At a Glance
- Tasks: Join us in shaping talent strategies and enhancing career pathways at a leading university.
- Company: King’s College London, a world-renowned institution in the heart of London.
- Benefits: Full-time role with a fixed-term contract, competitive salary, and a vibrant work environment.
- Other info: Inclusive culture that values diversity and offers growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on talent management and support university ambitions.
- Qualifications: Experience in career management, strategic thinking, and excellent communication skills.
The predicted salary is between 36000 - 60000 £ per year.
About us: King’s College London is a world-leading university based in the heart of London with 40,000 students from over 150 countries studying in person and online, and over 12,000 employees. This is an exciting time to join King’s College London as we establish a new Talent team embedded within HR. The creation of the team reflects the renewed focus and strategic priority to enhance our talent management capabilities across both our academic and professional services workforce.
About the role: One of the key pillars of King’s 2030 strategy is ‘Enabling our People to Excel’, and the talent, commitment, and creativity of our people are at the heart of King’s success. The Talent team is responsible for developing a new strategy and setting up active talent management, including assessing and identifying high potential, retaining and developing talent, enabling and embedding a high-performance culture, and the creation of new career pathways. We are looking for someone to join us for c.10 months to help the strategic development of a Talent function to support university ambitions, working alongside HR colleagues, including the Organisational Development Team. There is an opportunity to make a real impact by bringing best practice and innovation into King’s.
To apply please submit a CV and supporting statement (1 page) setting out your relevant experience through the King’s job pages. This is a full time role (35 hours per week) and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 01-Jan-2027 or until the return of the substantive post holder.
About you: To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:
- Essential criteria
- Evidence of designing and implementing career and talent management activities such as succession plans and developing methodologies to assess high potential.
- Experience in designing and embedding career pathways across all layers of a large organisation.
- Knowledge of best practice process improvement and the capability to leverage available technology, data and reporting to improve new and existing processes.
- Experience of how to successfully roll out new initiatives in a large and complex organisation.
- Excellent written, listening and communication skills.
- Strategic thinker with operational delivery expertise.
- Proven analytical and problem-solving capability, and the ability to work independently.
- Comfortable with ambiguity, and able to flex to provide effective solutions to meet our stakeholders' evolving needs.
- Desirable criteria
- Experience of working in higher education, government or the public sector.
- Educated to degree level, or equivalent.
- Experience of working in a large and complex organisation.
- Experience of leading centralised performance management initiatives, including the delivery and reporting of annual performance reviews.
We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community. We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.
As part of this commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and through this appointment process, it is our aim to develop candidate pools that include applicants from all backgrounds and communities. We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job description. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.
Interviews are due to be held on 15th January 2026.
Careers & Talent Manager - Maternity Cover employer: King’s College London
King’s College London is an exceptional employer, offering a vibrant work culture in the heart of London that values diversity and inclusion. As part of a newly established Talent team, you will have the opportunity to make a significant impact on talent management strategies while benefiting from professional growth opportunities within a prestigious institution dedicated to enabling its people to excel.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Careers & Talent Manager - Maternity Cover
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to current employees at King’s College London on LinkedIn or through mutual connections. A friendly chat can give you insider info and might just get your foot in the door.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for the interview by researching the Talent team’s recent initiatives. Show us that you’re not just interested in the role, but that you’re genuinely excited about contributing to King’s 2030 strategy.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice your answers to common interview questions, especially around talent management and career pathways. We want to see how you think strategically and operationally, so be ready to share your insights!
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining our team at King’s College London.
We think you need these skills to ace Careers & Talent Manager - Maternity Cover
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV:Make sure your CV is tailored to the role of Careers & Talent Manager. Highlight your experience in designing and implementing talent management activities, as this is key for us at King’s College London.
Craft a Strong Supporting Statement:Your supporting statement is your chance to shine! Use it to clearly outline how your skills and experiences meet the essential criteria. Be specific and give examples that demonstrate your strategic thinking and operational delivery expertise.
Showcase Your Communication Skills:Since excellent written communication is essential for this role, ensure your application is clear, concise, and free of errors. We want to see your ability to communicate effectively right from the start!
Apply Through Our Website:Don’t forget to submit your application through the King’s job pages. This ensures your application is processed correctly and gives you the best chance to join our exciting new Talent team!
How to prepare for a job interview at King’s College London
✨Know Your Stuff
Make sure you thoroughly understand the role of Careers & Talent Manager and how it fits into King’s College London’s 2030 strategy. Familiarise yourself with their current talent management practices and think about how your experience aligns with their goals.
✨Showcase Your Experience
Prepare specific examples from your past roles where you've designed and implemented career and talent management activities. Highlight any success stories related to succession planning or developing methodologies for assessing high potential candidates.
✨Be a Strategic Thinker
During the interview, demonstrate your ability to think strategically while also being operationally savvy. Discuss how you can leverage technology and data to improve processes, and be ready to share ideas on how to roll out new initiatives effectively in a large organisation.
✨Communicate Clearly
Excellent communication skills are essential for this role. Practice articulating your thoughts clearly and concisely. Be prepared to listen actively and respond thoughtfully to questions, showing that you can engage with stakeholders and adapt to their evolving needs.
