Overview
The HR Consulting organization at Microsoft empowers business performance and fosters an inclusive culture through human-centered, data-driven, and AI-powered coaching and global solutions for managers and employees.
We are seeking a transformational HR Consulting Leader for Japan. This role is a critical part of the Asia HR Consulting Leadership Team and will lead the HR Consulting function across a diverse and dynamic geography. The leader will be responsible for delivering global People ROB (Rhythm of Business) programs and processes with agility, ensuring human-centered experiences that align with strategic business priorities.
Japan is one of Microsoft’s largest and fastest-growing markets in Asia, with a critical role in the company’s global AI and cloud strategy. This role will parter with our Japan managers, employees & leadership team in accelerating enterprise-wide digital transformation for the country, unlocking productivity and enabling a new wave of AI-driven innovation in Japan.
Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.
Responsibilities
**People Leadership **
- Embodies the Model, Coach & Care principles. Manages, coaches, and grows a team of HR professionals while fostering an inclusive culture that enables the team members to thrive and do their best work every day.
- Influences opportunities that will enable the HR function to evolve and improve the HR operating model while keeping Employee Experience at the center of our decisions.
**Employee Experience **
- Informs strategic opportunities for collaboration with the One HR community and drive greater operational effectiveness of the HR Consulting team. Leverages technology and agile methodology to develop quality solutions with speed, ensure key stakeholders are integrated throughout product design, and measure success and impact of solutions/programs.
- Champions employee experiences by looking beyond process implementation into the lived experiences of employees, managers, and leaders. Provides a vision for and plan for developing programs and activities aimed at creating a positive workplace environment.
**Employee Relations **
- Holds their team accountable to resolve issues with the highest complexity, visibility, and risk; addresses misconducts and other serious employee behaviors in partnership with leadership, peers in HR and Legal profession; establishes and manages the internal escalation process and ensures all escalations are addressed within agreed timelines.
- Facilitates an open, inclusive, Microsoft values-based environment that enables effective employee relations for a business, region, or geography; guides their team to serve as an objective employee resource and escalation path; may serve as an expert and representative of Microsoft at industry forums, meetings, or events to present and share insights and influence policies.
**HR Solutions Consulting **
- Holds their team accountable in providing consulting services to business leaders on HR programs, processes, and initiatives; identifies or anticipates needs to improve the managed processes based on analysis; supports peer HR leaders to implement large-scale programs and drive consistency in program delivery within a business, region, or geography; leads the collaboration and partnership within the HR community.
- Leads data analytics and organizational health diagnostics by creating analysis plans and leading the collaboration with HRBPs; generates and/or presents trends and insights on organizational health solutions; recommends action plans to business leaders based on analytics and business/local needs.
**Capability Building **
- Identifies the appropriate approach and leverages resources to enhance manager capability; guides their team to provide one-on-one consulting/coaching with senior/executive business leaders, or by engaging relevant stakeholders and HR partners in capability building conversations.
- Leads their area in the collaboration with peer disciplines or professions (e.g., Talent Management, Learning and Development), as well as global HR partners, to contribute insights, leverage resources, and provide capability building support for the leadership of a business, region, or geography via scalable projects, programs, and/or initiatives (e.g., manager excellence community, manager capability, onboarding, team-building, rewards communication).
- Manages training needs identified within the business, region, or geography supported; develops implementation plans to address the training needs identified, and partners with peer Human Resource disciplines in developing and coordinating respective trainings as needed.
**HR Project and Programs **
- Leads their team to partner with Centers of Excellence on implementing and capitalizing on scalable HR programs and processes (e.g., ROB, performance and development cycle, management excellence communities, employee movement, ad-hoc projects); manages HR processes for a business, region, or geography by aligning talent plans with business strategic goals.
- Guides and oversees the identification of needs to design and implement local HR projects or programs (e.g., critical positions retention, mid-year performance checkpoint) in partnership with business leaders and HR partners; oversees project planning and execution.
- Gathers and interprets industry trends about HR programs and processes and identifies execution or communication gaps within a business, region, or geography; develops and proposes action plans to address the gaps in collaboration with peer disciplines (e.g., HRBPs) and business leaders.
**Operational Compliance **
- Interprets and advocates Microsoft values and compliance with HR policies for a business, region, or geography; identifies/raises needs to mitigate potential risks by collaborating with the Legal profession; leads their team in the collaboration with peers in other businesses, regions, or geographies; provides guidance to create standardized/scalable approach for enhancing compliance.
- Identifies the strategy for the localization/update of policies and procedures related to managed projects and programs; gains approval from business leadership in partnerships with HR policy owners and HRBPs.
Qualifications
**Required Qualifications **
9+ years experience in Human Resources, HR policies, HR programs & transformations, etc.
- OR Bachelor’s Degree AND 7+ years experience in Human Resources, HR policies, HR programs & transformations, etc.
Prior exposure and deep understanding of HR practices, employment law, local regulations in Japan.
Strong fluency in Japanese and business-level (or higher) fluency in English.
**Preferred Qualifications **
- 3+ years people management experience.
- Demonstrated experience with AI and automation technologies in HR or business operations.
- Strong collaboration and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence across functions and geographies.
- Strong learning agility, strategic mindset with a bias for action and a passion for innovation.
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about **requesting accommodations.**