Sr. Counsel, Commercial & Operations

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands.  We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.    We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.   Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.    For more information, visit WPP.com.   LOCATION: Tokyo, Japan   ABOUT US: WPP is the world’s leading creative transformation company. We bring together brilliant people to build better futures for our clients through an integrated offering of communications, experience, commerce, and technology. In Japan, we are strengthening how we support our specialized and production businesses by providing senior, high-impact people partnering—ensuring leaders have the organization, culture, and governance needed to deliver growth and build sustainable teams. We are seeking a Head of Talent to serve as the senior HR Business Partner across one or several of our business units within WPP Japan. This role partners closely with business leadership and works in collaboration with WPP Japan People Centers of Excellence (COEs) (e.g., Talent Attraction, Learning & Development, Rewards, Operations) to deliver best-in-class people outcomes.   WHO YOU ARE:   You are a senior HR business partner and trusted advisor who thrives in fast-paced, client-services environments. You balance strategic thinking with pragmatic execution, and you’re confident coaching leaders through complex people decisions. You don’t try to do everything yourself—your strength is in diagnosing business needs, setting a clear people agenda, and partnering with COEs to deliver consistent, high-quality solutions. You bring strong judgment, high integrity, and the personal courage to address issues directly while leading with empathy.   WHAT YOU’LL DO:   SENIOR HR BUSINESS PARTNERING (STRATEGIC + HANDS-ON) * Partner with leadership teams across WPP operating companies to shape and execute people plans aligned to business priorities (growth, capability, delivery, culture, and risk). * Act as a trusted advisor on organizational effectiveness, leadership, team dynamics, and employee engagement. * Operate as the primary People point of contact for the three businesses—able to move from executive-level strategy conversations to hands-on issue resolution as required. WORKFORCE PLANNING, ORG DESIGN & CHANGE * Lead workforce planning conversations (capacity, capability, succession risk, critical roles) and translate outcomes into practical actions with leaders and COEs. * Advise on org design (structures, roles, spans/layers, operating model) and support implementation planning (timelines, comms, manager enablement). * Partner with leaders to plan and execute change initiatives (transformations, restructuring, team transitions), staying close to execution to ensure adoption and minimal disruption. PERFORMANCE, REWARDS & TALENT OUTCOMES (DELIVERED THROUGH COES; DRIVEN BY YOU) * Drive consistent performance management practices (goal setting, feedback rhythms, calibration support, development actions, performance improvement guidance). * Partner with the Rewards COE on compensation processes (annual cycle, promotions, offer governance, internal equity) and provide hands-on support to leaders on decision-making, messaging, and documentation. * Support talent reviews and succession planning by aligning leaders on expectations and actions; coordinate development solutions via the L&D COE and follow through on outcomes. EMPLOYEE RELATIONS, COMPLIANCE & OPERATIONAL HR EXCELLENCE * Provide hands-on support on employee relations topics and manager capability (coaching, documentation, difficult conversations), escalating to specialists as needed. * Ensure compliance with Japan employment laws, internal policies, and governance requirements across the three businesses, including practical guidance that leaders can apply. * Identify people-related risks early (retention, workload, conduct, engagement) and drive mitigation plans—tracking actions through to completion. CULTURE, ENGAGEMENT & DEI ENABLEMENT * Partner with leaders to build inclusive, high-performing cultures aligned to WPP values. * Support engagement planning and manager effectiveness; collaborate with DEI and L&D COEs to deliver targeted interventions, while reinforcing day-to-day leadership behaviors locally.   KEY QUALITIES:   We’re looking for someone who embodies the following qualities: * Zoom-Out / Zoom-In Operator: Comfortable shifting between strategy, advisory, and hands-on operational execution. * Trusted Advisor & Coach: Strong executive presence; able to influence and challenge constructively. * Business-First HRBP: Connects people decisions to commercial outcomes and delivery realities. * Collaborative Driver: Works through COEs to deliver TA/L&D solutions, while staying close enough to execution to ensure quality and speed. * Change-Oriented: Confident leading through ambiguity and transformation at pace. * High Judgment & Integrity: Handles sensitive matters with discretion, fairness, and consistency. * Data-Informed: Uses workforce and engagement insights to guide recommendations and priorities.   QUALIFICATIONS:   * Experience: 10+ years of HR experience, including 3+ years in a senior HRBP/People leadership role supporting professional, client-services organizations. * Industry Background: Communications, marketing, consulting, PR, creative, production, or adjacent services industry experience strongly preferred. * Functional Strength: Demonstrated capability across employee relations, org design, workforce planning, performance management, and rewards partnership—plus the ability to execute operationally when needed. * Legal/Compliance: Solid knowledge of Japan employment law and HR best practices. * Communication: Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills; effective with senior leaders and diverse stakeholder groups. * Mindset: Accountable, proactive, resilient, growth-minded, and empathetic; able to operate strategically and execute consistently. * Language Skills: Fluency in Japanese and English (written and spoken).   WHY JOIN US?   At WPP Japan, you’ll have the opportunity to: * Lead senior people partnering across a rapidly evolving, complex organization with multiple operating companies—businesses at the heart of modern brand building. * Shape organizational effectiveness and culture while staying close to execution and real business needs. * Deliver impact through strong collaboration with WPP Japan COEs in a globally connected organization. * Grow your scope across dynamic, high-performing teams in a fast-evolving market.   We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. WPP is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. PLEASE READ OUR PRIVACY NOTICE (HTTPS://WWW.WPP.COM/EN/CAREERS/WPP-PRIVACY-POLICY-FOR-RECRUITMENT) FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW WE PROCESS THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE.

Airtable is the no-code app platform that empowers people closest to the work to accelerate their most critical business processes. More than 500,000 organizations, including 80% of the Fortune 100, rely on Airtable to transform how work gets done. Join Airtable as a Procurement Operations Manager and help reimagine how procurement gets done at one of the fastest-moving finance organizations in tech. This role owns the day-to-day of a high-velocity procurement function while rebuilding it for an AI-native era: designing automation, deploying AI agents, and raising the bar for what modern procurement operations looks like. The procurement domain can be learned by the right person; the operating instincts cannot. We're looking for someone with the curiosity, adaptability, and judgment to step into a complex function, build trust quickly, and deliver. Over time, this role can flex into broader Finance and Business Operations work as priorities evolve. It reports to the Sr. Manager, Procurement and is part of the broader Finance Operations org. WHAT YOU'LL DO * Own and elevate day-to-day procurement operations * Run vendor onboarding, intake triage, PO creation, and urgent approval coordination across business, finance, legal, security, and IT with minimal oversight * Take active responsibility across the procure-to-pay cycle, partnering with Accounts Payable on vendor master data quality, PO accuracy, and dispute resolution * Design and scale fast-buy processes (P-card programs, catalogs, self-service paths) that take repetitive purchases out of the queue * Lead contract redlining * Own redline of SOWs and Order Forms for commercial terms, partnering with Legal on non-commercial terms * Re-architect procurement with AI * Identify where AI agents, automation, and Airtable-native tooling can replace manual work, then build, deploy, iterate, and set the standard for how the team adopts agentic systems * Design multi-step workflows that delegate routine tasks to AI rather than just speeding up the human version of them * Verify AI output with rigor: anticipate failure modes, build in checks, and define how the team distinguishes trustworthy output from slop * Build reusable tools, templates, and playbooks that raise the quality bar across the company, not just your own output * Flex into broader operations work * Take on cross-functional Finance Operations projects as priorities shift, scoped to grow beyond procurement for someone with the instincts to wear whatever hat the business needs WHO YOU ARE * 6+ years across procurement, sourcing, finance operations, business operations, program management, or an equivalent function. Procurement experience is a plus; a strong cross-functional operator who picks up complex domains quickly is equally compelling * Comfortable navigating ambiguity, biased toward taking the first swing over over-planning, with genuine curiosity for unfamiliar problems * Meets stakeholders where they are and earns structure by delivering, scanning for friction and bridging gaps no one else owns * Strong written and verbal communicator who can adjust register for the audience, whether that is the CFO, vendor counsel, or a teammate in Slack * Directs AI tools rather than just using them, producing higher-quality work because of how AI is used, and can point to specific examples of work that couldn't have been done a year ago * Has built reusable tools, templates, or workflows that others adopted, raising someone else's quality bar through what was built * Experience with procurement, financial, and legal systems (Zip, Coupa, Workday, Ironclad CLM) or a clear track record of picking up new tooling quickly * Excited that this role can grow into broader Finance or Business Operations work * Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience Airtable is an equal opportunity employer. We embrace diversity and strive to create a workplace where everyone has an equal opportunity to thrive. We welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities, and perspectives. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any characteristic protected by applicable federal and state laws, regulations and ordinances. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant.  VEVRAA-Federal Contractor If you have a medical condition, disability, or religious belief/practice which inhibits your ability to participate in any part of the application or interview process, please complete our Accommodations Request Form and let us know how we may assist you. Airtable is committed to participating in the interactive process and providing reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Compensation awarded to successful candidates will vary based on their work location, relevant skills, and experience. Our total compensation package also includes the opportunity to receive benefits, restricted stock units, and may include incentive compensation. To learn more about our comprehensive benefit offerings, please check out Life at Airtable. For work locations in the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, New York City, and Los Angeles, the base salary range for this role is: $162,000—$211,200 USD For all other work locations (including remote), the base salary range for this role is: $145,000—$189,500 USD Please see our Privacy Notice for details regarding Airtable’s collection and use of personal data relating to the application and recruitment process by clicking here. For applicants that live in or have a link to Australia, please see this Privacy Collection Statement for details regarding Airtable's collection and use of personal data relating to the application and recruitment process. 🔒 Stay Safe from Job Scams All official Airtable communication will come from an @airtable.com email address. We will never ask you to share sensitive information or purchase equipment during the hiring process. If in doubt, contact us at hr@airtable.com. Learn more about avoiding job scams here.