Employee Relations Director - EMEA

GroupM; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global media firm is seeking a Director of Employee Relations to manage employee relations across the EMEA region. This role is critical in ensuring fair treatment and adherence to employment laws while supporting the business through complex investigations and guidance. The ideal candidate will have senior management experience in employee relations and a solid understanding of EMEA legal practices. The firm offers a hybrid working environment with extensive employee benefits.

Benefits

Competitive medical insurance

Group retirement plans

Paid time off

Employee mental health awareness days

Qualifications

• Experience leading and conducting investigations within EMEA.
• Ability to handle confidential information professionally.
• Exceptional judgment and critical thinking skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage employee relations across EMEA.
• Conduct HR investigations and recommend management actions.
• Ensure compliance with employment laws and best practices.

Skills

Senior management level experience in Employee Relations

Communication and interpersonal skills

Complex issue resolution

Understanding of EMEA employment laws

Fluency in English

Education

CIPD qualification or equivalent HR certification

Job description

Overview

Description

About WPP Media

WPP is the creative transformation company. We use the power of creativity to build better futures for our people, planet, clients and communities. For more information, visit wpp.com.

WPP Media is WPP’s global media collective. In a world where media is everywhere and in everything, we bring the best platform, people, and partners together to create limitless opportunities for growth. For more information, visit wppmedia.com

A Leading WPP Media Brand

Role Summary and Impact

The Director, Employee Relations EMEA manages a Senior Manager, Employee Relations EMEA, being accountable for Employee Relations WPP Media. You will have a wide-ranging brief to maintain and develop effective working relationships across the wider People community, creating a trust-based, high-performing culture that drives consistent delivery across your business area. This role is central to supporting the broader business in all areas of People teams. The Director, Employee Relations, WPP Media, is responsible for providing expert guidance and directly handling employee relations matters across the EMEA region. This role ensures fair and respectful treatment of employees by advising and supporting employees, managers, and People Partners (HRBPs) on a broad range of escalated employment issues. The Director, Employee Relations conducts thorough investigations, provides recommendations, upskilling in the wider people team, and mitigates risks to the organization while ensuring compliance with relevant employment laws and regulations within the EMEA region.

Skills and Experience

At WPP Media, we believe in the power of our culture and our people. It’s what elevates us to deliver exceptional experiences for both our clients and each other. In this role it will be critical to embrace WPP & WPP Media’s shared core values:

• Be Extraordinary by Leading Collectively to Inspire transformational Creativity.
• Create an Open environment by Balancing People and Client Experiences by Cultivating Trust.
• Lead Optimistically by Championing Growth and Development to Mobilize the Enterprise.

Responsibilities

• Interpret and apply understanding of corporate policies and practices, relevant employment laws and regulations across the EMEA region, and other relevant regulations to provide advice, guidance, or clarification for Employee Relations inquiries.
• Conduct HR investigations, including gathering and analyzing facts, applying relevant laws, policies, and best practices to reach conclusions, recommend, and influence management actions.
• Manage complex, high-risk, and sensitive investigations, ensuring fair and consistent treatment/approach across different cultural and legal contexts within EMEA.
• Navigate the organizational implications of investigations with key stakeholders through a balance of directness, objectivity, and compassion.
• Consider all facts to satisfactorily resolve matters for employees while mitigating broader risks to the organization.
• Partner with the WPP Legal, as necessary.
• Maintain required documentation, including intake and investigative notes, supporting documents, and final reports within the case management system.
• Help design and deliver training for employees, managers, and the People team that ensures compliance with relevant legislative changes and guide ER best practices specific to the EMEA region.
• Identify strategies to enhance the employee relations capabilities of our managers within the EMEA context, considering regional differences.
• Ensure use of the ER Tracker across all markets in the region, report, and analyse case trends utilising a case management system, providing insights into regional variations and trends.
• Collaborate effectively with other People functions and Centres of Value, including Talent Acquisition, Compensation, Payroll, Organisational Development & Growth, DEI, and Data & Analytics.
• Build strong relationships with key stakeholders across the organisation.
• Stay up to date on best practices and trends in employee relations and employment law across the EMEA region.
• Live a client-centric mindset ensuring that we deliver exceptional service and build strong relationships with our key clients both internally and externally.
• Live the One WPP Media mindset providing support where required across the organisation.

Qualifications

• Senior management level experience in Employee Relations, including experience leading and conducting investigations, preferably with EMEA-wide responsibilities.
• Experience identifying, diagnosing, and resolving complex issues in a human, unbiased, and legally compliant manner, across different cultural and legal contexts.
• Proven ability to provide expertise, consultation, guidance, and coaching to managers and the people team to address employee behavior and performance concerns.
• Strong understanding of employment laws and regulations across key EMEA countries (e.g., UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, CEE, Nordics).
• Ability to handle confidential information in a professional manner and appropriately escalate issues.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and persuasion skills.
• Ability to convey ideas and recommendations in a clear, compelling, and succinct way (written and verbal).
• Ability to establish influential partnerships working with peers, senior leaders, and across organizational lines.
• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Exceptional judgment, active listening, and critical thinking skills.
• Comfortable working with data to analyse key metrics to uncover trends and root causes. CIPD qualification desirable, or equivalent HR certification relevant to the EMEA region.
• Fluency in English is essential. Additional European languages are highly desirable.

Life at WPP Media & Benefits

Our passion for shaping the next era of media includes investing in our employees to help them do their best work, and we’re just as committed to employee growth as we are to responsible media investment. WPP Media employees can tap into the global WPP Media & WPP networks to pursue their passions, grow their networks, and learn at the cutting edge of marketing and advertising. We have a variety of employee resource groups and host frequent in-office events showcasing team wins, sharing thought leadership, and celebrating holidays and milestone events. Our benefits include competitive medical, group retirement plans, vision, and dental insurance, significant paid time off, preferential partner discounts, and employee mental health awareness days.

WPP Media is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process.

Please read our Privacy Notice (https://www.wppmedia.com/pages/privacy-policy) for more information on how we process the information you provide.

While we appreciate all applications received, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.