Amanda Schmidt

CHRO | CEO & Board Partner | Enterprise Transformation & Workforce Strategy | Culture, Leadership Development & Succession Planning

New York, New York, United States

About

Dynamic CHRO and Business Operations Leader with a record of driving transformation, performance, and operational excellence across global technology, SaaS, media, and creative sectors. Trusted partner, adept at aligning people strategy with business objectives to drive growth, innovation, and cultural cohesion. Expertise spans hypergrowth, business transformation, M&A, organizational design, change management, and turnarounds. Known for a calm, analytical approach to problem-solving, fostering inclusive, high-trust environments, and developing resilient, engaged teams that thrive in change while delivering sustained business success.

Experience

  • Global Chief People Officer at Acast
    Dec 2025 - Present · 8 mos

  • Global Chief People Officer at Cision
    2023 - Feb 2025 · 2 yrs 2 mos

    Recruited by CEO to lead transformation and oversee People Team, Communications and Facilities for PE-owned global technology company. 6,000 employees across 44 markets.

  • Chief People Officer at Edelman
    2022 - Aug 2023 · 1 yr 8 mos

    Hired by Global CHRO as a successor. Oversaw the People Team for the top family-owned global public relations firm with 6,000 employees and $1B in annual revenue.

  • Global Chief People Officer at DEPT®
    2021 - 2022 · 1 yr

    Short-term IPO readiness project. Led HR and culture strategy for a global digital agency with 4,000 employees and $500M in annual revenue.

  • Essence (Greater New York City Area)
    • Global Chief People Officer
      2019 - 2021 · 2 yrs

      Led global People Team with a focus on strategic growth and integration with WPP and GroupM. Helped scale the company from $600M to $3.4B in revenue and expanded the workforce from 250 to over 3,500 employees globally.

    • Global SVP, People Operations & Workforce Planning (COO)
      2016 - 2019 · 3 yrs

      Recruited by Global CHRO, a former colleague at R/GA to support the building of scalable talent infrastructure and processes to support rapid growth. Joined post company’s acquisition by GroupM and WPP. Worked with CHRO and executive team amid critical phases of international expansion, growing the workforce by 40% YoY.