Associate, Workforce & Organizational Strategy

Role Description

SMBC, a prominent global financial institution, has experienced significant growth and success in our journey through the Americas Division (AD). The newly formed Organizational Strategy Center of Excellence (CoE), within HR, will work to align SMBC’s structure, talent, culture, and capabilities with business strategy, cost discipline, and growth.  We partner across HR, Finance, and Senior Business Leaders to drive organizational design, workforce and capacity planning, and skills and capability development through enterprise scalable, data-informed approaches.  As an important member of the CoE, this role supports more senior team members across the Organizational Strategy team with research, analysis, and develop support materials to drive effective workforce and organizational solutions across planning, design, and capability initiatives.  This is an exciting opportunity for early career organizational development practitioners to further develop their skills and gain exposure to enterprise and functional business strategies. 

Role Objectives

• Support the Organizational Strategy team with enterprise approaches and project-based work to drive effective workforce and organizational solutions across planning, design, and capability initiatives. 
• Assist in cross-functional projects by providing data analysis, visuals, and preparation materials. 
• Maintain planning templates, project trackers, and organizational diagnostics. 
• Conduct research and analysis related to organizational design, skills and capability building, workforce planning, and organizational culture change. 
• Assist in intake, stakeholder engagement, synthesis of insights, change management planning and execution, and deliverable creation. 
• Develop playbooks, toolkits, and support materials to enable consistent application of methodologies and to support stakeholder alignment, education, and adoption. 

Qualifications and Skills

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Business Administration, or a related field (Masters Degree a plus). 
• 3-6 years of experience in human capital consulting or HR project-oriented / internal consulting roles, with a focus on organizational design, workforce planning, skills management, and/or strategic organizational transformation. 
• Strong analytical and diagnostic skills, with the ability to interpret organizational data and translate insights into actionable strategies.  Curiosity to ask thoughtful diagnostic questions. 
• Demonstrated ability to support change initiatives, including culture change, in complex, matrixed environments, with structured methodologies and practical application. 
• Excellent research and analysis skills related to organizational design, skills and capability building, workforce planning, and organizational culture change. 
• Proven ability to maintain planning templates, project trackers, and organizational diagnostics. 
• Strong consultative and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trusted partnerships across functions and adapt communications to diverse stakeholders. 
• Ability to develop business acumen and knowledge of HR best practices, with demonstrated motivation to quickly learn business models, team structures, and role accountabilities across diverse functions. 
• Commitment to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace culture.  
• Embody and promote the organization’s core values in all initiatives and behaviors. 

Who Will Succeed in This Role

You might be an ideal candidate if you: 

• Thrive in ambiguity and are energized by bringing ideas. You’re excited by the opportunity to be part of a new team, and you are vocal in proactively bringing ideas and recommendations versus awaiting direction at each step. 
• Desire to develop strong business acumen and a systems mindset. You see the big picture and understand that as business strategy evolves, organizational strategy and design must evolve. You’re eager to grow in your use of data and insights to guide decisions and anticipate future needs. 
• Are a relationship builder and cross-functional influencer. You excel at building credibility with diverse stakeholders and you understand that approaches need to adapt to navigate a matrixed environment and gain alignment on sensitive topics without formal authority.  Under the guidance of senior team members, you can translate complex methodologies and disparate data into approachable language and content for others.
• Balance compliance with innovation. You’re comfortable in regulated industries and understand how to drive change while honoring legal, risk, and cultural considerations—a plus for experience in a Japanese corporate context. 

Who This Role is Not For

This role may not be a good fit if: 

• You rely primarily on academic or theoretical knowledge. While we desire the rigor that you bring from educational background or other HR roles, this role requires someone who has applied org design and consultative approaches to organizational strategy concepts in real-world settings—navigating ambiguity, influencing stakeholders, and adapting to business realities. 
• You prefer a steady-state environment. If you’re most comfortable with well-established processes and predictable routines with low ambiguity, the newness of this role and team may feel misaligned. 
• You don’t gravitate towards the numbers. This role requires motivation to grow your skills in analytics, pattern recognition, detailed cost analysis and ability to balance financial and people objectives. 

Additional Requirements