Director, HR Business Partner & Japan EX Lead

The opportunity

Adobe is seeking a strategic HR Director, responsible for enabling the continued growth of the Japan business. Reporting into the VP. Head of Employee Experience – JAPAC, this leader will be responsible for providing strategic leadership and exceptional partnership to the Japan President and business leaders across all functions and elevating the Employee Experience in Japan.

S/he will be responsible for developing regional organizational and people strategies to support Adobe’s growth objectives through strategic partnering with the Centers of Excellence and functional leaders across Japan. Additionally, s/he will ensure operational rigor across all systems and processes, to enable the organization to scale in a highly efficient manner while ensuring ease of doing business.

This leader will be responsible for overseeing and driving all HR Business Partner strategy across all client groups which are comprised of various Sales and Marketing teams, Professional Services, and Customer Experience.

This role is a key member of the Japan Leadership Team. In this role, this leader will drive our people and culture initiatives through the leadership team. Additionally, this person will bring together the Exployee Experience team in Japan and partner to ensure that our Employee Experience priorities are aligned with the business and driving business performance.

What you'll do

• Director, HR Business Partner & Japan Lead will be responsible for ensuring organizational alignment and effectiveness through effective partnership with the all of the business functions.

• Serve as a trusted senior business partner to our senior leader community (Senior Directors and above) to drive overall organizational effectiveness. S/he will provide thought leadership in the areas of: workforce planning, organizational design, resource/OpEx allocation, performance optimization, performance management, talent assessment & engagement, business integration (M&A), and change management leadership.

• Also, S/he will provide objective data-based perspectives on relevant organizational and People Resources issues and recommend and implement appropriate strategies to address the organizational issues.

• In addition, S/he will provide leadership in the areas of organizational design, organizational development, talent development, change management processes and process re-engineering.

• This person will partner with senior executives to diagnose complex organizational design and development needs, facilitating complex organizational discussions/problem solving while maintaining a high level of leadership engagement and involvement. This will include designing the strategy for employee and organizational capabilities.

• This person will drive the talent management process, alignment of resources to top priorities, and build capabilities needed to achieve a stated vision and strategy.

• Another key area of focus will be to sustain and advance positive organizational culture in alignment with adobe values.

• This person must be adept at advising and challenging senior leaders, in order to “stretch” the organization and build capability to support future growth.

• Instill a culture that resonates with Adobe’s values of Create the Future, Own the Outcome, Raise the Bar, and Be Genuine.

What you need to succeed

• 15+ years of HR experience including team management and serving as an HR Business Partner to senior leaders in a global, matrixed organization.

• Strong business insight, connecting people strategies to company priorities.

• Proven experience operating in the Japan market, with strong understanding of local business dynamics, culture, and stakeholder expectations.

• Proven experience in organizational development and leading through change.

• Proven ability to develop relationships and partnerships (internal and external) at all levels of the organization, including influencing and coaching senior leaders.

• Ability to influence across levels, roles, cultures, and geographies Experience designing, implementing, and leading large initiatives.

• Strategic outlook with a proactive problem-solving approach. Agility to navigate ambiguity and prioritize effectively.

• Energy, drive and commitment to the task. Speed and agility is critical.

• Strong verbal and written communication skills both in English and Japanese

About Adobe

Adobe empowers everyone to create through innovative platforms and tools that unleash creativity, productivity and personalized customer experiences. Adobe’s industry-leading offerings including Adobe Acrobat Studio, Adobe Express, Adobe Firefly, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Experience Manager, and GenStudio enable people and businesses to turn ideas into impact, powered by AI and driven by human ingenuity.

Our 30,000+ employees worldwide are creating the future and raising the bar as we drive the next decade of growth. We’re on a mission to hire the very best and believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. At Adobe, we believe that great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization. The next big idea could be yours.

Let’s Adobe together

At Adobe, we believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. Learn more about Adobe life, including our values and culture ↗ (external site), focus on people, purpose and community ↗ (external site), Adobe for All ↗ (external site), comprehensive benefits programs ↗ (external site), the stories we tell ↗ (external site), the customers ↗ (external site) we serve, and how you can help us advance our mission of empowering everyone to create.

Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity ↗ (external site) employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Learn more. ↗ (external site)

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AI Use Guidelines for Interviews:

Our interviews are designed to reflect your own skills and thinking. The use of AI or recording tools during live interviews is not permitted unless explicitly invited by the interviewer or approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation. If these tools are used inappropriately or in a way that misrepresents your work, your application may not move forward in the process.

At Adobe, we empower employees to innovate with AI — and we look for candidates eager to do the same. As part of the hiring experience, we provide clear guidance on where AI is encouraged during the process and where it’s restricted during live interviews. See how we think about AI in the hiring experience ↗ (external site).