Vice President, People And Culture

Vice President, People & Culture

About Us

Summit Nanotech is a fast-growing, venture-backed global scale-up, disrupting how the world accesses lithium for the global energy transition. Through our proprietary and sustainable Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology, Summit Nanotech is conserving natural resources and optimizing operations for lithium producers in Chile and Argentina.

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Summit Nanotech has been recognized as one of Canada's most investable cleantech ventures by the 2022 Foresight 50, included in the Future 50 list of Canada's fastest-growing sustainability companies, a recipient of the 2021 MaRS Women in Cleantech Challenge, and the Solar Impulse Foundation's Efficient Solutions Label. To learn more about us, visit our website or LinkedIn.

About You

Summit Nanotech is seeking a visionary and strategic Vice President of People and Culture to join our cleantech-focused company. We are looking for a mission and values-driven leader who can roll up their sleeves and take Summit Nanotech to the next level of growth. This individual will embody our values of humility, empathy, adaptability, relentlessness, and transparency. The ideal candidate is a thought leader who brings a modern business partner mindset to how people and culture solutions are prioritized and executed.A leader who operates with a growth mindset coaches other business leaders, and champions creativity and innovation in all that you do.

The ideal candidate will bring an interest and understanding of the business of the cleantech industry, previous experience in a high growth/scale-up environment and will play a pivotal role in evolving the culture to foster high performance, ownership, accountability, and continuous learning.

The Role

This is a strategic leadership role that reports to the Chief Executive Officer. You will act as a strategic partner to the leadership team, working together to achieve our business objectives. Your primary focus will be on developing and implementing recruitment strategies to support high-volume recruitment in Chile and Canada, agile HR systems and practices, implementing a performance management framework, and instilling a continuous learning culture at all levels of the organization.

You will need a strong understanding of HR best practices and a proven track record of implementing and managing effective HR programs. You will be passionate about people, experienced in building trust in collaborative work environments, and approach your work with curiosity. You will adapt leading-edge people and culture workplace practices and policies to meet the ever-changing needs of our team.

You will lead and grow a team of experienced and talented People and Culture professionals, based in Calgary and Chile. As a dynamic and self-directed leader, you will be committed to cultivating a culture that enables the organization to deliver innovative lithium extraction technology while caring for people, communities, and the planet.

This hybrid role is based in Calgary, Alberta. Local and international travel to other Summit offices (Chile, USA, etc.) may be required from time to time based on business needs.

If you are a mission-driven business partner who is passionate about building a people-centric, high-performance culture that attracts top talent to create a cleaner tomorrow, we want to hear from you! We encourage applications from candidates based anywhere in Canada who are willing to relocate to Calgary Alberta.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Provide guidance and support to leaders and employees on people-related issues.
• Ensure compliance with all relevant employment laws and regulations.
• Develop and implement diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives identifying opportunities for improvement and developing strategies to address issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Work closely with leaders across the organization to ensure our people programs, processes, policies, and systems are aligned with our business goals and milestones.
• Foster a workplace that prioritizes Summit’s values and a sense of psychological safety.
• Build and lead a world-class People & Culture team that can support our growth and provide meaningful opportunities for employees to contribute to both the business and their personal development.
• Act with the employee experience at the forefront by continually seeking feedback, identifying inefficiencies, and maintaining business relationships based on trust and respect.
• Develop recruitment and retention strategies that promote healthy workplaces and high performance.
• Function as a hands-on, strategic partner to the business in designing and implementing a scalable people and culture strategy.
• Responsible for the department budget to ensure effective use of resources.
• Stay abreast of industry trends and best practices related to HR.
• Manage the company’s total rewards programs, including oversight of employee stock option grants.
• Advise the leadership team and/or work with external counsel on employee relations issues, which may include disciplinary and termination processes.

Skills & Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive HR experience in strategic HR roles.
• Strong interpersonal skills to build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders and team members.
• The ability to communicate (verbally and in writing) in Spanish is considered an asset.
• Proven experience as a strategic HR leader in a high-growth, venture-backed technology company.
• Understanding of global employment laws including Canada, USA, Chile, and other countries in Latin and South American countries.
• Demonstrated success in building and optimizing recruitment processes to attract and retain top talent.
• Excellent analytical and project management skills, with the ability to manage budgets, KPI’s and results across all locations.
• Moves fast with a bias for action and effective change management experience and execution.
• Ability to proactively analyze and resolve problems.
• Strong understanding of talent acquisition, performance management, and total rewards strategies.
• Experience working with a founder.
• Understanding of the tax, legal, compensation and immigration issues associated with a global workforce.
• Strong leadership skills and the ability to influence and inspire others.
• Deep understanding of organizational culture and the ability to drive cultural change.
• Experience in developing and implementing performance management frameworks and initiatives.

Summit Nanotech is an equal opportunity employer, and we are dedicated to fostering an inclusive and barrier-free work environment for all employees and candidates. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply and if accommodation is required during any stage of the recruitment process, please contact any member of the Management team. We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for interviews will be contacted.