Peak Group’s VP of HR explains how she's seen the profession evolve and why she prioritizes authentic relationships and trust
For Sonja Nelsen, the evolution of HR has been both personal and professional.
Over her nearly 30-year career, the newly-minted Vice-President of HR at Peak Group of Companies – she assumed the role in July 2025 - notes that there's been a significant shift in HR’s role.
“There's been a real shift from a largely administrative and policy-driven role to being a more strategic partner in the business,” says Nelsen. “Today, it's about strengthening culture, leadership, and growth.”
This perspective sets the tone for her approach to HR as a business partner and a driver of organizational success, not just a support function.
“Our role is to support the business operators, provide tools for them, leadership development programs, and just really good, solid people processes,” says Nelsen. “I think what I learned early in my career is, HR isn't there to tell leaders what to do or what not to do – although compliance is important - but we can certainly influence people-driven decisions if we show up as a true business partner to our teams and to our employees.”
Nelsen’s approach to supporting both business objectives and employee experience is rooted in presence along with understanding the executive team’s goals and what they need from the HR team to support those goals and help them drive the business forward.
“I've practiced over the years the art of being present, which I don't think is easy for anyone in leadership,” she says. “But I think the most effective strategy is aligning people’s priorities directly with the business goals - that takes work, discipline, communication, and collaboration is critical – and you can't be running while the rest of your team is walking, it just doesn't work.”
Building trust, authentic relationships with leadership
Central to Nelsen’s leadership style is a focus on authentic connection and understanding the needs of business leaders.
“I build trusted relationships by showing up as my authentic self, being genuine and curious, and asking questions to get a better understanding of the business and what's important to our leaders - that’s what they truly need from HR and what support looks like to them,” she says.
Nelson’s journey, starting as HR manager at one of Home Depot's highest-volume locations in 2001 and including a promotion to store manager in 2011, provided her with a unique vantage point, as staying with one company for many years allowed her to witness and influence the full arc of organizational transformation as it experienced rapid growth, as well as work with different leaders involved in continuous planning.
“[As a store manager] you're like a director of HR for a group of 160 to 200 people, so I experienced the company’s early growth stages to maturity firsthand - I grew alongside the business when I started there back in 2001 when they were in growth mode and opening new stores across Canada,” she says. “We had to have a good strategy to get people hired, onboard them, and train them quickly.”
The power of mentorship and networking
Nelsen credits much of her professional growth to the relationships she’s built and the mentors who have guided her, noting that she has a large network of friends both inside and outside of her organization who are HR professionals, with whom she can discuss HR issues and strategy.
“We draw and learn from one another and I enjoy going to different network events - for me, it's about the relationships and all the different mentors I've had in my life that have welcomed the opportunity to mentor me. And I’ve been paying that forward for many years.”
In her new position at Peak Group, Nelsen oversees a workforce that spans multiple countries – a change from her previous responsibilities dealing with Home Depot employees in Canada. With a larger, international organization, she highlights the importance of a strong, well-defined culture, which she says comes from the top down. In Peak’s case, it’s the company’s founder and the current CEO, with whom she and the senior team meet regularly. Both support innovation and a defined company culture across Home Depot and Peak’s other businesses in the US, Australia, and New Zealand – it’s “always people first,” says Nelsen.
Change rewarding, challenging
Nelsen also believes that when there’s a good base of trust and authenticity, the HR team and the organization is better able to deal with, and embrace, change. She says seeing people grow and advance over time is rewarding for her, but change has also been the most challenging part of her HR career.
“Navigating hybrid work, mental health challenges, AI, and global complexity all at once, it's a juggling act – sometimes you have to plan and strategize and other times you face something that’s completely unexpected, like COVID,” she says. “But my advice to other HR leaders is really just to stay human, be the calm through the chaos, and lead with empathy and data in equal measure.”
