People Director 12 Month FTC

News UK; Greater London; On-site; GBP 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A media organization is seeking an experienced People Director to join their Human Resources team in London. The role involves leading a high-performing team of HR Business Partners and implementing people strategies that enhance colleague engagement and business performance. Responsibilities include managing talent acquisition, retention, and wellbeing initiatives while cultivating a positive workplace culture. The successful candidate will bring strong leadership capabilities and a results-oriented mindset, driving strategic HR initiatives aligned with organizational goals.

Benefits

Private medical insurance

Discounted gym memberships

Bikes for Work and Electric Car scheme

Generous pension scheme

25 days holiday plus bank holidays

Qualifications

• Proven success in delivering strategic People initiatives with generalist and specialist experience.
• Strong strategic thinking, problem-solving, project management and risk mitigation skills.
• Ability to analyse, interpret and present data to drive informed decisions.

Responsibilities

• Lead and inspire a high-performing team ensuring exceptional delivery of People activities.
• Enhance colleague experience, engagement, wellbeing and inclusion.
• Drive talent attraction, onboarding, retention strategies aligned with business goals.

Skills

Fundraising

Management Experience

Coaching

Analysis Skills

Strategic Planning

Team Management

Budgeting

Leadership Experience

Mentoring

Public Speaking

Negotiation

Supervising Experience

Job description

Job Title

People Director

Location

London, UK

Department

Human Resources

Reports to

Chief People Officer

Position Overview

News UK is seeking an experienced and dynamic People Director to join our Human Resources team. This pivotal role will partner with three key business areas: The Sun, Technology, and Broadcasting. The successful candidate will manage a team of HR Business Partners ensuring the delivery of strategic HR initiatives that support the business objectives and foster a high‑performance culture.

Your Role

You will coach and partner with Executive teams and senior leaders across News Broadcasting The Sun and Technology to co‑develop and implement people strategies in support of the business‑unit strategy, aligned with business goals. Leading a team of HR Business Partners, you’ll oversee initiatives across employee engagement, talent management, acquisition and retention, wellbeing, diversity, organisational design and change management. Balancing strategic and operational priorities you’ll foster an environment that drives business and People team performance. Reporting to the CPO you’ll own the People Plan for your department(s) and sit on both the relevant business SLTs and the People SLT.

Key Objectives

• Lead and inspire a high‑performing team of HR Business Partners ensuring exceptional delivery of People activities and continuous improvement.
• Enhance colleague experience, engagement, wellbeing and inclusion.
• Oversee and deliver workforce planning, organisational design, change management and skills gap mitigation projects.
• Work collaboratively with HR centres of expertise and legal teams.
• Drive talent attraction, onboarding, retention, reward and recognition strategies.
• Take a data‑led commercial approach to the development and delivery of People Plans, provide data‑driven insights and expert advice to support business outcomes.
• Build strong partnerships across the business and coach senior leaders and their teams, offering honest and actionable advice and counsel.
• Positively and actively contribute to the People Leadership Team, supporting and constructively challenging to ensure the whole function delivers for the business and its colleagues.
• Lead, support and participate in global and local projects.

What we're looking for from you

• People Expertise: Proven success in delivering strategic People initiatives with both generalist and specialist experience.
• Business Acumen: Strong strategic thinking, problem‑solving, project management and risk mitigation skills.
• Commercial Mindset: Aligning people strategies with commercial objectives, understanding market trends and developing talent that contributes directly to revenue growth and profitability.
• Relationship Management: Skilled in collaboration, networking and influencing within complex matrix environments.
• Data‑Driven: Ability to analyse, interpret and present data to drive informed decisions and positive outcomes.
• Talent Management: Expertise in strategic talent management, organisational design, change management and colleague experience.
• Agility and Resilience: Innovative, solution‑oriented with strong prioritisation, delegation and organisational skills.
• Leadership: Experience in motivating, managing and developing high‑performing teams.
• Collaboration: Team‑oriented mindset with a focus on partnership and cooperation.

Key Skills

• Fundraising, Management Experience, Coaching, Analysis Skills, Strategic Planning, Team Management, Budgeting, Leadership Experience, Mentoring, Public Speaking, Negotiation, Supervising Experience

Benefits

• Private medical insurance including coverage for pre‑existing conditions
• Discounted gym memberships, free ClassPass at Home weekly in‑person/virtual exercise classes
• Bikes for Work and Electric Car scheme
• Up to 60% discount on Harper‑Collins books
• Maternity leave up to 18 weeks (full basic salary) & paternity leave up to 2 weeks
• Access to exclusive events and competitions with exciting brands such as talkSPORT, Virgin Radio UK & The Times. Weekly virtual panel chats with top journalists and celebrities
• Access to wellbeing benefits such as EAP, physio/massage and counseling
• A generous pension scheme with employer contributions of up to 5%
• Wide range of training available plus full LinkedIn Learning access
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays and up to 4 volunteering days per year

Hybrid Work Model

At News UK we embrace a hybrid work model currently requiring a minimum of three days per week in the office. This approach fosters collaboration, innovation and team spirit within our workspace. Certain roles may necessitate additional in‑office days; please discuss this with your recruiter for specific requirements.

Life at News

Driven by passion, guided by principles and acting with purpose. We represent, reflect and reach the nation telling the stories that matter. We inform our audiences so that they can make decisions based on trusted information.

We represent, reflect and reach the nation telling the stories that matter most. To ensure these stories resonate with as broad an audience as possible it is essential that our organisation reflects the diversity of the people we reach. Whether through age, gender, ethnicity, disability, social class or sexuality we are committed to representing the rich variety of voices that make up our society. And we champion a culture where everyone has the opportunity to contribute and thrive as we continue to innovate and drive long term sustainable growth. This is done through our Diversity Strategy.

At News UK we take pride in our exceptional employee‑led networks that bring together individuals with shared interests and create a vibrant sense of community. We believe our networks play a vital role in fostering a collaborative and supportive work culture at News UK. Groups that we support include the African & Caribbean Network, Parents and Carers and LGBTQ group, News Is Out and the Apprentice Society.

Contact

If you would like to receive any information in a different way or for us to do anything differently to support you to apply for any of our roles please contact us at emailprotected .

Employment Type

Contract

Vacancy

1