The Vice President of Human Resources (VP of HR) provides enterprise-wide executive leadership and accountability for human resources strategy, governance, and operations for a physician-led, integrated medical group. This role serves as the senior-most administrative HR leader and a key executive partner to leadership. The VP of HR reports to the Executive Medical Director and serves as the administrative HR executive counterpart to the physician Chief People Officer (CPO). The VP of HR and CPO operate as a closely aligned people leadership dyad, with distinct and complementary responsibilities, partnering to shape and advance people strategies, organizational priorities, and workforce sustainability within a highly regulated healthcare environment.
As a trusted advisor to executive, physician, and administrative leadership, the VP of HR leads organizational HR strategy, governance, and operating effectiveness across all human resources functions, ensuring alignment with Northwest Permanente’s mission, values, and long-range business objectives. The VP of HR plays a critical leadership role in advancing workforce strategy, organizational development, and talent initiatives, while influencing company-wide priorities through collaboration with regional and national HR partners.
Key Responsibilities -
Strategic Leadership & Partnership
- Serve as the senior administrative HR executive and principal HR advisor to executive and physician leaders on all people-related matters, working in close partnership with the physician CPO.
- Set and advance organization’s HR agenda, ensuring alignment with organizational and operational goals, clinical priorities, and long-range business plans.
- Represent Northwest Permanente in regional and national HR forums, influencing broader Kaiser Permanente and Permanente Medical Group initiatives and ensuring alignment with local priorities.
- Provide executive HR leadership during periods of organizational change, growth, and business transformation, ensuring people strategies are integrated into decision-making.
- Lead enterprise‑level workforce and organizational planning to support clinician sustainability, talent effectiveness, and organizational resilience.
Human Resources Strategy & Operational Governance
- Lead and govern all HR functions, establishing company standards, accountability mechanisms, and operating discipline to ensure HR strategies, policies, and programs advance organizational priorities.
- Establish and leverage HR performance metrics and insights to inform executive decision-making and assess organizational health.
- Provide executive oversight of talent management strategies, including succession planning, leadership development, performance management, and employee engagement.
- Direct the design and governance of compensation, benefits, and total rewards programs to ensure market competitiveness, internal equity, and sustainability.
- Provide executive leadership for organizational development strategy, strengthening effectiveness, ownership, leadership capability, and culture.
- Serve as an executive steward of ethical, inclusive, and legally compliant HR practices, ensuring regulatory adherence and risk mitigation.
- Provide executive oversight of complex employee relations matters, including high-risk investigations and conflict resolution.
- Act with delegated organizational authority on high-impact people, risk, and compliance decisions.
Team Leadership
- Direct and optimize HR functions, resources, budget, structure, and capabilities, including leadership of 50+ direct and indirect reports, to ensure HR infrastructure is aligned with organizational priorities and evolving business needs.
- Set expectations for HR partnership, service effectiveness, and organizational trust through responsive leadership and executive accountability.
- Establish leadership expectations and HR practices that reinforce ownership, engagement, compliance, innovation, collegiality, and a high-trust organizational culture.
Minimum Education and Related Experience:
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Development, or related field required.
- Minimum of 15 years of progressively responsible HR leadership, including senior executive accountability for enterprise-wise HR strategy, governance, operations, compliance, and organizational effectiveness.
- Minimum of 10 years of experience serving as a HR executive partner to C-suite, physician, or equivalent senior leadership, with enterprise-wide authority and responsibility.
- Demonstrated success leading complex, enterprise HR strategies, including workforce planning, executive coaching, organizational design, talent strategy, and compliance/risk mitigation.
- Proven experience leading multi-functional HR teams, including Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards, HR Consulting, HR Operations, and Learning & Development.
- Deep knowledge of employment law, HR compliance, and risk mitigation; healthcare experience strongly preferred.
- Demonstrated sound judgment in complex, high-risk, and confidential situations.
- Excellent executive communication, influence, and relationship-building skills.
Preferred Education, Certifications and Related Experience:
- Master’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Development, or related field required.
- Senior-level HR certifications, such as SHRM-SCP or SPHR.
- Experience in a physician-led, integrated healthcare, academic, legal, or other highly credentialed professional services environment.
About Northwest Permanente
Northwest Permanente is a self-governed, physician-led, multi-specialty group of 1,500 physicians, surgeons, and clinicians, caring for over 600,000 members in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Kaiser Permanente is one of the nation's preeminent health care systems, a benchmark for comprehensive, integrated, value-based, and high-quality care.
Equal Opportunity Employer
Northwest Permanente is an equal opportunity employer committed to fair, respectful, and inclusive workplaces. Applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic or status.
