People Operations Manager

Colossyan; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative education company is seeking a People Operations Manager to oversee payroll operations and lead recruitment for key leadership roles. The ideal candidate will have strong HR leadership experience in a high-growth organization, a solid understanding of payroll processes, and the ability to foster a supportive workplace culture. Benefits include generous holiday allowances, flexible working hours, and a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Benefits

35 holiday days per year

Birthday off

Wellness Fridays

Enhanced maternity & paternity allowance

Flexible working hours

Work-from-home allowance

Cycle-to-work scheme

Qualifications

• Proven senior HR/People leadership experience in a high-growth organization.
• Strong knowledge of UK payroll processes.
• Hands-on experience running performance review cycles.
• Demonstrated success in sourcing and hiring leadership roles.
• Solid understanding of UK employment law.

Responsibilities

• Oversee payroll operations for UK and US teams.
• Design and deliver performance review cycles.
• Lead recruitment for key leadership roles.
• Manage employee relations matters effectively.
• Line-manage and develop two people ops roles.

Skills

Leadership

Payroll Management

Performance Management

Recruitment

Communication

Data Analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in relevant field

Tools

HRIS/Payroll Software

Job description

Overview

BibliU is an award-winning education company that provides Day 1 access to affordable course materials, making learning more equitable and effective, in addition to providing campus store management. We partner with over 3,000 educational publishers to offer a wide range of high-quality content to students. Our platform provides engagement data to academics and helps students find information faster. We have disrupted the textbook industry by reducing the cost of education significantly and increasing publisher sales.

Founded in late-2015, we are a rapidly growing company transforming the way students and educators access and interact with learning materials. Our revenue has grown rapidly, with 150% YoY growth in the last three years. Last year, we raised $21m in a Series B funding round led by Nesta Impact Investments, with participation from Guinness Asset Management, Stonehage Fleming, and Oxford Sciences Enterprises.

In late 2023, we acquired Texas Book Company (now ‘BibliU Campus’) to deliver a more complete solution of products and services to higher ed students, faculty and administrators across the US. Since the addition of BibliU Campus, we have seen a dramatic increase in customers due to a much improved product market fit. We are expanding the team to meet our new market potential.

We are a diverse and inclusive team of professionals who are passionate about education and technology. Our culture is fast-paced, innovative, and dynamic, and we are always looking for talented individuals to join our team. If you are looking for a challenging and rewarding career in edtech and campus store management, BibliU is the perfect place for you. Join us and help revolutionize the way students and educators access and interact with learning materials!

Position Overview

At BibliU, our people are at the centre of everything we do. The People Operations Manager role ensures our People Operations function runs smoothly, delivering payroll oversight, people processes, leadership recruitment, and team management. This senior role acts as an independent driver of delivery and improvement, working in partnership with the VP of People Operations as a trusted advisor who reports on progress, outcomes, and blockers.

We’re seeking a proven People leader who can deliver operational excellence with autonomy and accountability. You’ll combine strong technical expertise (payroll oversight, performance management, executive recruitment) with a people-first approach that builds trust and drives impact across the organisation in a high-growth, fast-changing environment.

Responsibilities

Payroll & Benefits

• Oversee payroll operations to ensure accuracy and integrity of payroll across UK and US teams - working closely with the payroll & benefits administrator.
• Conduct final checks and sign-off to ensure payroll is completed correctly and on time, with operational input prepared by the People Operations Administrator and Finance team.
• Oversee the administration of employee benefits, ensuring they remain competitive and compliant.
• Work with the VP of People Operations on annual benchmarking and compensation strategy, with the VP providing final approval.

People Process Management

• Own the design and delivery of the full performance review cycle.
• Lead the salary review process, including coordination, data collection (with administrator support), and delivery.
• Facilitate engagement surveys, analyse results, and partner with the VP to implement actions.

Recruitment & Talent Acquisition

• Lead recruitment and sourcing for key leadership and executive roles, ensuring processes are rigorous, fair, and aligned with company needs.
• Build strong pipelines for critical leadership talent through proactive sourcing and networking.
• Oversee recruitment administration and candidate experience, owned by the People Operations Administrator.

Employee Relations

• Take the lead on managing employee relations matters, including grievances, disciplinaries, absence management, and performance-related issues.
• Provide coaching and guidance to managers to handle issues effectively, fairly, and in line with company policy and employment law.
• Ensure thorough documentation and process compliance, escalating complex or high-risk cases to the VP where appropriate.
• Monitor ER trends and advise on proactive measures to reduce issues and improve workplace culture.

Team Leadership

• Line-manage and develop two people ops roles ensuring clarity of responsibilities and effective delegation.
• Act as the escalation point for People Operations queries, ensuring high-quality support for the wider business.
• Build capability within the team to meet current and future needs.

Collaboration with VP of People Operations

• Partner with the VP to align initiatives with company strategy.
• Provide updates on progress, highlight risks/blockers, and propose solutions.

What we are looking for

Must have

• Experience: Proven senior HR/People leadership experience in a high-growth or scaling organisation.
• Payroll & Benefits: Strong knowledge of UK payroll processes, with accountability for oversight and checks; awareness of US payroll compliance is desirable.
• People Processes: Hands-on experience running performance review cycles, salary reviews, and engagement surveys.
• Recruitment: Demonstrated success in sourcing and hiring leadership and executive roles.
• Employment Law: Solid understanding of UK employment law, with confidence in applying it in practice; US/global experience is a plus.
• Leadership: Direct line management experience, with proven ability to coach, delegate, and develop junior team members.
• Independence: Ability to drive projects end-to-end with minimal instruction, keeping leadership updated on progress and blockers.
• Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills, able to influence stakeholders and represent People Operations confidently.
• Data & Insights: Comfortable working with data to identify trends, measure effectiveness, and create actionable insights
• Education: Bachelors degree in relevant field and/or equivalent HR award (CIPD, Disruptive HR etc)

Good to have

• Experience with HRIS/payroll system implementation. BambooHR experience would be a plus!
• Exposure to compensation benchmarking and job levelling frameworks.
• Background in supporting leadership teams or working closely with executives.

Benefits

Our benefits are all aimed at supporting a healthy work-life balance and cultivating a company culture where you can bring your whole, human self to work.

Here’s what we offer:

• 🌴 35 holiday per year - yep, that’s not a typo!
• 🎂 Your birthday off
• 🌱 12 scheduled company wellness Fridays off per year
• ❤️ Enhanced maternity & paternity allowance
• ⏰ Flexible working hours - we’re a remote team spread across the US, the EU, and UK.
• 💻 Work-from-home allowance to help you set up your dream WFH station
• 🚴 Cycle-to-work scheme (UK)

We strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds, experiences and identities to apply. Each new hire is an opportunity for us to bring in a different perspective and BibliU is committed to building an inclusive and supportive workplace where everyone can do rewarding work.

Please note: We do not work with external recruiters/recruitment agencies. This position will be filled directly by BibliU and we kindly request that external recruiters/recruitment agencies refrain from submitting candidates for this role.