HR Communications & Engagement Lead - 12 Months Full Time Contract

Barclays UK; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading financial services organization seeks an HR Engagement and Communications Lead to steer HR's strategic priorities and executive communications. Located in London or Glasgow, this role demands experience in HR business partnering and stakeholder engagement. Key responsibilities include implementing strategic changes and enhancing operational efficiency. The ideal candidate excels in communication and management, fostering talent and development within the HR function. Attractive compensation and benefits await the right candidate.

Qualifications

• Experience in HR Business Partnering or similar roles is desirable.
• Ability to influence senior HR leaders and ExCo is crucial.
• Practical understanding of strategic communications channels and messaging.

Responsibilities

• Implement Target Operating Model and provide strategic insight.
• Support demand pipeline management and facilitate strategic initiatives.
• Enhance operational efficiency and identify improvement areas.

Skills

HR Business Partnering

Stakeholder engagement

Strategic communications

Strategic HR engagement

Job description

As a HR Engagement and Communications Lead, you’ll be essential to enabling HR to deliver its vision. You will play a critical role in guiding the function through long-term change via a thoughtful and compelling engagement and communications strategy. You’ll harness a Barclays Mindset to drive simplification, maximise efficiencies and achieve consistently excellent outcomes for your stakeholders. Collaboration, innovation and talent development are all part of your toolkit.

You’ll oversee a diverse portfolio, including HR people strategy and communications, the HR early careers programme, and annual report disclosures. You’ll be an active member of the HR Function Management team, advancing HR’s strategic priorities with robust controls and governance. You’ll provide critical support to senior leaders, helping them navigate complex challenges. Simultaneously, you’ll shape and execute long‑term strategic changes that drive our success.

To be successful as a HR Engagement and Communications Lead, you should have experience with:

• HR Business Partnering or experience in similar stakeholder management roles is desirable but not essential.
• Stakeholder engagement – ability to influence senior HR leaders and ExCo
• Strategic communications – practical understanding of channels and messaging
• Strategic HR engagement – experienced in shaping and delivering people strategy recommendations and projects in partnership with senior stakeholders, with a focus beyond pure communications.

You may be assessed on the key critical skills relevant for success in the role, such as risk and controls, change and transformation, business acumen strategic thinking and digital and technology, as well as job‑specific technical skills.

Your role will be located from our London or Glasgow office.

Purpose of the role

To provide operating and administrative support to senior leaders, simultaneously shaping and executing long‑term strategic change, whilst helping to navigate complex challenges in the performance of their roles.

Accountabilities

• Implementation of Target Operating Model, business development, and financial and non‑financial resource allocation, providing strategic insight and thought leadership.
• Strategic support to and oversight of demand pipeline and the book of work, including assistance in the development and execution of strategic initiatives, projects, research, and analysis to support decision-making.
• Support to and guidance for operational efficiency and colleague/customer/client experience within the organisation, including the identification of areas for improvement, streamlining of processes, and implementation of best practices to enhance productivity, effectiveness and experience.
• Management of people plan, talent development and succession planning including the identification of high‑potential employees, provision of mentorship and guidance, and support to leadership development and diversity initiatives.
• Communication with internal and external stakeholders, management of communication channels and ensuring effective coordination across different departments and teams.
• Participation in compliance activities such as SMR and other regulatory registrations/certifications, as well as support for crisis management and risk mitigation, including the development of contingency plans, coordination of responses to emergencies, and business continuity.
• Management of all organisational/team requirements relating to technology, real estate, people and communications in conjunction with relevant partners across the firm.
• Enablement of oversight of risk management and compliance with internal and external requirements, including internal Governance on critical control activities in partnership with the CCO team, such as Records Inventory and RCSAs.
• Cost control and workforce management of the Business/Function, including involvement in financial analysis and planning, forecasting, and monitoring of financial performance against targets.

Vice President Expectations

• To contribute or set strategy, drive requirements and make recommendations for change. Plan resources, budgets, and policies; manage and maintain policies/ processes; deliver continuous improvements and escalation breaches of policies/procedures.
• If managing a team, they define jobs and responsibilities, planning for the department’s future needs and operations, counselling employees on performance and contributing to employee pay decisions/changes. They may also lead a number of specialists to influence the operations of a department, in alignment with strategic as well as tactical priorities, while balancing short and long term goals and ensuring that budgets and schedules meet corporate requirements.
• If the position has leadership responsibilities, People Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L