People and Talent Manager

House Of Willow Alexander; Sidcup; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A growing service-focused company in Sidcup is seeking a People & Talent Manager to lead the hiring and retention of tradespeople across multiple services. The role involves designing and implementing recruitment campaigns, developing training programs, and building an employee success framework. The ideal candidate should have 3-5 years of experience in HR roles within high-volume environments, strong cultural fit skills, and the ability to scale people operations effectively.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years in a People Ops, Talent, or HRBP role within a high-volume service-led environment.
• Proven success hiring for trade, field, or shift-based roles.
• Experience designing training or onboarding programmes.

Responsibilities

• Design and run hiring campaigns across trade roles.
• Build an Employee Success Framework with performance metrics.
• Develop modular training flows for each trade vertical.

Skills

Talent acquisition

People management

Cultural fit assessment

Conflict resolution

Training development

Job description

People & Talent Manager

Type : Full-time

Full time On site - Sidcup, London

Overview

House of Willow Alexander is scaling – fast. We’re seeking a commercially minded, emotionally intelligent People & Talent Manager to take the reins on hiring and retaining top-tier trade professionals across our service categories : gardening, electrics, handyman, window cleaning, and domestic cleaning.

This person won’t just “do HR”. They’ll build a people system that attracts reliable, conscientious tradespeople who can embody the brand, keep clients happy, and operate like a well-oiled team. They’ll set standards, spot red flags before they burn cash, and create an internal structure where excellence is the baseline.

Core Responsibilities

1. Talent Acquisition & Onboarding

• Design and run hiring campaigns across trade roles – think job boards, local networks, and trade schools.
• Create trade-specific interview scorecards to identify skill, attitude, and cultural fit (no drama, no flakes).
• Own and streamline the onboarding journey : compliance, brand alignment, customer service polish.

2. People Success & Culture

• Build an Employee Success Framework that includes :
• Performance metrics (punctuality, job quality, client feedback)
• Progression tracks (e.g., Operative → Team Lead)
• Behavioural standards and de-escalation protocols
• Build regular pulse-checks for morale, retention, and early warning signs.

3. Training & SOP Development

• Develop modular training flows for each trade vertical (gardening, electrics, handyman, cleaning, etc.).
• Be in charge of our entire Trainual system ensuring cohesion across departments
• Ensure every team member is brand-trained on customer interaction, appearance, and service standard.
• Collaborate with Ops to embed training into real workflows, not just theoretical manuals.

4. Workforce Planning & Scaling

• Partner with the Ops Lead to forecast hiring needs by season, vertical, and geography.
• Identify contractor vs employee blend strategies to optimise flexibility and cost.

What You’ll Need

Experience

• 3–5 years in a People Ops, Talent, or HRBP role within a high-volume, service-led environment
• Proven success hiring for trade, field, or shift-based roles
• Experience designing training or onboarding programmes (doesn’t need to be L&D pro level)
• Ideally has worked in businesses scaling from ~30 to ~50+ employees

Skills & Traits

• Sharp talent instincts : can read between the lines of a CV and spot flakiness from a mile away
• System thinker : builds repeatable frameworks that save time and reduce chaos
• Conflict diffuser : has a playbook for managing drama and redirecting energy positively
• High empathy, low ego : understands the working realities of tradespeople without romanticising them
• Gets your brand : understands that service quality is as much about people behaviour as skills