency on quality, status, time, and money to senior management and to the project/program members.
Communication Strategy: Coordinate the development and execution of the project communication strategy.
Knowledge Transfer: Ensure that there is an effective transfer and archiving of the project/program results and the associated knowledge.

17. HR Program Manager Details and Accountabilities

Executive Advising: Consult and advise CHRO and C-level Leadership team on HR practices and strategy based on analysis and research.
Project Leadership: Lead several HR and change management projects across Europe.
Project Management: Act as project manager for large cross-functional European HR and change management projects.
Budget Analysis: Analyze, design, advise, and execute on European people budget consolidation and analysis.
Operational Efficiency: Drive operational efficiency, HR system and process improvement.
HR Standardization: Advise and counsel managers and leadership to drive HR standardization.
Journey Program Management: Run the journeys program, establishing a roadmap of customer experiences that warrant a journey solution.
Requirements Gathering: Work with subject matter experts in HR and across Dell Technologies to gather requirements and design customer journeys.
Business Translation: Translate business requirements into IT feature requests.
Application Deployment: Deploy and maintain journeys in ServiceNow and other HR applications that support journeys.

18. HR Program Manager Tasks

Governance Establishment: Establish and sustain a global governance mechanism to receive, authorize, and execute requests to create, modify, or retire letters and documents across geographies and business lines.
Document Inventory: Create and manage an inventory of all new, incumbent, and retired letters and documents, and ensure their completeness, accuracy, and validity.
Employee Advocacy: Champion and incorporate the “Voice of the Employee (VoE)” in all communication with departing employees.
Review Facilitation: Facilitate the bi-annual review of letters and documents globally in partnership with internal stakeholders, including global and local country counterparts in Benefits, Payroll, Legal, IT, and Compliance, among others.
Status Reporting: Report the health and status of programs, projects, and initiatives to stakeholders and leadership.
Change Communication: Lead communication and change management efforts to global and local stakeholders and operational teams on new, modified, or retired letters and documents.
Process Improvement: Lead or participate in streamlining, automation, and customer experience projects and initiatives.
Program Scaling: Identify opportunities to scale successful Consumer programs to the wider EU organization.
Talent Review Delivery: Ensure clear and effective delivery of the Talent Review process.
Document Preparation: Contribute to writing documents for stakeholder reviews (QBRs, OBRs, talent reviews, etc).
Compliance Management: Manage local compliance initiatives triggered by new in-country norms.

19. HR Program Manager Role Purpose

Program Management: Provide programme management for multiple large and/or complex projects working within a multidisciplinary environment, adhering to Trust standards and methodologies.
Activity Coordination: Support and coordinate the activities of Programme Boards, Project Boards, and Project Teams.
Change Leadership: Act as an agent of change, managing change-associated projects by liaising with key individuals at all levels.
Central Contact: Be the central point of contact for project leads and for senior management in relation to the programme.
Communication Management: Be responsible for ensuring project communications are timely and suitably tailored to their target audience.
Senior Representation: Represent the programme at a senior level, ensuring communications are timely and suitably tailored to their target audience.
Stakeholder Engagement: Be responsible for securing full engagement of key stakeholders at all stages of the programme.
Recognition Execution: Monitor and develop recognition program execution plans and timelines and convey high-level plans.
Information Delivery: Ensure the right information about the state of a project is delivered to the right audience at the right time.
Issue Resolution: Identify roadblocks, drive the resolution of problems, and either manage their resolution or ensure a clear hand-off to the right owner.
Priority Influence: Influence program priorities and strategy through data-driven contributions.
Metrics Review: Review metrics and proactively seek out new and improved data/mechanisms for visibility.
Effective Communication: Communicate ideas effectively, verbally and in writing, to a wide range of audiences.

20. HR Program Manager General Responsibilities

Strategic Analysis: Lead strategic projects and short-term deep dives to analyze and solve larger-scale business and organizational problems.
Decision Facilitation: Facilitate communication and decision-making.
Project Execution: Drive and execute project plans, including change management and adoption.
Policy Understanding: Understand numerous, interrelated HR policies, processes, and tools.
Issue Resolution: Quickly resolve issues when they arise and address the root cause.
Process Improvement: Continuously drive improvements and identify automation opportunities to increase quality, improve employee experience, and enable rapid scaling.
Stakeholder Collaboration: Build strong, collaborative relationships with key stakeholders (such as Payroll, People Analytics, Finance, IT, Centers of Excellence, and HR leaders).
Program Tracking: Track the progress of core people programs.
Team Management: Manage stakeholders and project teams to deliver team goals.
Business Mechanisms: Contribute to the development and implementation of business review people mechanisms.
Global Engagement: Engage with global HR leaders to enable the roll-out of global Consumer Tech programs.
Program Delivery: Program management, ownership, and delivery of Consumer Tech people projects.
Strategy Support: Support the HR teams in the effective delivery of the Tech people strategy and support to the various business lines' Tech teams.
Project Contribution: Contribute to EU International Consumer Tech and non-Tech HR projects.

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