Director Associate Engagement

Position Overview

The Director of Associate Engagement and Experience serves as a key strategic leader responsible for shaping the associate lifecycle to drive alignment with Burlington's business goals, values, and culture. This role leads the design and execution of enterprise-wide initiatives that strengthen associate engagement, improve retention, and reinforce organizational effectiveness through culture-building and engagement activations. With accountability for Burlington's continuous associate listening strategy (focus groups, listening sessions, insight synthesis), enterprise engagement events, associate recognition strategy, and experience design, this leader translates workforce insights into actionable priorities, working closely with senior executives and functional leaders to embed engagement into business operations and visible associate-facing actions.

The role is charged with developing scalable programs, frameworks, and metrics that measure and enhance the associate experience across all levels of the organization by combining insight generation with engagement activation. This position is instrumental in advancing a data-informed approach to building a high-performance culture where associates are connected, motivated, and equipped to deliver results and where listening consistently leads to action.

• Define and lead a forward-looking strategy for associate listening and experience design that directly supports Burlington's evolving business priorities and drives measurable engagement outcomes.

• Ensure alignment between associate experience initiatives and the needs of key internal partners, particularly HR and people managers.

• Serve as a trusted advisor and subject matter expert in associate engagement and workplace experience, guiding organizational practices and priorities.

• Influence culture by synthesizing insights and sharing best practices across the enterprise to promote consistency, alignment, and growth.

• Expand Burlington's external footprint by engaging in industry forums, professional associations, and thought leadership opportunities to stay ahead of trends and apply emerging best practices.

• Lead Burlington's continuous listening strategy, including focus groups, listening sessions, and targeted pulse moments, to uncover patterns and opportunities in the associate experience.

• Translate complex data and qualitative themes into accessible, actionable insights and consult with executive leadership to guide decision-making and business strategy.

• Develop frameworks for tracking progress and measuring impact of engagement and experience efforts over time including closed-loop feedback and action planning mechanisms.

• Direct the end-to-end continuous listening process, from session design and facilitation through insight synthesis and executive readouts, ensuring a consistent and scalable approach.

• Architect and oversee programs that shape the associate experience through high-impact touchpoints such as onboarding, offboarding, enterprise engagement events, recognition moments, and internship programs; identify additional moments that can be designed for an enhanced associate experience.

• Build and lead a high-performing team across Listening and Insights, and Experience Design, including enterprise engagement events and recognition programming; instill a culture of accountability, innovation, and cross-functional collaboration.

• Establish clear goals, processes, and expectations to drive team effectiveness and outcomes.

• Act as a connector across the organization—partnering closely with HR, Communications, Events/Recognition, and other functions to integrate associate experience into broader initiatives and operational plans, while setting strategy and ensuring the delivery of enterprise engagement events and recognition; act and lead with a customer-centric point of view.

• Strategically manage the team's budget, ensuring financial discipline and optimal allocation of resources to support goals and drive ROI across listening,…