Head of People, UK (maternity cover)

Role Description

The Head of People role will partner with the local Business Unit leader (current headcount in the UK business is 200+ and growing) and will work closely with the Group People Director to ensure consistency locally and Group wide. This role has a responsibility for a small team and will oversee the operational activities in the market as well as driving the strategy.

ABOUT US_

At Talon, our purpose is to be the independent agency of choice providing a pioneering global platform for brands to connect with audiences in the outside world. We want to reimagine the industry to deliver greater value for our clients whilst inspiring people and caring for our planet. We’re passionate about OOH and are on a mission to drive the growth of this sector within the media industry – changing perceptions of it as a legacy medium to one that is highly effective, creative, sustainable, and measurable for our clients.

In our first 10 years, our desire to offer intelligent, creative, technology-led OOH solutions and a full-service OOH offering saw us grow into a team of over 350 people located in key cities across the globe. In that time, we have been awarded for our approach to our people, our clients and our industry and want to continue and expand upon these successes.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND RELATIONSHIPS_

 People Strategy:

• Write and deliver annual HR plans and work with Finance Director on devising People Budget.
• Maintenance of HR annual plan and cycle of events to ensure all key HR activities take place.
• Promote Talon’s culture and identify ways to integrate culture into HR processes/initiatives.
• Use external models, best practice, knowledge and network to continually drive improvements in business performance, organisational design and talent processes.

Management support:

• Provide HR counsel to the Managing Directors and Line Managers in order to both support their development and to drive the people agenda.
• Effective participation in management meetings and other relevant forums to spearhead day to day activities.
• Advise on employment law and keeping abreast of new legislation and best practice
• Coach, support, mentor and challenge managers in the application of HR policies and practices, provide advice and guidance on complex HR issues.

Recruitment & Selection:

• Work with Managers to recruit, train, and develop staff ensuring all positions are filled in a timely manner with qualified and appropriate employees.
• Ensure that both managers and the People Team are utilising the Recruit platform and that appropriate job boards are used with budget being managed effectively.
• Manage relations with recruitment agencies and negotiate fees
• Coordinate interview process, providing guidance to managers on best practice and selection tools, and conduct interviews where appropriate
• Reviewing and driving more innovative recruitment techniques to attract talent and make cost savings

Learning & Development:

• Design and delivery of an industry leading L&D plan
• Execute annual training programme conducting effective training needs analysis of the business and delivering solutions to meet needs and aid business performance.
• Foster a learning culture and promote internal and external training.
• Source training providers and coordinate courses
• Deliver training as a subject matter expert on People skills
• Management of mentoring scheme ensuring regular reviews take place and training provided.

 Employee relations:

• Minimise staff issues and turnover by giving a strong lead in HR matters
• Ensure all employee relations issues are dealt with in an effective manner in line with legislation, partnering with Line Managers to coach them through individual cases.

Benefits:

• Ensure benefits programme is fit for purpose and continuously reviewed to ensure competitive terms are negotiated.
• Communicate benefits to staff and educate them of value of benefits

People projects and processes:

• Review and communicate key company policies and processes
• Regularly update People handbook in line with new legislation and policies
• Communicate and manage appraisal process
• Regularly review appraisal process to ensure it is still fit for purpose
• Management of internal and external employee surveys, analysing results and leading on action planning
• Management of external reporting and benchmarking, collating data and analysing results / making recommendations

Systems:

• Manage the HR system and make improvements where possible to increase efficiencies
• Work with the Finance team to approve payroll

Leadership:

• Lead the People Forum and Talon’s Got Talent decision making
• Take a lead in other cross organisational groups (COGs)
• Management of the People Advisor and People Coordinator, providing direction and motivation, conducting appraisals and to cover their duties when out of the office.

Environmental, social and Governance objectives (ESG)

• Investigate and champion projects which increase the social and environmental impact that we make for our clients / customers
• Advocate the value of positive social and environmental impact within your team.
• Participate in projects and initiatives which drive Talon’s commitment to positive social and environmental causes. E.g., charity partnerships, volunteering, carbon offsetting etc.
• Role model the Talon values and behaviours to help ensure the best possible culture and tone is set throughout Talon.

WORKING HABITS AND CORE SKILLS_

• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build effective relationships at all levels of the organisation.
• Strong analytical capabilities with the ability manipulate and interpret data.
• Commercially aware, looking to generated added value for the business.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to communicate complex information in a clear and concise manner.
• Management capabilities, supporting, developing and directing the team.
• Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with integrity.
• Demonstrated problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• A high level of attention to detail and an awareness of why that is critical.
• Strong organisational and time management skills.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team, with a flexible and adaptable approach to work.
• Conscientiousness and a passion for supporting the business in achieving its goals and embodying its values.

YOUR EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS_

• Experience with overseeing and committing payroll (Talon use ADP)
• Experience with HRIS including ATS (Talon use Kallidus)
• Strong hands-on HR operational experience.
• Excellent attention to detail, communication and numerical skills
• Line management experience.
• Professional HR qualifications (CIPD qualified) desirable.

Follow ‘apply for role’ to view the job description which contains a breakdown of our benefits and values!