How to apply for Director of Global HR Compliance and Operations

About Vital Strategies

Vital Strategies is a global public health organization that partners with governments to design and implement evidence-based policies reducing disease and premature death. It operates seven offices and uses thirteen employer-of-record arrangements, so HR work directly supports public health programs in multiple countries.

About the role

This role leads global HR operations, compliance, and employee services across a multi-country public health organization. You will standardize HR policies and systems while meeting local legal and cultural requirements, oversee global compensation and benefits, manage employee relations, and lead HRIS administration. The work directly supports teams delivering public health programs worldwide.

A typical day

A typical day may include reviewing HR compliance issues across multiple countries, coordinating with HR teams on policy implementation, and managing employee relations matters. You might work on global compensation and benefits tasks, oversee HRIS administration, or prepare for audits and spot-checks. You will need to work across time zones to support seven offices and thirteen EOR arrangements.

Who Vital Strategies is looking for

• At least 15 years of progressive HR experience, including significant global operations and compliance work across multiple jurisdictions.
• Experience in nonprofit, international development, or mission-driven sectors, with knowledge of donor guidelines and regulatory reporting.
• Strong HRIS skills, with UKG experience strongly preferred, plus data governance and system optimization experience.
• Ability to manage complex employee relations, coordinate HR help desk support, and advise managers and HR teams globally.
• Willingness to travel internationally up to 10% and work across multiple time zones.

Tips for this application

• Quantify your global HR scope in your CV: number of countries, offices, EOR arrangements, and employee headcount you supported.
• Name specific HRIS systems you have administered. If you have UKG experience, state it clearly and describe what you did with it.
• Highlight any work with donor guidelines, regulatory reporting, or audits, since this role ensures compliance with donor requirements.
• Show experience balancing global standards with local legal and cultural requirements. Give one or two concrete examples.
• Address the remote UK location and multi-time-zone requirement directly in your application. Confirm you can work across time zones and travel up to 10%.

What to cover in your cover letter

Focus on your experience leading global HR operations across multiple countries and EOR arrangements. Describe how you have standardized HR policies while meeting local legal and cultural requirements. Explain your approach to global compensation and benefits, including salary benchmarking and vendor coordination. Mention your HRIS administration experience, especially UKG if applicable, and how you have used data governance to improve compliance and reporting.

Research before applying

• Review Vital Strategies' public health programs and the countries where they operate to understand the scope of the HR role.
• Look up the seven office locations and think about the labor law environments in those countries.
• Research what employer-of-record arrangements involve and how they affect HR compliance and operations.
• Find out what donor guidelines Vital Strategies follows and how they impact HR compliance and reporting.

Likely interview topics

Based on the job description, expect questions about:

• How you have standardized HR policies across multiple jurisdictions while respecting local legal and cultural differences.
• Your experience managing global compensation and benefits, including salary benchmarking, pay reviews, and annual benefits renewals.
• How you ensure HR compliance with labor laws, regulatory reporting, and donor guidelines, including audits and spot-checks.
• Your hands-on experience with HRIS administration, data governance, and system optimization, particularly UKG.
• How you handle complex employee relations matters and provide guidance to managers and HR teams across different countries.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Focusing only on domestic HR experience without showing global operations and compliance work across multiple countries.
• Ignoring the nonprofit or international development context. This role prefers sector experience, so address it if you have it or explain transferable skills.
• Failing to mention HRIS administration or data governance. The role leads HRIS work and prefers UKG experience.