Interim People & Talent Partner

The IOP exists to help physics and the physics community deliver on their potential for our lives, our society, our planet. Together with our members and leaders from the world of physics and beyond, we have identified three priorities of Skills, Science and Society which must shape our work over the next five years if we are to achieve our mission. We are very proud of our new innovative strategy. Here at the IOP we are looking for an Interim People & Talent Partner to support a secondment period until May 2027 to support us in our mission.

The IOP is a friendly and ambitious organisation. Inclusion and diversity are central to our work and we have a 'work anywhere' in the UK policy to make working at the IOP as flexible as possible. This is complemented with competitive salaries, professional development opportunities and generous benefits. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

• An excellent pension scheme
• Private medical insurance, life assurance, health care cash plan (via salary sacrifice)
• Eye care vouchers, annual flu vaccinations, long service awards, employee assistance programme
• Floating bank holidays (choose when to take your bank holidays throughout the year)
• Generous annual leave (25 days starting as a standard)
• Flexible working plus much more

The Role: We are seeking an experienced Recruitment and Payroll professional with a strong understanding of UK employment law, payroll legislation, statutory requirements, and HR best practice. The successful candidate will have proven experience managing end to end recruitment and payroll processes, always ensuring compliance and accuracy. A sound knowledge of HR systems, particularly iTrent, payroll administration, employee lifecycle processes, and current employment legislation is essential. The ideal candidate will be highly organised, resilient, and dependable, with the ability to manage competing priorities within a small team. They will have experience working both independently and collaboratively, demonstrating excellent attention to detail and a proactive approach to problem-solving. Strong interpersonal and communication skills are essential for this role, along with the ability to build effective relationships at all levels of the organisation. The postholder will be confident in providing guidance and advice on recruitment, payroll, and employee relations matters, ensuring decisions are legally compliant and aligned with organisational policies and procedures.

What will I be doing?

• Lead and sign off all payroll related activities, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and effective liaison with internal and external stakeholders
• Manage end to end recruitment activity, delivering effective attraction, selection, and onboarding processes to secure high quality candidates in a timely manner
• Coach and support managers on HR policies, processes, and employee lifecycle matters, including family leave, return to work arrangements, and complex or sensitive people issues
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of People services, including HR systems, People Team processes, EDI initiatives, and the effective management of employee and manager queries
• Line management of People Officer

Who will I work with?

Internally, the role works across all departments as well as IOP Publishing HR and Finance. Externally, the role works with employment lawyers, recruitment agencies, occupational health providers and EDI professionals.

Ideally, your skills include:

Essential Criteria

• Sound knowledge of UK employment legislation and its practical application
• Strong recruitment and payroll experience, including end-to-end recruitment and payroll processes
• Strong understanding of HR best practice and employee lifecycle processes
• High level of professionalism, discretion, and commitment to confidentiality
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to listen, influence, negotiate, and provide advice on complex or sensitive matters
• Line manager experience
• Experience working autonomously in a busy, varied, and fast-paced environment
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to accuracy
• Strong line management skills, with experience coaching, developing, and supporting employees to achieve individual and organisational objectives
• Ability to think strategically, plan ahead, and develop creative solutions to complex challenges
• Strong working knowledge of HR systems, ideally including iTrent, Harbour, and MyFlex
• CIPD Level 5 qualified

Desirable

• Experience using HR systems, ideally iTrent (Electric Theme) and/or DayForce
• Supporting in HR system rollouts

How will I be working? We operate a flexible, trust based working model that gives colleagues autonomy over how, when and where they work, while recognising the value of in person collaboration. You will be assigned a base office, with hybrid working offered as standard. You will engage in regular in person collaboration with your team (as operational appropriate), as well as with colleagues across the wider organisation, to ensure effective operational alignment and to support our inclusive approach to working. As an organization we meet in person once a quarter at our Head Office in Kings Cross, London and once a quarter within the People & Operations Department alongside team meetings as appropriate.

Why join the IOP? The IOP is the professional body and learned society for physics in the UK and Ireland. As a charity, we're passionate about increasing public understanding of physics and supporting a diverse and inclusive physics community. There's never been a better time to join us. We're committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive culture for everyone. If you need any reasonable adjustments during the application or recruitment process, please let us know we're always happy to help. Please note whilst we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role, we warmly encourage applications from candidates who already have the right to work in the UK and Ireland.