WaterAid UK People Director

WaterAid; London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

WaterAid is seeking a People Director to lead the People Team in the UK, reporting directly to the Global Executive Director. The role involves enhancing employee engagement, supporting diversity, and optimizing people strategies to drive outstanding organizational performance across WaterAid's operations.

Qualifications

• Significant senior experience of strategic business partnering in an international environment.
• Experience of creating safe and inclusive work environments.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership in delivering WaterAid UK's vision and strategy.
• Champion WaterAid's values and lead the organization's diversity agenda.
• Develop and monitor performance indicators for WaterAid UK's effectiveness.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic Business Partnering

People Strategy Development

High Performance Culture

Diversity and Inclusion

Communication Skills

Job description

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WaterAid UK People Director

Location: The role can be based in the following WaterAid countries subject to right to work eligibility in the respective country.

• South Africa (office in Pretoria)
• Nigeria (office in Lagos)
• Kenya, Nairobi, (home-based)
• UK (office in London)

Salary: for UK location: £80,000 - £90,000 with excellent benefits. Salary and benefits for other locations will be in line with the respective country ranges and details are available from Macaulay Search.

Contract: This is a full-time role.

Travel: International travel to countries where WaterAid works, circa four weeks per year. If based outside of the UK, there will be an additional need to spend at least one week per quarter in the UK where 35% of WaterAid UK's staff are based.

About WaterAid's People Team:

In 2024 we reviewed the People function across the WaterAid federation, to ensure we are equipped to support and enable WaterAid to achieve our ambitious global strategy. I'm really excited by the outcomes of this review and the fresh vision we have created for our People Teams across the world.

The WaterAid UK People Director will provide leadership in the delivery of this vision with the WaterAid UK People Team - a team of strategic business partners and specialists in learning, reward, talent acquisition and management, internal communications and engagement, safety and security, and strategic people planning. A new People Hub within this team supports country people leads in their delivery of local services and with specialist expertise. The UK People Team, including UK Facilities, also sit within the WaterAid UK People Team.

The WaterAid UK People Team is supported by the Global People Team, who work with all WaterAid member organisations to contribute to an effective federation. The WaterAid UK People Team also support WaterAid Canada and WaterAid Japan with services not provided by the Global People Team.

About the WaterAid UK People Director Role:

This is a senior leadership role within WaterAid UK, reporting to the Global Executive Director of People. The post holder is a member of WaterAid UK's leadership team who, together with the Executive Directors' team, are responsible for ensuring the delivery of WaterAid UK's contribution to the global strategy. The post holder is also a member of the Global People Executive, working in partnership with the Global People Team and other member People Leads to develop global people strategies.

The WaterAid UK People Director will provide leadership to the WaterAid UK People Team, supporting the delivery of highly effective local people services and ensuring the delivery of WaterAid's global people strategy within WaterAid UK. An Executive Support Manager, Head of People International, Head of People UK, Talent Acquisition Lead, Internal Communications & Engagement Partner, Global Reward & Mobility Lead, and Global Safety & Security Lead all report directly into the role.

Accountabilities

• Provide leadership in enabling WaterAid UK to be a great place to work in all its countries of operation, employing highly engaged and skilled people who are supported, through good leadership and management, to achieve impact, deliver to high standards and thrive in their work.
• Champion WaterAid's values and lead WaterAid UK's diversity, equity, and empowerment agenda.
• Be an inspiring leader for the WaterAid UK People Team, role modelling our values and providing direction, support, mentoring and coaching. Accountable for translating global people strategies, standards, and approaches into key initiatives for WaterAid UK and for effective delivery to ensure the highest quality of talent acquisition, engagement and retention.
• Accountable for developing strategies to specifically enable the delivery of WaterAid UK's priorities. Lead a team of people business partners who provide support to WaterAid UK Executive Directors, the WaterAid UK leadership team and managers across the organisation.
• Work alongside the WaterAid UK Executive Directors to develop strategies and approaches. Recent examples include reviewing and agreeing high level actions from the Global Employee Engagement Survey; designing and setting up a senior leadership team across WaterAid UK; strengthening WaterAid UK's approach to ensure a high performance culture; and agreeing principles for hybrid working in the UK.
• Develop and monitor people performance indicators and measures for success against plans. Support leaders to embed safeguarding and security commitments within WaterAid UK country contexts.
• Continuously review the effectiveness and efficiency of the WaterAid UK organisation, identifying opportunities to optimise structures, capabilities, and ways of working.
• Provide leadership, support and coaching to build confident and equipped local people teams in the countries where WaterAid UK works, recognizing and understanding the different operating environments, challenges and opportunities.
• Ensure WaterAid UK has appropriate people technology systems and processes. Be a key member of WaterAid UK's planning team, ensuring WaterAid UK's strategies and plans are proactively resourced with the people we need, with the right skills, in the right locations.
• Build an external network with relevant communities of practice and experts.

Requirements

Person specification

Essential skills and behaviours

• A commitment to WaterAid's values of respect, accountability, courage, collaboration, integrity and innovation and a working style that reflects these.
• Significant senior experience of strategic business partnering and people strategy development and delivery in an international and multicultural environment.
• A track record of having created great workplaces with high performance cultures, high engagement levels and compelling employer brands.
• Experience of creating safe and inclusive environments where diversity thrives.
• An inspiring and empowering leader, with experience of building, leading, managing and motivating diverse teams.
• Sensitive to the different cultural, legal and market influences on people management practices within the contexts in which WaterAid works.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills and a high level of emotional intelligence.
• Sound judgment. Able to influence senior managers and be seen as a credible source of advice.
• A deliverer and effective decision maker. Flexible, resourceful, innovative and able to navigate complexity.
• A team player, able to build collaborative relationships.
• Experience of leading and advising on organisational design and change management. Good coaching and mentoring skills and an approach that builds capacity rather than dependency.
• Experience of embedding data-led approaches supported by effective systems. Willing and able to travel internationally.

Desirable skills

• Ability to speak languages spoken in countries where WaterAid works, particularly French.
• Experience of working in the international development sector and of living or working in one of the countries where WaterAid has programmes.

View full job pack here

How to Apply: WaterAid is working with Macaulay Search on this appointment. Your application should include:

• A short letter (max two pages) outlining your personal motivation to join WaterAid and relevant experience for this senior leadership role.
• A full CV with relevant educational and professional qualifications and achievements.

Send your application to [e-mail] by 9:00 AM BST Monday 30 June. Please contact [e-mail] with any questions about the role or process.

Pre-employment screening: To apply for this post, you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in the respective country. All pre-employment checks will be carried out according to the applicable laws in the respective countries. All our UK-based vacancies require a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check to comply with our Safer Recruitment policy

Benefits

As an organisation WaterAid is committed to creating an environment where you can thrive and be yourself at your very best. So, in addition to our inspiring global mission and engaging work environment, we have a generous benefit package to help you take care of your health, happiness and wellbeing.

Our Committment:

Our people promise

We will work with passion and focus to make sure everyone everywhere has clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. WaterAid is a place of purpose - where people have a real commitment and shared responsibility for the impact we have. We are a global community with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, motivated by inspiring, stimulating work. We are determined to be a place where people feel safe and able to contribute their voice and truly live our values.

Equal opportunities

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, beliefs, customs, traditions, ways of life and status. This includes, but is not limited to, race, ethnicity, caste, colour, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, disability status, neurodiversity, age, marital and family status, sexual orientation and gender identity, health status, place of residence, economic and social situation.

Safeguarding

We are committed to protecting everyone we come into contact with. We have a zero[1]tolerance approach to abuse of power, privilege or trust across our global work, and to any form of inappropriate behaviour, discrimination, abuse, bullying, harassment, or exploitation. Safeguarding the people and communities we work with, our staff, volunteers and anyone working on our behalf is our top priority, and we take our responsibilities extremely seriously. All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks (which can include counterterrorism, safeguarding and criminal records checks)