Director of Human Resources

Hybrid in Andover, MA with regular restaurant travel, this senior HR leadership role supports a growing portfolio across Burtons Grill & Bar and Red Heat. You will set the people strategy, strengthen culture and people development, and ensure HR compliance is always audit-ready and integrated with day-to-day restaurant operations.

The Director of Human Resources is the senior HR leader responsible for defining HR standards and decision rights, owning culture and people development as business strategy, and overseeing the HR team including Payroll and Benefits. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, you will work closely with Operations, Finance, Culinary and Beverage, IT, Marketing, and Training & Development to ensure HR priorities are lived at the restaurant level.

What you will do

• Own HR as one integrated discipline across both brands, accountable for culture, people development, and compliance integrity.
• Balance employment law knowledge and HR process with the belief that a great place to work is a business strategy that fuels growth.
• Navigate the day-to-day reality of balancing culture and compliance, ensuring neither is subordinate to the other.
• Partner with cross-functional teams (Operations, Finance, Culinary and Beverage, IT, Marketing, and Training & Development) so HR strategy is implemented in restaurants.
• Lead the HR team and oversee the Payroll and Benefits function for Burtons and Red Heat.
• Set the standard, judgment, and direction for how HR work is done, including making high-risk calls and building HR capability in the field.
• Champion culture, belonging, and people development as business strategy, not a time-bound initiative.
• Maintain practitioner-level command of HR compliance (wage-and-hour, leave, EEO/EEOC, ADA, documentation, and termination risk) to support restaurant operations.
• Oversee HR systems that can scale across both brands without becoming bureaucratic.
• Translate employment-law requirements into restaurant-usable processes.
• Partner effectively across the organization, including RVPs and GMs in the field and the COO at the leadership table.
• Lead HR as a function by setting priorities, standards, and decision rights as the portfolio grows.
• Own employee experience strategy across both brands, treating engagement and retention as measurable outcomes of a system.
• Own HR compliance standards across both brands and ensure processes are current, complete, and audit-ready at all times.
• Administer compensation strategy that is competitive, internally equitable, and financially sustainable for a multi-unit, multi-brand portfolio.
• Ensure payroll and benefits are accurate, compliant, and run smoothly in partnership with the VP of Finance and COO.

What you bring

• 7+ years of progressive HR leadership experience, ideally within multi-unit restaurant, hospitality, or retail operations.
• Experience leading and developing HR staff, setting standards, and holding others accountable for HR execution.
• Proven ownership of both culture/people development and compliance-heavy HR functions.
• Experience administering compensation programs within a multi-unit organization.
• Direct restaurant or multi-unit hospitality experience, including comfort spending time in restaurants.
• PHR/SPHR or SHRM-CP/SCP preferred; bachelor’s degree in HR, Business, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Excellent judgment under pressure, high discretion with sensitive information, and the communication range to work with hourly employees, GMs, and senior leadership.

Role details

• Location: Hybrid, based in an area of current restaurant concentration or projected growth (Massachusetts, Northern Virginia, Central NJ, or Charlotte, NC)
• Home office expectation: Minimum of 3 days/month
• Travel: Regular travel across the Burtons Grill & Bar and Red Heat restaurant portfolio
• FLSA status: Exempt, full-time
• Salary: USD 100,000 - 130,000 per year
• Reports to: Chief Operating Officer
• Direct reports: HR Operations Manager