Director, Strategic Talent Programs

Overview

About Us:

Proofpoint is a global leader in human- and agent-centric cybersecurity. We protect how people, data, and AI agents connect across email, cloud, and collaboration tools. Our mission is to safeguard the digital world and empower people to work securely and confidently.

How We Work:
At Proofpoint you’ll be part of a global team that breaks barriers to redefine cybersecurity guided by our BRAVE core values:

Bold in how we dream and innovate

Responsive to feedback, challenges and opportunities

Accountable for results and best in class outcomes

Visionary in future focused problem-solving

Exceptional in execution and impact

The Director of Strategic Talent Programs plays a critical role in shaping and executing the company’s enterprise talent strategy. This role sits at the intersection of strategy, execution, and change, with a dual focus:

• owning high-impact strategic talent programs, and

• serving as a Chief of Staff to the Talent function to ensure alignment, momentum, and results and Talent optimization.

This is a highly collaborative role for a proven talent practitioner who can translate strategy into scalable programs, manage complexity, and drive adoption across senior leaders.

Strategic Talent Programs

• Lead the design, execution, and evolution of enterprise talent programs, including:

• Succession planning for critical roles and top 60+ leaders

• Leadership and enterprise competencies

• Career architecture and internal career pathways

• Talent reviews and talent risk assessment

• Ensure talent programs are practical, integrated, and clearly connected to business priorities.

• Partner closely with senior leaders and HRBPs to drive consistentapplicationand meaningful outcomes.

Internal Mobility & AI-Enabled Talent Strategy

• Act as a strategic partner on internal mobility initiatives, including the use of AI-enabled tools to support career matching, talent visibility, and workforce movement.

• Collaborate with HR Technology, People Analytics, and Talent teams to ensure solutions are adopted, effective, and aligned with talent strategy.

• Promote AI fluency within the Talent function to improve decision-making and scalability.

Talent Reviews & Risk Management

• Own enterprise talent review processes, ensuring theyprovideactionable insights rather than compliance-driven outputs.

• Identify talent risks and capability gaps; partner with leaders on mitigation strategies.

• Ensure outcomes from talent reviews directlyinformsuccession plans, development priorities, and workforce decisions.

Change Management & Enablement

• Lead change management efforts for new or evolving talent programs.

• Develop clear messaging, leader enablement, and rollout plans to drive understanding and adoption.

• Serve as a trusted advisor to leaders navigating talent-related change.

Chief of Staff to the Talent Function (Approx. 10%)

• Own andmaintainthe strategic roadmap for the Talent function, ensuring priorities are clear, sequenced, and aligned.

• Partner with Talent and L&D leaders to ensure the right programs, capabilities, and people are in place to deliver against strategy.

• Coordinate across Talent, L&D, HRBPs, and other stakeholders to drive execution and reduce friction.

• Support operating cadence, planning, and follow-through for the Talent leadership team.

• Proven experience leading strategic talent programs in a complex or scaled organization.

• Strong background in succession planning, talent reviews, leadership development, and career frameworks.

• Demonstrated ability tooperateas a strategic integrator and program owner, not just a designer.

• Experience partnering with senior leaders and influencing without direct authority.

• Practical experience or strong interest in AI-enabled talent solutions and internal mobility.

• Strong change management and communication skills.

• Highly organized, execution-focused, and comfortable managing multiple priorities.

At Proofpoint, we believe that an exceptional career experience includes a comprehensive compensation and benefits package. Here are just a few reasons you’ll love working with us:

• Competitive compensation

• Comprehensive benefits

• Career…