HR Operations Lead

Our client is one of the UK's most established and widely recognised media publishing groups, with a portfolio of major national brands reaching tens of millions of readers across print, digital and social - both in the UK and globally. Their HR function is evolving at pace to match the scale and ambition of the business, and this role sits right at the heart of that.

This is a role for someone who is equally comfortable in the detail and driving change. You'll be hands-on - owning processes, improving systems and making things work better - not overseeing others who do it for you. If you're at a point in your career where you want real ownership without losing the craft, this is worth a look.

As HR Operations Lead you'll be responsible for operational excellence across HR service delivery - covering the full employee lifecycle. This is a broad, substantive role spanning process improvement, digital optimisation, data integrity, global mobility, employee engagement and CSR. You'll work closely with the shared services team, external vendors and senior HR stakeholders to drive meaningful, lasting improvements across the function.

• Continuously review and optimise HR processes - identifying inefficiencies and implementing cleaner, simpler solutions that don't over-engineer the problem.
• Drive automation and standardisation across HR workflows, leveraging existing tools — particularly Workday - to maximise capability and reduce manual effort.
• Own data integrity across all HR systems - running regular audits, flagging anomalies and taking corrective action to ensure accuracy and GDPR compliance.
• Oversee and triage global mobility cases, maintaining up-to-date records and partnering with external vendors and the Talent team where needed.
• Manage new joiner and exit surveys, producing regular reports and working with business areas to surface trends and improvement opportunities.
• Support the planning and execution of employee engagement initiatives and manage the CSR budget, fund allocation and matched funding requests.

What experience you'll bring:

• 3+ years in an HR Operations role with a strong focus on process improvement and digital optimisation - you've made things meaningfully better, not just maintained them.
• Proven experience with HRIS systems - Workday experience is highly desirable - and strong proficiency in data analysis and reporting tools including Excel and dashboards.
• High attention to detail with data - you spot what others miss and know how to fix it at the root rather than patching the symptom.
• The confidence to challenge existing practices and implement straightforward solutions - you're not someone who over-complicates things or waits for permission to improve them.
• Exposure to global mobility processes is a strong advantage, as is experience working in a shared services environment.
• Clear, collaborative communication - comfortable translating technical data into plain language for non-technical HR colleagues and senior stakeholders alike.

Why this one's worth considering:

• A genuinely broad remit - process improvement, data, global mobility, engagement and CSR all sit within this role. You won't be doing the same thing every day.
• Real ownership and visibility - you'll be shaping how HR operates across a business whose brands are read and trusted by millions.
• A well-established, ambitious HR function actively investing in becoming more digitally optimised - you'll be central to that journey.