Head of People Operations - High Growth Biotech Scale Up - up to £140k in London

This is a rare opportunity to build the People Operations function inside one of the most ambitious biotech scale ups in Europe. My client is a fast growing, highly mission led organisation using advanced machine learning to transform how new medicines are discovered. Exceptional science brings both ambition and pace, and with that a deep intentionality around the culture they are building.

As a result, they are hiring a Head of People Operations to design, own and evolve the operational backbone of the People function.

This is a pivotal hire. You will be the person who builds the systems, processes and data infrastructure that enable the organisation to grow well. This is not a traditional People Ops role. It is a senior, hands on position for someone who is both commercial and deeply technical, and who genuinely loves People Operations. Every system choice, workflow and process will shape the employee experience and reinforce the culture.

What you will do:

• Own the People Operations strategy and execution, working closely with senior People leadership
• Act as the technical lead for People systems, ensuring they are well designed, integrated and fully optimised
• Use data and insight to inform decisions, improve efficiency and support the organisation to scale
• Design and deliver high quality People programmes that create a consistent, mission aligned experience
• Be a trusted point of contact for people related queries, ensuring clarity, rigour and care
• Identify operational gaps and proactively design solutions that balance quality with pace
• Lead and develop the People Operations team, setting a high bar for standards and impact

Who will be successful:

This role will suit someone who is commercially minded, technically strong and passionate about People Operations as a discipline.

Have you got:

• Significant experience leading People Operations in a scaling organisation
• Deep systems and Workday expertise, with hands on experience designing and configuring complex workflows
• Strong analytical capability and a track record of using data to improve processes
• Commercial judgement and the ability to align people infrastructure with business goals
• A proactive, problem solving mindset and a high level of ownership
• Comfort operating at both strategic and operational levels
• A values driven approach, comfort with ambiguity and a desire to disrupt how things are done

We recognise how challenging this current job market is for candidates, and Hawkwood are therefore striving to provide the best candidate experience we can. If you are interested in this opportunity, we kindly request that you apply via this LinkedIn advert, as opposed to sending us an email or LinkedIn direct message. We are eager to ensure that each candidate application is considered fairly, and receives a consistent experience. Unfortunately, we cannot ensure this standard if you enquire about a role via email or LinkedIn message, as it falls outside of our established process.