Benefits Director

Overview

NRDC (the Natural Resources Defense Council) works to safeguard the Earth, its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. NRDC combines the power of more than 3 million members and online activists with the expertise of some 800 policy advocates, lawyers, scientists, and communication experts to confront the climate crisis, protect nature, ensure the rights of all people to clean air, clean water, and healthy communities.  As an international nonprofit environmental organization, NRDC is working to address the world’s most urgent environmental challenges, and advance innovative, science-based, and enforceable solutions.  

Since our founding in 1970, NRDC has helped craft and deliver many of America’s foundational environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act. Today, we continue to lead in advancing and defending strong environmental protections at the local, state, federal and international levels, as well as through the marketplace. Our team works across the United States and around the world, from offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., as well as in Beijing, and New Delhi (a subsidiary of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd.).  

Supported by our members and online activists, NRDC is driving impactful solutions that confront the climate crisis, defend nature and safeguard public health across Asia, Africa, and the Americas. At NRDC, we believe lasting change happens when people bring their talent, passion, and expertise together for a common purpose: to build a cleaner, healthier, and more resilient world. Learn more at nrdc.org 

Position Summary

The Benefits Director is a vital member of NRDC’s People and DEI team, responsible for the strategic planning, design, and implementation of our benefits and wellness offerings based on market trends, employee feedback, and NRDC culture and mission. The Benefits Director oversees both the day-to-day administration of our benefit programs as well as the strategic oversight of the plans, including health and welfare benefits, retirement programs, leave and statutory benefits, and wellness and employee engagement initiatives. 

The Benefits Director is responsible for the full lifecycle of NRDC’s benefits programs, from strategy, plan design, and annual renewals through implementation, administration, compliance, employee communication, and ongoing evaluation. The Director serves as a strategic and solutions-oriented partner to organizational leadership, balancing employee needs, market competitiveness, regulatory requirements, operational effectiveness, and financial sustainability. 

Providing advice and guidance, tools, and resources, as required across all NRDC in executing our benefits programs, the Benefits Director partners closely with People and DEI colleagues, Finance, Payroll, Legal, Labor Relations, employee representatives, and external advisors to ensure the consistent and effective delivery of NRDC’s benefits programs. 

Responsibilities

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the following essential functions: 

• Direct strategies for short- and long-range objectives regarding benefits offerings. 
• Provide NRDC leadership with a strategic vision for all employee benefits plans, wellness programs, and services. Develop recommendations informed by workforce needs, utilization and claims data, financial analysis, market practices, regulatory developments, and employee feedback.
• Proactively assess benefit offerings to maintain competitiveness as an integral component of our total rewards package across all offices. Evaluate plan effectiveness, employee experience, affordability, utilization, and financial sustainability, and recommend appropriate plan design or administrative changes.
• Lead the annual benefits renewal process from beginning to end, including establishing the renewal strategy, analyzing claims and utilization data, evaluating plan design alternatives, modeling financial impact, negotiating with carriers and vendors, presenting recommendations to leadership and the Benefits Committee, implementing approved changes, and communicating changes to employees.
• Responsible for the development and maintenance of the annual Benefits operating budget. Monitor program costs and trends, prepare forecasts, evaluate financial exposure, and identify opportunities to improve value and manage costs without compromising program quality or the employee experience.
• Safeguard benefits compliance, ensuring that all benefits programs adhere to relevant state, federal, and local regulations. Maintain appropriate compliance processes, documentation, governance practices, and internal controls for health and welfare, retirement, leave, and statutory benefit programs.
• Ensure compliance with applicable requirements under ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA, FMLA, ADA, and other federal, state, and local laws. Oversee the preparation, review, distribution, and retention of required plan documents, summary plan descriptions, notices, filings, and employee disclosures.
• Provide strategic oversight of NRDC’s 403(b) retirement plan, including plan administration, governance, participant communications, vendor performance, and compliance with applicable ERISA, IRS, and Department of Labor requirements.
• Coordinate and oversee retirement and benefit plan audits, annual filings, compliance testing, corrective actions, and responses to auditor or regulatory inquiries. Partner with recordkeepers, auditors, legal counsel, investment advisors, and other fiduciary partners to support sound plan governance.
• Lead Benefits Committee meeting agendas and present subjects for discussion and approval. Collaborate with the Retirement Plan Committee on administrative updates and educational campaigns. Prepare analyses and recommendations that enable committee members and organizational leaders to make informed fiduciary and business decisions. Maintain appropriate records of decisions, approvals, and follow-up actions.
• Partner with brokers, benefit plan administrators, and service providers to develop wellness initiatives to engage staff in emotional, physical, financial, and social well-being.
• Develop and oversee wellness and employee engagement strategies and activities that encourage employees to understand and use available benefits and resources. Evaluate participation, employee feedback, utilization, and program outcomes to measure effectiveness and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Oversight of benefits communications to promote education on our benefits offerings, including announcements in the weekly Roundup. Lead annual enrollment communications and year-round benefits education, ensuring information is clear, accessible, timely, and responsive to the needs of NRDC’s diverse workforce.
• Provide HR/DEIO colleagues and corporate counsel with expertise during special leave and employment cases.
• Provide oversight of leave and accommodation programs, including FMLA, ADA, short- and long-term disability, paid family and medical leave, workers’ compensation, and other state and local statutory benefits. Monitor and establish consistent policies, procedures, escalation protocols, and service standards for leave administration across applicable jurisdictions.
• Partner with employees, managers, People and DEI colleagues, Payroll, Legal, and third-party administrators to resolve complex leave and accommodation matters while maintaining compliance, consistency, appropriate documentation, and an employee centered approach.
• Oversee administrative processes, implement them, and communicate changes by developing educational sessions for managers and employees. Establish documented procedures, internal controls, reporting, and reconciliation processes to support accurate and consistent benefits administration.
• Partner with Payroll and HR systems teams to ensure accurate employee data, benefit deductions, eligibility records, system configurations, interfaces, reporting, and reconciliations. Lead or support benefits-related technology implementations and process improvements.
• Serve as the benefits subject matter expert in NRDC’s unionized environment. Partner with Labor Relations and Legal on benefits matters affecting represented employees, including interpretation and administration of collective bargaining agreement provisions.
• Provide benefit cost analyses, recommendations, and implementation support during collective bargaining and ensure negotiated benefit changes are administered and communicated accurately and consistently.
• Lead the Benefits Team and foster their individual career development. Establish clear goals, priorities, service expectations, and accountability while building team capability and fostering a collaborative, responsive, and solutions-oriented culture.
• Stay up to date with federal, state, and local laws and regulations regarding Benefits.
• Maintain knowledge of industry trends related to HR, Benefits, and employment practices. Translate relevant developments into practical recommendations, policies, processes, and program changes for NRDC.
• Support the administration and evaluation of benefit programs outside the United States, as applicable, in partnership with internal stakeholders, local advisors, brokers, and vendors.
• Use benefits data, employee feedback, benchmarking, and performance measures to evaluate program outcomes, identify risks and opportunities, and present recommendations to senior leadership and governance committees. 

The above list of duties is not comprehensive but generally demonstrates the types of matters under this position’s responsibility. Other duties may be assigned. 

Qualifications

Minimum Education & Experience:  

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in Human Resources Management or equivalent combination of education and experience required. 
• 7 years of progressive experience in Benefits Management, with 3 years of people management. 
• Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS), Certified Benefits Professional (CBP) or other benefits certification preferred. 
• Demonstrated experience leading the complete annual benefits renewal process, including strategy, data and financial analysis, plan design, vendor negotiations, leadership recommendations, implementation, and employee communications.
• Demonstrated knowledge of ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA, FMLA, ADA, applicable Internal Revenue Code requirements, and federal, state, and local statutory benefit programs.
• Experience administering and supporting the governance, compliance, and audit requirements of a 403(b) or comparable defined contribution retirement plan.
• Demonstrated ability to assess complex issues and develop practical, compliant, financially responsible, and employee-centered solutions.
• Strong analytical, financial, project management, vendor management, communication, and presentation skills. 

Skills, Abilities, Competencies  

• Strong verbal and written communication skills. 
• Strong analytical skills and savvy strategic business thinking in a complex, multi-dimensional, progressive environment. 
• Proficiency in HRIS and benefits software  
• Exceptional project management, leadership, and team management skills 
• Ability to travel to NRDC U.S. based offices, approximately 20% annually. 
• Commitment to NRDC’s mission, values, and DEI principles 

 PHYSICAL DEMANDS   

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position within the described work environment. 

Frequently: Perform desk-based computer tasks 

Frequently: Ability to interact and communicate with employees and others as necessary

Frequently: Attend planned meetings and collaborate with management and coworkers

Occasionally: Ability to attend events and activities in the office or offsite  

Work is sometimes performed primarily in office. The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet in office settings and moderate in other situations. Hours of employment may sometimes require working flexible and/or longer hours, including nights and weekends, when necessitated by projects. The job includes work-related situations such as those involving challenging, important, urgent, time-sensitive, or multiple matters. 

NRDC is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, both in our work and in our workplace. We believe that celebrating and actively welcoming diverse voices and perspectives is essential to solving the planet's most pressing environmental problems, and we encourage applications from candidates whose identities have been historically under-represented in the environmental movement. 

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.  

We offer competitive salaries, excellent benefits, and a supportive working environment. Salary is based on a nonprofit scale and is commensurate with skills and experience. Internal equity will be reviewed and considered to determine a final offer. For this position, the salary range is $148,500 to $165,000.  

Perks & Benefits 

Not only do we care about taking care of our planet, we care about taking care of you. When you join our team, we invest in your total well-being. Here is a small glimpse on how we plan to support you: 

• Time to Unplug & Recharge: Enjoy a generous time-off policy, highlighted by a company-wide year-end Rest & Recharge Week to reset for the new year. 

• Family – First: Generous family leave policy beyond federal requirements for all NRDCers 

• For your Future: Matching 403b whether you contribute or not 

• Hybrid Policy: The freedom to balance your time around your needs that means, 8 days per month in-office. In-office day requirements can be met with off-site work events such as retreats, conferences, and other work-related travel. 

• Well – being: Premium Comprehensive healthcare and mental health programs. 

To apply, visit www.nrdc.org/careers and upload your résumé and cover letter. Please mention where you saw this posting and upload any additional materials that showcase your abilities. Due to the high volume of applications, we will contact only those candidates we would like to interview. Please no phone calls, emails, or in-person résumé drop-offs. 

If you experience technical problems while applying or if you are a person with a disability and need assistance applying online, please reach out to iCIMS Customer Care at 1-800-889-4422. 

For more about NRDC, visit www.nrdc.org.