HR Communications Lead

Barclays UK; London; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in financial services is seeking a dedicated HR Communications Director. This key position involves managing HR communication strategies to enhance employee engagement and align with business objectives. The ideal candidate will possess strong leadership skills and a strategic mindset to drive effective communications across the organization.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in HR communications and employee engagement.
• Proven ability to lead high-performing teams.
• Expertise in aligning HR strategies with business goals.

Responsibilities

• Manage and oversee HR communications strategy.
• Build partnerships with senior leadership.
• Design effective communication during organizational change.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Analytical Skills

Strategic Thinking

Education

Degree in HR, Communications or related field

Job description

We have an excellent opportunity for a HR Communications Director to join our HR Team. This is a permanent role and can be based in London or Glasgow.

About the Role

• Overall management and oversight of HR communications strategy for communications both to colleagues in HR and from HR to colleagues across Barclays strategy and plan, including narrative, channel strategy, and audience segmentation.
• The role holder will work closely with senior members of the HR function as well as Group corporate communications.
• The HR communications strategy should be colleagues as consumer-focused, prioritising employee needs over traditional information methods. This involves seeking input on preferred communication styles, using engaging formats like interactive platforms and multimedia, and tailoring strategies to resonate with diverse audiences.
• By embracing this personalised approach, we aim to enhance engagement, foster ownership, and drive the success of our HR strategy.

Purpose of the role

To build strong and effective partnerships with the senior leadership of the organisation, advising on how to engage and influence employees to achieve the business’s goals, through an insight-based employee communications strategy, backed up with outstanding execution capability.

Accountabilities

• Leadership communication, using detailed, systematic insight research to help senior leaders understand employee sentiment, and empower them to communicate empathetically with their people.
• Business strategy alignment, building belief in the strategy of the organisation, and the progress being made, with a strong focus on the impact employees have on the client experience.
• Culture and employee proposition communication, designing and implementing communication interventions that influence individual behaviour to create a culture built on the Barclays Mindset; demonstrate why the organisation is a great place to work.
• Change delivery, creating communication interventions that build employee commitment and capability through organisational change.
• Crisis and issues management, working closely with the senior team as part of the management response, focused on the role of employees in engaging clients.
• Capability building, leading and developing a high-performing team, building individual skills and team capabilities.

Director Expectations

• To manage a business function, providing significant input to function-wide strategic initiatives. Contribute to and influence policy and procedures for the function and plan, manage and consult on multiple complex and critical strategic projects, which may be business-wide.
• They manage the direction of a large team or sub-function, leading other people managers and embedding a performance culture aligned to the values of the business. Or, for an individual contributor, they lead organisation-wide projects and act as a deep technical expert and thought leader, identifying new ways of working and collaborating cross-functionally. They will train, guide, and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long-term profits, organisational risks, and strategic decisions.
• Provide expert advice to senior functional management and committees to influence decisions made outside of own function, offering significant input to function-wide strategic initiatives.
• Manage, coordinate, and enable resourcing, budgeting, and policy creation for a significant sub-function.
• Escalate breaches of policies/procedures appropriately.
• Foster and guide compliance, ensure regulations are observed, and relevant processes are in place to facilitate adherence.
• Focus on the external environment, regulators, or advocacy groups to both monitor and influence on behalf of Barclays, when appropriate.
• Demonstrate extensive knowledge of how the function integrates with the business division / Group to achieve the overall business objectives.
• Maintain broad and comprehensive knowledge of industry theories and practices within own discipline, alongside up-to-date relevant sector / functional knowledge, and insight into external market developments / initiatives.
• Use interpretative thinking and advanced analytical skills to solve problems and design solutions in often complex/sensitive situations.
• Exercise management authority to make significant decisions and certain strategic decisions or recommendations within own area.
• Negotiate with and influence stakeholders at a senior level both internally and externally.
• Act as principal contact point for key clients and counterparts in other functions/business divisions.
• Mandated as a spokesperson for the function and business division.

All Senior 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 – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence, and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge, and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.