HR Business Partner – Sales

Forward is seeking an HR Business Partner to serve as a strategic partner to its Sales organization. The role advises senior sales leaders and leads people strategy across organizational design, talent management, workforce planning, compensation, employee relations, and change initiatives.

Responsibilities:

• Serve as a trusted strategic advisor to Sales senior leadership, providing coaching and counsel on organizational design, territory/quota structure, workforce planning, and leadership effectiveness
• Partner with sales leaders to translate revenue targets and go-to-market strategy into people strategies, including org design, span of control, and role architecture as the sales org scales or restructures
• Lead full-cycle talent management for the client group: performance management, calibration, succession planning, promotion processes, and career pathing tailored to sales career ladders (RSD/AE, SDR/BDR, sales management, and sales enablement tracks)
• Use data and analytics (attrition, ramp time, quota attainment, rep productivity, pipeline health as it relates to headcount, promotion equity) to diagnose organizational health and recommend proactive interventions
• Partner closely with Talent Acquisition on sales-specific hiring strategy, headcount planning, and workforce composition, including seasonal/quarterly hiring cycles tied to sales capacity planning
• Lead or co-lead org design and change management efforts tied to territory realignments, reorganizations, M&A integration, or new market/segment launches
• Coach sales managers and directors on leadership skills, performance conversations, managing underperformance in a quota-driven environment, and team motivation
• Partner with Compensation on commission plan design, quota setting implications, and annual compensation planning cycles (merit, equity, promotions) to ensure competitiveness and pay-for-performance alignment
• Own employee relations matters within the client group, including performance improvement plans and terminations tied to quota non-attainment, ensuring fair, consistent, and legally sound resolution
• Champion diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives specific to the challenges of building diverse sales teams
• Partner cross-functionally (Talent Acquisition, Legal, Sales Enablement) to design and deliver programs that meet the unique needs of a revenue organization
• Act as a culture carrier, helping sales leaders build and reinforce an environment of high performance, accountability, and inclusion

Requirements:

• 7–10+ years of progressive HR Business Partner experience, with a significant portion spent directly supporting Sales, Revenue, or other quota-carrying/commission-based client groups
• Proven experience operating at a senior level, partnering directly with CRO, VP, and Director-level sales leaders
• Deep understanding of sales organizational structures, compensation plan design (base/commission/OTE), quota methodology, and the specific talent dynamics of hiring and retaining sales talent
• Strong track record leading org design, workforce planning, and change management in a fast-paced, target-driven, high-growth environment
• Excellent coaching skills with the credibility and presence to influence senior commercial leaders
• Data-driven approach to HR — comfortable building and interpreting people analytics dashboards (attrition, ramp, productivity) to inform decisions
• Sound judgment and experience navigating complex employee relations issues, including performance-based terminations; working knowledge of employment law
• Experience partnering on incentive compensation design and annual compensation planning cycles
• Exceptional communication, influencing, and relationship-building skills across all levels of the organization
• Bachelor's degree required
• advanced degree (MBA, HR, Organizational Psychology) or SHRM-SCP/SPHR certification a plus