People-First HR Generalist & Advisor in Reading

The HR Manager is a generalist people professional who plays a key operational and advisory role within the Proactis People team. Working closely with managers and employees across the business, the HR Manager is responsible for the day-to-day delivery of HR services, supporting the full employee lifecycle from onboarding through to offboarding. The role provides first-line guidance on employee relations, HR policy, absence management, and people processes, whilst supporting the delivery of broader people initiatives including engagement, learning and development, and culture. The HR Manager is a trusted point of contact for managers and employees, combining sound HR knowledge with a practical, people‑first approach.

Key Accountabilities/BAU Objectives:

• The HR Manager is the first point of contact for managers and employees across Proactis on all day-to-day HR matters. This includes providing clear, pragmatic guidance on HR policy interpretation, people processes, and general HR queries, ensuring managers are equipped to handle people-related situations with confidence and in line with company policy.
• The HR Manager plays a key role in ensuring a consistent and professional HR service is delivered across the business.

Employee Relations & Case Management

• The HR Manager is responsible for supporting and managing a caseload of employee relations matters, including disciplinaries, grievances, absence management, and performance improvement plans. All cases must be handled in a fair, consistent, and legally compliant manner, with clear documentation maintained throughout.
• The HR Manager will advise managers on the appropriate course of action, escalating complex matters to the HR Business Partner or CPO where required, and will work to reduce long‑term absence and repeat ER cases across the business.

Onboarding

• Working in partnership with hiring managers and the talent acquisition team. This includes advising on job descriptions, supporting interview processes, and ensuring all pre‑employment checks including right to work are completed accurately and on time.
• The HR Manager will also ensure that all new starters are onboarded effectively and in line with the Proactis onboarding experience, setting a positive first impression of the business from day one.

HR Data, Reporting & Systems

• The HR Manager is responsible for maintaining accurate and up-to-date employee records within the HRIS, ensuring data integrity across all people systems.
• The role includes producing regular HR management information and reports for the People team and wider business stakeholders, supporting data‑driven decisions on matters including headcount, absence, turnover, and recruitment.
• The HR Manager will also ensure that employee files are audit‑ready and compliant with GDPR and company record‑keeping requirements at all times.
• The HR Manager will support the maintenance and communication of HR policies and the employee handbook, ensuring all documentation is current, accessible, and clearly understood by managers and employees.

The role contributes to the delivery of employee engagement and wellbeing initiatives, helping to create a positive and inclusive working environment that reflects Proactis values and culture. The HR Manager will also support the rollout of people initiatives including the ESG programme, benefits communications, and any wider culture or engagement activity as directed by the CPO.

About Proactis

Proactis is a leading Source-to-Pay software solution provider for mid‑market organisations across a range of service‑led industries. Our end‑to‑end modular platform enables customers to control spend and manage supply‑chain risk; improve compliance and governance of their purchasing activities; reduce the cost of goods and services; and deliver efficiencies, all through process digitisation and automation.