People & Operations Manager in London

Hybrid working. Our flexible working policy requires everyone to be in our east London office for 25% of the time as a minimum because building in-person relationships is important to us (for this role we ask that you come to the office every week for the minimum of one day), but you’re welcome to be there more as many staff are.

Contract Type: Permanent

Reporting To: Director of Operations

Hours: Permanent, full-time, contract. At NEON, we work a 28 hour week - the equivalent of a 4 day standard work week. This can be done over 4 or 5 days.

Benefits include:

• a 28-hour week
• 7.5% employer matched pension
• genuinely flexible working
• 20 days holiday per year (25 days pro rated for a 4 day week), plus bank holidays and Christmas break
• a progressive Parenting Policy
• Sabbatical Policy
• a generous staff development budget

This role is the main point of contact for staff for all people & operations support. It is crucial in providing the systems and support that NEON staff rely on to do their best work by:

• owning NEON people and operations policies and ensuring they are understood and applied consistently and equitably across the organisation;
• guiding staff through people processes;
• overseeing the smooth running of operations systems across the organisation.

What you’ll be doing:

• Lead the full lifecycle of NEON staff, including recruitment, contracts, onboarding, ongoing management, and offboarding, while overseeing and supporting the Ops Assistant to run these processes.
• Lead on reviewing and improving people processes and ensure anti-oppression is embedded within them.
• Manage HR systems and records, including contracts, payroll inputs, leave, training, appraisals, probations and policy implementation, ensuring processes are accurate, well maintained and completed on time by line managers.
• Act as first point of contact for HR queries, taking ownership of NEON’s policies, processes, culture and employee relations.
• Advise staff and line managers on policies, accommodations, and support needs, conduct relevant HR meetings and elevate to the Director of Ops and People when appropriate.
• Manage monthly payroll, submitting updates to the outsourced provider, checking accuracy of pension and other deductions, implementing pay increases and paperwork, and addressing staff payroll queries or signposting them to financial guidance.
• Line manage the Operations Assistant to a high standard using the full spectrum of management tools and approaches e.g. mentoring, coaching, challenge and feedback using the feedback guidelines, more formal performance processes.
• Oversee day-to-day operational support functions delivered through the Ops Assistant, including IT and systems, GDPR processes, office and facilities coordination, health and safety, staff event logistics and board logistics, ensuring tasks are completed on time and to a high standard, following NEON’s values.
• Support the Director of Ops and People in developing and updating people policies, procedures, and practices, staying across emerging trends, and embedding a caring, anti-oppressive culture through organisational development projects such as internal comms, team guides, manuals, and frameworks.
• Maintain core organisational administration, including Companies House filings, insurance renewals, subscriptions, and shared organisational inboxes.
• Participate or lead on Operations projects as agreed, (e.g. HR systems, data protection, health and safety), with clear scope and prioritisation.
• Actively lead on the enhancement of the Ops Peer Support Network’s community of practice as part of implementing the network strategy.
• Play an active part in the whole NEON team, contributing to organisation-wide plans.

Who you are:

• HR & people ops experience: You’ve worked in HR or people operations before and are confident managing the full employee lifecycle — recruitment, contracts, onboarding, performance, leave, payroll coordination and offboarding.
• Operational systems & improvements: You’ve held responsibility for systems like HR platforms, shared drives, IT tools or project management software.
• Strong organisation & reliability: You’re highly organised, detail-focused and someone who gets things done.
• Line management experience: You’re a skilled and confident line manager, and able to support with feedback, development and performance.
• First point of contact for HR & ops support: You’re comfortable being a go-to person for staff questions on HR, people and operations.
• Working knowledge of compliance areas: Good understanding of core compliance areas such as UK employment practice, data protection and health and safety.
• Self-directed and collaborative: You’re able to manage your own workload and priorities, whilst working naturally across teams.
• Proven understanding of anti-oppression work and commitment to tackling all institutional forms of oppression, bigotry and exclusion.
• An affinity with NEON’s aims, objectives and organisational values of solidarity, generosity and respect.

We particularly welcome applications from marginalised groups, especially people of colour and other ethnic minorities, people who identify as LGBTQIA, Disabled people and those who identify as working class or have done so in the past.

This role requires that you are resident and have the right to work in the UK.

Interview dates: First round of interviews (online): Mon 3rd - Weds 5th August 2026, second round of interviews (in person): Thursday 13th August 2026.