Karen D'Souza
Employee Relations | Human Resources Business Partner
San Francisco Bay Area,CA
Summary
Accomplished HR professional with over 8 years of experience in Business Partner and Employee Relations, supporting Engineering, Finance, Risk, Banking, and Asset Management teams across global organizations. Proven track record in talent management, leadership coaching, workplace investigations, and change management. Adept at partnering with business leaders and leveraging data-driven insights to align people strategies with organizational objectives, and foster high-performance, inclusive cultures.
Overview
11
11
years of professional experience
6
6
Certifications
Skills
- Employee relations
- Conflict resolution
- Workplace investigations
- Compliance processes
- Risk Management
- Grievance management
- Performance management
- Compensation
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Data analysis
- Leadership coaching
- Training facilitation
- Policy and procedure development
- Succession planning
- Employee Engagement
Work History
Employee Relations Advisor
Goldman Sachs
02.2025 - Current
- Provide strategic counsel to managers on performance management, leadership effectiveness, organizational change, and conflict resolution.
- Lead sensitive investigations into allegations of discrimination, inappropriate conduct, and other workplace conduct.
- Collaborate with Legal, Compliance, and control functions to ensure investigative processes and outcomes align with firm policies and applicable employment laws.
- Counsel employees on work-related, personal, and health matters impacting engagement, performance, and workplace dynamics.
- Partner with the Employment Law Group to address high-risk matters while mitigating legal and reputational risk.
Stay-at-home Mom
Career Break
Dublin, USA
03.2023 - 02.2025
- Relocated internationally, and obtained work authorization.
- Completed online courses and certifications to enhance professional skills.
Vice President - Employee Relations
Goldman Sachs
Bengaluru, India
01.2020 - 02.2023
- Conducted investigations into employee grievances ensuring fair treatment processes.
- Developed and delivered training programs to enhance policy awareness and workplace conduct.
- Guided managers in navigating difficult workplace situations in a fair and consistent manner.
- Implemented staffing changes in collaboration with Legal, ensuring seamless transitions.
- Reviewed performance, promotion, and compensation decisions to minimize bias.
- Served on the Internal Complaints Committee, managing several complex sexual harassment matters.
- Collaborated with HR on compliance and best practices for employee relations.
- Drove positive change as an ER advisor, with oversight for approximately 2,000 employees across Engineering, Investment Banking, Compliance, and Corporate Workplace verticals.
Associate - Human Resources Business Partner
Goldman Sachs
Bengaluru, India
08.2017 - 12.2019
- Supported approximately 900 employees across Finance, Risk, and Engineering verticals, with a strong focus on leadership development.
- Established and nurtured strong relationships with commercial leadership to influence people strategy and decision-making.
- Implemented HR initiatives aligned with business goals, resulting in improved team effectiveness and organizational performance.
- Spearheaded annual performance, promotion, and compensation cycles.
- Actively engaged with employees through focus groups and one-on-one sessions.
- Led the introduction of succession planning across the office.
- Analyzed and presented actionable insights from the annual employee surveys.
- Contributed to the global MD selection process, ensuring consistent talent evaluation across geographies.
- Collaborated with other HR CoEs to align HR practices with business strategy.
Manager - Human Resources Business Partner
Genpact
Jaipur/Bengaluru, India
05.2015 - 08.2017
- Led HR strategy across three business verticals and a 700-employee Finance Center.
- Improved retention by 8% through leadership collaboration, rewards programs, and performance-tracking dashboards.
- Implemented a succession planning framework and led manager coaching initiatives.
- Managed a scale-up transition for 45 employees, and led downsizing initiatives with no disruption to operations.
- Partnered with Legal and ICC to address employee grievances.
- Supported operational efficiency as part of the Margins workstream.
Systems Engineer - Test Analyst
Tata Consultancy Services
Mumbai, India
03.2012 - 06.2014
- Collaborated with global counterparts on software testing for a major policy change project for a Canadian bank.
- Recognized as an 'Outstanding Contributor' for the successful completion of a high-impact project.
- Represented the vertical as the Defect Prime Officer, reducing the occurrence of frequent bugs.
Education
Post Graduate Diploma - Human Resource Leadership Program
School of Inspired Leadership
Gurgaon, India04.2015
Bachelor of Engineering - Information Science & Engineering
Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology
Bangalore, India07.2011
Timeline
Employee Relations Advisor
Goldman Sachs
02.2025 - Current
Stay-at-home Mom
Career Break
03.2023 - 02.2025
Vice President - Employee Relations
Goldman Sachs
01.2020 - 02.2023
Associate - Human Resources Business Partner
Goldman Sachs
08.2017 - 12.2019
Manager - Human Resources Business Partner
Genpact
05.2015 - 08.2017
Systems Engineer - Test Analyst
Tata Consultancy Services
03.2012 - 06.2014
Post Graduate Diploma - Human Resource Leadership Program
School of Inspired Leadership
Bachelor of Engineering - Information Science & Engineering
Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology
Certification
- Human Resource Analytics, University of California, Irvine, 04/01/24
- Coaching Practices, University of California, Davis, 04/01/24
- Managing as a Coach, University of California, Davis, 03/01/24
- Employment Contracts, University of Pennsylvania, 03/01/24
- Aon Hewitt Total Rewards Certification, 01/01/15
- Project Management, 11/01/14
References
References available upon request.
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