Principal, Talent Strategy

Job Description

At K&L Gates, we are looking for smart, imaginative and hard-working people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and ideas to join us. Perhaps our search for talented visionaries and your search for important and impactful work lead to the same place.

At K&L Gates, we are looking for smart, imaginative and hard-working people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and ideas to join us. Perhaps our search for talented visionaries and your search for important and impactful work lead to the same place.

This role is a senior individual contributor and strategy leader within the Talent Strategy vertical, serving as a core thought partner to the Director of Talent Strategy and broader HR leadership team.

The position owns the development of enterprise talent frameworks, workforce architecture, and program design across five interconnected pillars: talent strategy, performance and development, talent acquisition, HR operations, and operating model integration.

Unlike a traditional program or project role, this position is accountable for defining “what good looks like”—translating firm strategy into scalable models, frameworks, and tools that shape how talent is hired, developed, evaluated, and deployed globally.

This role operates with a high degree of autonomy and influence, partnering closely with HRLT, HRBPs, and functional leaders to ensure talent strategy is analytically grounded, market-informed, and operationally viable.

• Architect talent strategy frameworks aligned to firm priorities and economic model
• Translate strategy into actionable systems (models, playbooks, decision tools)
• Embed analytics and external benchmarking into all talent decisions
• Drive integration across talent strategy, acquisition, and HR operations
• Talent Strategy & Workforce Architecture (Primary Focus)

• Firmwide workforce architecture and talent segmentation models
• Associate-to-partner career journey framework, including progression milestones and alternative pathways
• Competency models and leadership behavior frameworks aligned to firm strategy
• Employer value proposition (EVP) and talent positioning strategy

• Develop forward-looking talent and leverage models tied to profitability and growth
• Lead external benchmarking across Am Law and professional services firms
• Translate CPO/HRLT priorities into quantitative and conceptual frameworks
• Performance Management & Talent Development

• End-to-end performance management architecture (PDG frameworks, tools, and supporting materials)
• Promotion and advancement frameworks ensuring clarity, rigor, and consistency
• HiPo identification and succession planning models

• Development of all core program collateral (guides, toolkits, training content, communications)
• Design of feedback, calibration, and development planning frameworks
  
  Talent Acquisition & Candidate Strategy

• Differentiated candidate experience strategy for allied professionals
• Employer branding and talent value proposition activation in recruiting

• Market intelligence and sourcing strategy insights
• Analytical support for ATS selection and hiring strategy decisions
• HR Operations & Service Delivery

• Service delivery model and governance frameworks
• Core operational metrics and performance dashboards

• HR operations playbook, including process standards and documentation frameworks
• Data-driven insights on service efficiency and effectiveness
• Operating Model Integration & Transformation

• Integrating talent strategy, recruiting, and HR operations into a unified model
• Building data infrastructure and analytics frameworks to inform workforce decisions

• Development of recurring HRLT insights and reporting dashboards
• Analytical backbone connecting hiring, performance, and workforce planning

• Serve as a strategic advisor to the Director and HRLT on talent-related priorities
• Lead the design and synthesis of complex talent frameworks across multiple domains
• Build executive-ready materials to support decision-making (models, presentations, white papers)
• Establ…