Director, Human Resources Business Partner, DACH

At Cytokinetics, each team member plays an integral part in advancing our mission to improve the lives of patients. We are seeking tenacious, compassionate, and collaborative individuals who are driven to make a positive impact.

The Director, HR Business Partner DACH serves as the strategic HR partner for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, supporting the company’s first EU commercial launch planned for 2026–2027. Reporting to the Head of HR, Europe with dotted line to VP, GM DACH, this role is responsible for shaping and executing the full end-to-end HR agenda for the region, ensuring organizational readiness, leadership capability, and cultural alignment as the business scales.

This position operates within a newly evolving European HR operating model and works in close partnership with business leaders, the European HR team, and global HR Centers of Excellence (CoEs) to deliver consistent, high-impact people solutions while addressing local market needs.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary HR partner and steward of the full HR agenda for the DACH region, ensuring alignment with European and global business objectives.
• Partner with senior business leaders to drive performance, organizational capability, and commercial launch readiness, providing strategic counsel through periods of growth and change.
• Act as a trusted advisor to leaders, influencing decision-making and reinforcing the desired leadership culture and ways of working.
• Co-own and drive talent, organizational effectiveness, and culture-building initiatives aligned with European and global HR strategy.
• Lead workforce planning, organizational design, role creation, and headcount planning to support near- and long-term business growth.
• Support succession planning, leadership development, and long-term talent strategies to ensure leadership continuity and bench strength.
• Own staffing plans and recruiting pipeline quality for the DACH region, partnering closely with Talent Acquisition and HR Centers of Excellence to deliver high-quality hiring outcomes.
• Participate in hiring decisions for critical and leadership roles, ensuring alignment with capability, culture, and future-state organizational needs.
• Lead annual performance management processes, including goal setting, performance reviews, calibration, and development planning.
• Manage salary and bonus cycles in alignment with regional reward frameworks and corporate guidelines.
• Coach managers on performance planning, career development, and effective leadership behaviors, building leadership capability across the organization.
• Ensure consistent deployment of HR systems, policies, reward programs, and people processes in alignment with European and corporate standards, while addressing local requirements.
• Implement and sustain HR initiatives delivered by HR Centers of Excellence, ensuring effective adoption and change management at the local level.
• Contribute to European and global HR projects and cross-functional initiatives, representing DACH business needs and perspectives.
• Develop and execute the annual HR Business Plan aligned with European HR priorities and business objectives.
• Provide support for HR administration management as required, ensuring compliance, efficiency, and a positive employee experience.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive HR Business Partner or HR Generalist experience with increasing scope, complexity, and leadership responsibility.
• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field; advanced degree (Master’s or MBA) preferred.
• Biopharmaceutical or pharmaceutical industry experience strongly preferred, ideally within a commercial environment.
• Proven success as a strategic HR partner in a build-out, scale-up, or first-market commercial launch environment.
• Demonstrated experience partnering effectively with HR Centers of Excellence in a global, matrixed organization.
• Deep knowledge of German labor law, co-determination principles, and works council engagement; experience supporting German-based employee populations required.
• Strong consulting, communication, and influencing skills, with the ability to operate credibly with senior leaders and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Experience operating across multiple countries and cultures, with sensitivity to regional and local market dynamics.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to translate business strategy into people and organizational solutions.
• Demonstrated change leadership capability, including experience leading organizations through growth, transformation, or ambiguity.
• Experience leveraging HR systems and tools, such as HRIS (e.g., Workday or equivalent), performance management and talent platforms, compensation planning tools, and workforce analytics, to inform decision-making, ensure compliance, and drive scalable people processes.
• Fluency in German and English strongly preferred.

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