Operations Director Jobs in Ridgefield, WA (NOW HIRING)

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization: 

At adidas, we have a very clear mission: “to be the best sports brand in the world¨; and a very passionate purpose: “Through sport, we have the power to change lives.” This guiding principles shapes how we operate as a company, how we collaborate with our partners, how we create our products, and how we connect with our consumers. Our values represent essential behaviors, reflecting a winning mindset we strive to see in every team member.  

This same purpose and mindset are at the heart of Global Business Services (GBS) the team that delivers consistent, end-to-end business solutions across adidas. By driving process excellence and operational efficiency, GBS enables our partners to focus on what matters most: creating impact. 

The Director of HR services NAM would be responsible for leading and optimizing HR Services operations across NAM, including Payroll administration and service delivery. Provides strategic and operational leadership to ensure efficient, compliant, and high-quality execution of HR processes, with a strong focus on Payroll accuracy, controls, and regulatory adherence. Oversees day-to-day operations, driving performance, standardization, and continuous improvement across North America. Leads and develops high-performing teams, ensuring workflows are effectively managed to meet critical deadlines. Acts as a strategic partner to senior leadership, enhancing the HR operating model, systems, and service delivery to deliver a seamless, consistent, and employee-centric experience while fostering a culture of excellence and accountability.  

Key Responsibilities: 

• Drive the GBS HR roadmap for HR Services, with strong focus on Payroll excellence, execution, and operational efficiency.  

• Lead the design and implementation of HR Services and Payroll solutions, including business cases, timelines, and deployment plans.  

• Ensure global harmonization and standardization of HR Services and Payroll processes, controls, and practices.  

• Oversee end-to-end payroll operations across the region, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with local legislation and tax regulations.  

• Define and prioritize HR services and payroll processes, workflows, and system requirements in alignment with Group and Market.  

• Establish and document roles, responsibilities, and governance models for HR Services and Payroll.  

• Partner with HR, Rewards, and Global Tech to define, implement, and optimize HR Services and Payroll systems.  

• Develop and enforce Payroll policies, controls, and procedures to ensure consistency, audit readiness, and risk mitigation.  

• Ensure compliance with global policies, internal controls, data privacy regulations, and support internal and external audits.  

• Define and monitor HR Services and Payroll SLAs, KPIs, performance metrics, driving continuous improvement and service excellence.  

• Act as the escalation point for HR Services and Payroll issues, leading resolution, root cause analysis, and process improvements.  

• Manage vendor relationships and outsourced Payroll providers, ensuring service quality and alignment with regional strategy.  

• Lead and develop high-performing teams, setting clear goals aligned with GBS strategy and fostering a culture of accountability, customer centricity, and continuous improvement.  

• Act as a role model in compliance with the relevant laws and regulations as well as adidas’ Fair Play Code of Conduct and other internal policies and company agreements.  

Key Relationships: 

• HR Stakeholders: HR Business Partners, Rewards, Cross Border Employment (CBE), Talent Management  

• Global Tech HR 

• Finance (Controlling, Financial Shared Service Center, Group Taxes) 

• Tax authorities 

• GBS Operations and Process Excellence teams  

• External authorities, consultants, and suppliers  

• Legal department  

• Payroll and Tax vendors  

Leadership capabilities for Directors: 

EXCEL 
• Live your passion for the brand: Promotes brand passion and visibility by acting as a brand ambassador. Engages diverse communities and encourages consumer-centric thinking within the team.  
• Act like it’s your own company: Drives sustainable growth by aligning local actions with global strategy. Identifies opportunities for improvement and manages performance with a lasting growth mindset. 
• Think Bigger and Beyond: Encourages innovation by embracing new ideas and technologies. Fosters psychological safety, supports risk-taking, and views failures as learning opportunities. 

EMPOWER 
• Build a diverse team & foster inclusion: Creates inclusive, supportive environments by role-modeling collaboration and building diverse teams. Ensures equitable opportunities aligned with individual needs.  
• Engage and inspire: Inspires and motivates through credible leadership and clear, engaging communication. Promotes health and psychological well-being across the team.  
• Develop talent: Drives continuous employee development by recognizing potential, ensuring fair access to growth opportunities, and fostering a strong feedback culture. 

ELEVATE 
• Deliver results: Translates strategy into measurable goals and empowers teams to act autonomously, ensuring timely and impactful decision-making. 
• Promote accountability: Aligns actions with company expectations, mediates conflicts constructively, and takes courageous decisions when necessary.  
• Continue to grow yourself: Seeks feedback, promotes a culture of learning and knowledge sharing, and approaches growth with humility and curiosity.  

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities 

• Ability to establish a strong rapport and professional credibility with individuals in order to influence at all levels of the organization, especially senior management in the region. 

• Ability to objectively coach employees and management through complex and difficult topics related to Payroll and HR Operations. 

• Must possess strong analytical skills to assess data, facts, and figures used to develop strategies designed to improve the business operations. 

• Comfortable operating under high workload and juggling competing priorities 

• Advanced MS Office Skills 

• Ability to function independently and solve problems with minimal direction 

• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information in a professional manner 

• Excellent influence, interpersonal, communication, problem solving, follow-up and creative solution generation skills 

• Demonstrated presentation and facilitation skills to all employees including senior management. 

• Ability to coach, guide, manage and develop direct reports.  

• Ability to effectively delegate work as appropriate and provide individual goals and development plans to staff. 

• Strong expertise in Payroll processing, time management, taxes, and Payroll administration.  

• Solid knowledge of local labor laws, tax regulations, and statutory compliance.  

• Experience managing Payroll vendors and outsourced service providers.  

• Background in shared services environments with strong understanding of HR cycles and processes.  

• Proficiency in HR systems (SAP HR, SuccessFactors/Employee Central) and MS Office tools.  

• Strong process improvement mindset with ability to simplify and optimize HR Services operations.  

• Ability to manage high-volume environments, work under pressure, and meet strict deadlines.  

• Excellent stakeholder management, communication, and influencing skills across diverse, global teams, especially at the highest level in the region (SVP of Finance and HR) 

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Finance, or related field 

• English required Spanish is a plus 

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications  : 

Four-year college or university degree with emphasis in Business Administration, Human Resources Management, Personnel Administration or other related field.  

Minimum 8 years of experience in HR Services, Payroll including leadership experience.  

Equivalent combination of education and experience may be substituted in lieu of a degree. 

At adidas, we offer a Hybrid work policy which requires attendance in the office Monday through Thursday (with 80% of the workday spent in the office), with the flexibility to work remotely on Friday each week. For work requiring a high degree of collaboration or an in-person presentation, in-office attendance is required even on Friday.   

• adidas celebrates diversity, supports inclusiveness and encourages individual expression in our workplace. We actively encourage individuals with disabilities to apply and will provide reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. We do not tolerate the harassment or discrimination toward any of our applicants or employees. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer.  
• adidas offers robust and progressive medical, including HSA (Health Savings Account) with employer funding or FSA (Flexible Spending Account) options, dental, vision, prescription drug coverage, adoption, with surrogate and fertility support, short and long-term disability, and basic life and AD&D insurance, which can be supplemented with employee-paid coverage. Employees are able to enroll in adidas’ 401k plan and Stock Purchase Plan with employer match. Full-time employees are eligible for education assistance and generous Leave policies including 12 weeks of paid parental leave. ​
• Employees are eligible to earn an annual bonus based on both company and personal performance. Employees accrue prorated flexible time off in the amount .4388 hours per day that increases with years of service, twelve paid holidays throughout the calendar year and Service Time Off during milestone years.​
• At adidas we offer a Hybrid work policy which requires attendance in the office Monday through Thursday, with the flexibility to work remotely on Friday each week. For work requiring a high degree of collaboration or an in-person presentation, in-office attendance is required even on Friday.  The working location of this position is Portland, Oregon.​
• Though our teammates hail from all corners of the world, our working language is English.