Overview
Vice President of People Jobs in Boston, MA at The Trustees of Reservations
Who We Are:
Founded in 1891 by a group of visionary volunteers, The Trustees of Reservations (The Trustees) is Massachusetts’ premier conservation and preservation organization. The Trustees’ preserves, for public use and enjoyment, properties of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value in Massachusetts. Our properties are open to all, and we thrive by involving as many people as possible in all that we do. We aim to protect special places for future generations to enjoy in perpetuity, and have helped protect more than 50,000 acres, including 27,000+ acres on more than 120 reservations that are open to the public. As a non-profit conservation organization, we are funded and supported entirely by our visitors, supporters, volunteers, and our 100,000 Member households. We encourage you to learn more about The Trustees on our website, www.thetrustees.org.
Posting Information:
Salary/Hourly Rate: $165,000 – $195,000
Hours per week: 40
Job Classification: Full-time, exempt
Job Type: Hybrid
Location: Boston, MA
What You’ll Do:
Your Impact:
As Vice President of People, you will play a critical role in shaping and scaling a high-impact people strategy for one of the most dynamic conservation nonprofits in the country. You will lead and grow a team of HR professionals delivering a broad range of people services and programs to a diverse, statewide workforce. Your mandate: to scale and institutionalize newly transformed people operations and employee enablement systems.
You will report to and serve as a key thought partner to the Chief Operating Officer, while working closely with other senior leadership and regional teams—ensuring The Trustees can attract, retain, and grow exceptional talent in support of our strategic vision.
The Role:
This is a senior leadership opportunity for an accomplished and systems-savvy people leader with deep fluency in organizational design, workforce planning, HR technology, and leadership development.
Specifically, you’ll:
Strategic Leadership & People Operations
Translate our organizational strategy into a scalable, progressive people operations plan that supports a high-performing and mission-driven workforce
Build systems and processes that are effective, flexible, and well-communicated—especially in the areas of compliance, performance management, compensation, and benefits
Advance internal policies that are equitable, legally sound, and easy for managers and employees to use
Serve as the organization’s lead strategist for HR technology and analytics; champion the use of data to inform people decisions, measure impact, and uncover workforce trends
Partner with IT and Finance to drive adoption, integration, and optimization of our HRIS and related tools (e.g., Paylocity, Workable, Ethena)
Talent Development & Executive Coaching
Lead the design and implementation of leadership development strategy and organizational learning across the organization
Coach executive and senior leaders to improve their effectiveness, engagement, and ability to lead teams through change
Build internal frameworks for manager effectiveness, onboarding, and internal mobility
Management & Culture
Direct and support a team of People Partners and specialists providing high-quality, day-to-day HR support to staff across the organization
Set a clear vision for the team’s success, emphasizing collaboration, responsiveness, and operational excellence
Define, model and foster a customer-service mindset within the People function
Contribute actively to and set a standard for an inclusive, values-driven culture rooted in trust, curiosity, and shared purpose
Collaborate with colleagues across departments to strengthen diversity, belonging, inclusion, and equity (DBIE) initiatives
Design and lead initiatives to enhance employee engagement and retention across our varied work settings
The most important outcomes you will deliver in your first year include:
Delivering the People Team’s annual objectives and key results in alignment with Trustees’ strategic priorities
Finalizing and rolling out a new, equitable compensation framework that is simple, scalable, and transparent
Reimagining performance management with a modern, growth-oriented approach that integrates feedback, goal-setting, and development
Building a comprehensive leadership development strategy—including cohort-based learning, coaching, and career progression tools—for current and emerging leaders
Assessing and strengthening the People Team structure, skills, and workflows to support continued growth, operational maturity, and local responsiveness
Introducing core workforce planning capabilities—developing tools and practices for anticipating needs, managing succession, and identifying strategic roles
Ensuring on-the-ground presence across regions—building stronger People Team visibility, relationships, and insight into employee needs and experience
This is a full-time, exempt position (40 hours/week) reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer.
Requirements
What You’ll Need:
Skills and Experience:
10–15+ years of progressive HR experience, including leadership of a people function in a complex, distributed, and mission-driven organization; experience leading HR in organizations with a significant number of hourly, non-exempt employees—including those in hard-to-staff or seasonal roles—is strongly preferred
Experience leading in regionalized or matrixed environments, with the ability to influence and navigate complexity while helping others do the same
A strength-based leadership style grounded in coaching, empowerment, and accountability—someone who develops others by enabling their strengths, not micromanagement
A people-first mindset that views employees as partners in fulfilling our mission—not as a competing interest to organizational needs
Hands-on experience with workforce planning, especially data-informed forecasting, talent pipeline development, and succession planning in diverse work environments
Advanced proficiency in workplace technology tools, including the ability to develop compelling, data-rich materials (e.g., Excel dashboards, PowerPoint decks) for senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams
A strong presence across geographies, with the ability and enthusiasm to frequently travel across the state to build relationships and stay close to the experience of regional and frontline teams
A proven track record in coaching senior leaders and building systems for leadership development, manager training, and internal talent mobility
HR tech fluency, including experience deploying and optimizing systems like Paylocity, Workable, and Ethena—and using data analytics to improve decision-making
Strong project management, communication, and problem-solving skills, with a highly collaborative, grounded leadership style
Eligibility Criteria:
Current authorization to work in the United States – a candidate must have such authorization by his or her first day of employment.
A satisfactory criminal background (CORI) check.
Don’t quite have all the skills and experience listed above? We still want to hear from you! Research shows that historically marginalized groups are less likely to apply if they do not meet every single requirement. We are committed to building a diverse team and encourage you to apply even if you are missing some of the skills and experience above.
Questions? Contact our People team at [email protected]!
Benefits
Your Benefits:
Sick time: 120 hours per year
Vacation time: 20 days per year (prorated)
Holiday time: 12 set holidays, 3 floating
Health insurance: You are eligible to participate in the Trustees health insurance benefit via Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS). BCBS also offers additional benefits, such as fitness reimbursement and rewards for healthy habits.
Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Insurance
Massachusetts Paid Family Medical Leave
Life Insurance
401k with 5% match after 1 year of employment
Employee Assistance Program: Free access to a confidential service that helps employees and their communities with personal and work-related issues, such as mental health support, counseling, and financial advice.
Reciprocity: Employees have access to free and discounted admission and membership to more than 50 nearby museums and cultural institutions.
Discounts: Enjoy free entry to all Trustees properties, discount event tickets, and discounted merchandise at our stores and on stays at our inns.
Day of Wonder: Spend one workday per year to exploring a Trustees property
Day of Service: Spend one workday per year to helping with a project at a Trustees property
Equal Opportunity and Diversity:
The Trustees is a proud equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any protected status including, but not limited to, age, race, ethnicity, sex, gender, sexual preferences, nation of origin, religion, or disability status and strongly encourages applications from people of color, persons with varying abilities, women, and LGBTQ+ applicants. We aspire to reflect and effectively serve the residents and communities of Massachusetts, who are at the core of our mission.
The Trustees’ commitment to advancing the organization’s vision for this work may be found here: Diversity, Belonging, Inclusion and Equity.
It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible work environment. To request reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please contact us at [email protected].
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Title: Vice President of People
Company: The Trustees of Reservations
Location: Boston, MA
