Senior People Business Partner (15 Month FTC)

Consultancy.uk; Leeds; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Hippo, a fast growing UK digital consultancy, seeks a Senior People Business Partner to run the People function in Leeds and support the full employee lifecycle. You will manage People Partners and the People Co-ordinator, ensuring high-quality coaching and consistent processes.

You will lead through a transformation with AI and automation at the centre of the team, handling complex casework while developing others and aligning HR activity with business goals.

Qualifications

• Experience leading HR teams and partnering with senior stakeholders.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practices.
• Data-driven approach to people decisions and workforce planning.

Responsibilities

• Oversee day-to-day running of the People function and lifecycle management.
• Oversee employee relations processes and manage sensitive cases.
• Line manage and develop People Partners and the People Co-ordinator.

Skills

People leadership

Employee relations

HR analytics

Tools

HRIS systems

Job description

Firm

Hippo

Location

Leeds

Benefits

Competive

Functional areas

Human Resources

The Senior People Business Partner runs the People function day to day. You will keep the full employee lifecycle running smoothly, managing People Business Partners and the People Co-ordinator, and make sure managers get consistent, high-quality support.

Hippo is a fast growing UK digital consultancy of around 750 permanent staff and 300 contractors. Our People function is going through its own transformation, with AI and automation at the centre of it whilst also growing the size of the team. We want technology to handle the repetitive, transactional work, so that the team can spend its time on culture, coaching and the moments that need a human touch. This role is for someone who is excited by that shift and will lead the team in making it happen. Our values are pragmatic, human and ambitious and we as a team keep these at the heart of everything we do.

This is a hands-on leadership role. You will take on the most complex and sensitive casework yourself, while building the confidence and capability of the people around you.

Where the role sits

The role reports to the Head of People and directly manages the People Business Partners and the People Co-ordinator, indirectly managing 3 advisors and an administrator. Between them, the Senior Business Partner and the Business Partners cover the full breadth of partnering work, while the Co-ordinator supports the day-to-day running of People operations. How the partnering splits by business area or type of work will be agreed with the team and is likely to change as the business grows.

You will work closely with the Head of People, Talent Acquisition, and senior leaders and line managers across the business.

Key Responsibilities

You will be accountable for the day-to-day running of the People function. In practice, that means:

• Running People operations. Oversee the employee lifecycle from onboarding to offboarding, including absence, pay and promotion cycles, HR processes and employee records. Make sure the work is accurate, on time and consistent.
• Complex employee relations. Oversee the ER processes, supporting the rest of the team and occasionally step in to lead the more sensitive and complex cases. Keep the team's casework to a consistent standard, and inform the Head of People about risks early.
• Leading the team. Line manage, coach and develop the Business Partners and the People Co-ordinator. Give them clear direction and priorities, share the workload sensibly, and hold them to account in a way that is firm and fair.
• Compliance and risk. Make sure People processes meet UK employment law, data protection requirements, our ISO requirements and Hippo's own policies. Ensure the team keeps policies and manager guidance up to date as legislation changes.
• Data and insight. Own the quality of people data in our core systems. Use AI-powered analytics and reporting to turn that data into clear recommendations for stakeholders at every level.
• Automation and improvement. Find repetitive or cumbersome work and replace it with automated or AI-assisted workflows. Document processes so they scale and do not depend on any one person.
• Culture, engagement and wellbeing. Use engagement data to shape a positive, progressive culture. Shape the development strategy and how such processes such as 360 feedback, psychometric assessments, mentoring and manager coaching feed into this.
• Business partnering. Build genuine relationships with senior stakeholders. Understand their people priorities and make sure the People function's plans and insights line up with what the business is trying to achieve.
• Planning and strategy. Help the Head of People shape and deliver the People strategy. Give reliable inputs on capacity, cost and priorities

How We Expect You To Work

At this level, the job is to enable others rather than do everything yourself. Here is what that looks like at Hippo:

Critical thinking. You define the real problem before the team starts solving it. You make timely decisions with incomplete information and say what you are assuming.

Taking responsibility. You are accountable for everything the team delivers, including