Head of Early Careers, Americas

Posting Description:

Head of Early Careers, Americas - Chicago

Shape the future of early careers across North America and LATAM—owning a unified strategy spanning apprenticeships and early‑talent programmes, and partnering closely with business leaders to ensure we have the right pipeline to deliver their growth, capability, and workforce goals. You’ll translate business priorities into a focused programme mix meeting future skills needs, using data and insight to influence decisions and demonstrate ROI—while creating consistently high‑quality development experiences that accelerate performance, innovation and belonging for early‑career colleagues. If you’re excited by strategic influence and hands‑on programme leadership, are you ready to build a sustainable early‑career pipeline that powers the Americas’ future capability?

Aon is in the business of better decisions

At Aon, we shape decisions for the better to protect and enrich the lives of people around the world. As an organization, we are united through trust as one inclusive, diverse team, and we are passionate about helping our colleagues and clients succeed.

What the day will look like

Your day will blend strategic partnership with hands‑on program leadership—working with business leaders to shape the Americas Early Careers strategy, enhancing development experiences, and overseeing core program cycles. You’ll drive continuous improvement, ensure strong governance and operational rigor, and work with key collaborators to deliver a consistent, high-quality experience for early talent. You’ll also keep leaders informed on progress and impact.

Strategy & Partnership

• Build and lead a unified strategy for early careers talent for North America and Latam
• Advise business leaders on early‑career talent needs, capability gaps, and workforce planning.
• Translate business requirements into a focused plan for the Americas region’s early career initiatives, including program mix, priority skills, and rotational opportunities.
• Use data and insight to influence decisions and demonstrate program return on investment.

Development & Experience

• Build consistent, high‑quality experiences that accelerate early careers development and sense of belonging.
• Create and establish structured learning, mentoring, feedback, performance support and progression pathways that accelerate early‑career development.
• Support managers hosting early‑career colleagues with guidance, expectations, and tools ensuring ongoing support, mentoring through programs and post program

Program Leadership

• Continue to evolve and elevate Early Careers programs across the regions, aligned to global models and curriculum
• Oversee key program elements including onboarding, learning pathways, rotations, performance cycles, and conversion.
• Promote ongoing improvement based on participant and manager feedback.

Governance & Operations

• Establish and run a regional Early Careers Steering Committee to align priorities and review investment decisions.
• Ensure compliance with labor, apprenticeship, and immigration requirements.
• Manage documentation, policies, and external vendor relationships.

Collaboration & Communication

• Partner with TA on sourcing strategies, campus engagement, and employer brand.
• Communicate program updates, outcomes, and insights to stakeholders and leadership forums.

Skills and experience that will lead to success

• Proven passion for developing early‑career talent, evidenced through ownership, sponsorship, mentoring, or active shaping of early‑career initiatives (graduates, apprentices, interns talent) within a talent, business, operational, or functional role within professional services or insurance environment
• Shown program and project management experience delivering sophisticated initiatives in a matrixed, global environment, ideally aligned to developing early careers program at scale
• Strong advisory, strategic influence and consulting capability with senior leaders, influencing workforce, capability, and future‑talent decisions.
• Analytical and commercial outlook, able to interpret talent data and clearly articulate insights, outcomes, and return on investment.
• Continuous improvement orientation – proactively enhances processes and experiences.
• Commitment to an engaging early‑talent experience – ensures consistency, quality, and belonging.

How we support our colleagues

In addition to our comprehensive benefits package, we encourage a diverse workforce. Plus, our agile, inclusive environment allows you to manage your wellbeing and work/life balance, ensuring you can be your best self at Aon. Furthermore, all colleagues enjoy two “Global Wellbeing Days” each year, encouraging you to take time to focus on yourself. We offer a variety of working style solutions, but we also recognize that flexibility goes beyond just the place of work... and we're all for it. We call this Smart Working!

Our continuous learning culture inspires and equips you to learn, share and grow, helping you achieve your fullest potential. As a result, at Aon, you are more connected, more relevant, and more valued.

We provide individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment in accordance with applicable law. Please contact us to request an accommodation on [email protected]

Aon values an innovative, diverse workplace where all colleagues feel empowered to be their authentic selves. Aon is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.

Aon is not accepting unsolicited resumes from search firms for this position. If you are a search firm, you will not be compensated in any way for your submission of a candidate, even if Aon hires that candidate.

Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.

The salary range for this position (intended for U.S. applicants) is $150,000 - $185,000 annually. The actual salary will vary based on applicant’s education, experience, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity and alignment with market data. The salary may also be adjusted based on applicant’s geographic location.

This position is eligible to participate in one of Aon’s annual incentive plans to receive an annual discretionary bonus in addition to base salary. The amount of any bonus varies and is subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable incentive plan.

A summary of all the benefits offered for this position:

Aon offers a comprehensive package of benefits for full-time and regular part-time colleagues, including, but not limited to: a 401(k) savings plan with employer contributions; an employee stock purchase plan; consideration for long-term incentive awards at Aon’s discretion; medical, dental and vision insurance. This role does not accrue vacation. Rather, this role is eligible to take paid time off at the discretion of the employee and management in accordance with company policy and practices. Various other types of leaves of absence; paid sick leave as provided under state and local paid sick leave laws, short-term disability and optional long-term disability, health savings account, health care and dependent care reimbursement accounts, employee and dependent life insurance and supplemental life and AD&D insurance; optional personal insurance policies, adoption assistance, tuition assistance, commuter benefits, and an employee assistance program that includes free counseling sessions. Eligibility for benefits is governed by the applicable plan documents and policies.