Purpose

This is a hands-on leadership role at Citadel Aviation’s Lake Charles facility, the Manager of Human Resources owns the day-to-day HR operation of the site, leads and develops an HR team that supports the broader business, and serves as the primary owner of employee relations for Lake Charles from intake through resolution.

This role calls for a leader who is part operator, part coach, part investigator. The right person is visible and present: on the floor with technicians and leads, in the room with operations leadership, and at the table with HR peers across Citadel Aviation. They lead with curiosity, hold a high standard, and leave every person they work with stronger than they found them.

Reporting to the Sr. Director of Human Resources and partnering closely with the VP of Operations for Lake Charles and other key site leaders, this is a critical seat as Citadel Aviation grows.

Essential Job Functions

Site HR Operations: Lake Charles

• Run daily HR delivery in Lake Charles across maintenance, engineering, and support functions, including onboarding, offboarding, leave administration, policy execution, and compliance.
• Be visible and accessible on the floor. Build genuine trust with technicians, leads, and supervisors so issues surface early and get resolved well.
• Partner closely with the VP of Operations for Lake Charles and other key site leaders on workforce planning, staffing decisions, and the people implications of operational changes.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local employment law, including the requirements of an FAA-regulated, drug-and-alcohol-tested workforce.
• Drive operational excellence: clean processes, accurate records, fast cycle times, and a quality bar the team is proud of.

Employee Relations: Lake Charles

• Serve as the primary owner and lead investigator for all employee relations cases at the Lake Charles site.
• Conduct prompt, thorough, and well-documented investigations that include interviews, evidence gathering, findings, and clear written recommendations.
• Partner with the Sr. Director of HR on matters with legal exposure; know when to escalate and when to resolve.
• Coach managers through performance management, PIPs, corrective action, and separations with consistency and care.
• Build and maintain the ER case management system; report trends and root causes to senior leadership quarterly.
• Own and continuously improve the Lake Charles complaint-handling process from intake through triage, documentation, resolution, and closure.

Team Leadership

• Lead, coach, and develop three direct reports spanning recruitment, total rewards, and workforce development.
• Set clear goals and KPIs, run consistent 1:1s, and hold the team to a high standard of accountability and technical expertise.
• Build a learning culture: stretch assignments, cross-training, and visible career paths so each team member is measurably better a year from now.
• Be a multiplier. Remove blockers, share credit, give honest feedback, and make the team the strongest in any room.

Cross-functional & Strategic

• Partner with the Sr. Director of HR on enterprise initiatives such as HRIS transition, governance, pay equity, leadership development, and multi-site alignment.
• Represent HR in Lake Charles site leadership meetings and contribute to enterprise-level decisions.
• Use data such as turnover, time-to-fill, ER trends, and engagement to inform decisions and influence leadership conversations.

Minimum Qualifications or Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 7+ years of progressive HR experience, including 2+ years directly leading an HR team.
• Demonstrated mastery of employee relations: investigations, documentation, and defensible decision-making.
• Working knowledge of federal employment law (Title VII, FMLA, ADA, FLSA, ADEA, NLRA) and Louisiana-specific employment law.
• Excellent written communication; investigation reports and case files that hold up to scrutiny.
• A track record of building and developing high-performing teams.

Preferred Qualifications or Experience

• SHRM-SCP or SPHR certification.
• Experience supporting multi-site HR operations.
• Experience in a manufacturing, industrial, MRO, aviation, or other safety-sensitive, regulated environment.
• Familiarity with modern HRIS platforms.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Directly supervises the HRBP–Recruitment, HRBP–Workforce Development, and Total Rewards Administrator.
• Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with Citadel Aviation policies and applicable laws.
• Participates in interviewing, selecting, and onboarding new HR team members.
• Plans, assigns, and directs the work of direct reports; sets priorities and ensures workload balance.
• Conducts performance evaluations, delivers ongoing feedback, and partners on individual development plans.
• Approves time, attendance, leave, and routine team operating decisions for direct reports.
• Addresses performance and conduct concerns in partnership with the Sr. Director of Human Resources, including coaching, corrective action, and separation when warranted.
• Serves as a backup point of contact for the HR function in the Sr. Director of HR’s absence

Knowledge, Skills, and Other Attributes

• Strong working knowledge of HR practices, employment law, and employee relations investigation methodology.
• Sound judgment and discretion in handling confidential, sensitive, and high-stakes information.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, including the ability to deliver difficult messages with clarity and care.
• Ability to influence without authority and to build credibility quickly with operations leaders, supervisors, and frontline employees.
• Comfort with ambiguity and the ability to operate effectively in a fast-growing, multi-site environment.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret people data and translate it into actionable insight.
• High emotional intelligence; able to navigate sensitive conversations, conflict, and competing perspectives with composure.
• Detail-oriented approach to documentation, recordkeeping, and case management.
• Coaching and mentoring orientation; commitment to developing both direct reports and the managers the role supports.
• Bias for action, strong sense of ownership, and a track record of finishing what is started.
• Proficiency with HRIS systems and the Microsoft Office suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Curiosity about the business and a willingness to learn how aircraft maintenance operations actually work.