Head of People Experience in Liverpool

Contract Type: Permanent

Salary: £74,219 - £82,032

Working Hours: 35 hours per week, full time

Working Pattern: Monday to Friday, hybrid

Location: Liverpool, Speke or London

Please note that whilst we will accept applications on the basis of any form of valid legal permission to work in the UK, we will be surrendering the Riverside Sponsorship licence, so for the avoidance of doubt, we are unable to apply for any further sponsorships whether on behalf of existing colleagues or candidates.

Are you passionate about making a difference? As we embark on our new 5-year strategy, Brighter Future Together, we have an exciting new role. Our new people strategy is one of the key pillars of our strategy. We are serious about improving our culture and people experience and so are investing in this new role to help us achieve what we must.

The difference you will make as a Head of People Experience:

Reporting to the Director of People & Culture, the Head of People Experience is accountable for all aspects of culture change, values and behaviours, people experience, engagement, colleague EDI and wellbeing across the Group, a trusted adviser to our Chief Officers and senior leaders across a, bringing in external advice as required.

About you:

We are looking for someone with a proven track record of success at a senior level in improving people experience and engagement. This includes consistently proactively developing and delivering modern approaches to engagement and bringing your key stakeholders and our people with you. The ideal candidate will be a culture change agent who is credible, passionate about people and customers, and able to build strong relationships. They will have the ability to positively influence the business, encouraging and enabling meaningful change. They will also act as a trusted advisor and subject matter expert in colleague EDI, wellbeing with the ability to provide advice and guidance at a senior level. They should demonstrate a strong track record of implementing initiatives that meaningfully improve EDI outcomes while ensuring the organisation remains safe and compliant.

Why Riverside?

At Riverside, we’re a housing association with a difference – enhancing the everyday for all our customers. For 90 years, we’ve been revitalising neighbourhoods and supporting communities by providing the homes they need to live full, fulfilling and rewarding lives. We have a portfolio of over 75,000 affordable residential and retirement homes across the UK. Our work ranges from homelessness services to social care, employment support to retirement living, and we need the best people on board to help us.

Working with us, you’ll enjoy:

• Competitive pay & generous pension
• 28 days holidays plus bank holidays
• Flexible working options available
• Investment in your learning, personal development and technology
• A wide range of benefits

Diversity and Inclusion at Riverside:

We are inclusive. At Riverside, we value diversity in all its forms. We foster a workplace where all individuals are respected, empowered, and heard. Our commitment to inclusivity drives our success and enriches the lives of our customers and colleagues. Riverside is a Disability Confident Employer and operates a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for any applicant who declares they have a disability. If the applicant meets the minimum requirements for the role (as set out in the role profile and/or person specification) they will be guaranteed an interview. This role also falls under our Ethnic Diversity Guaranteed Interview Scheme. If you are ethnically diverse and demonstrate you meet the minimum criteria for the role you will be guaranteed an interview. Applications may close before the deadline, so please apply early to be considered.

Role Profile:

Leading Our Strategy and Our People:

• Develop and deliver the strategic colleague experience, engagement and EDI elements of the People Strategy for the Group, including the development towards our aspired culture, values and behaviours custodian, approach to colleague voice, colleague EDI, engagement, recognition awards and employee engagement.
• Collaborating with across our business to a positive customer and colleague experience across the Group.
• Represent People Services, providing expert advice and keeping under review best practice developments that might affect the Group. Ensure highly effective communication and partnerships with peers and all stakeholders, securing understanding and support for requirements, impact, and future direction.
• To lead in such a way as to have a positive impact on our people. Role modelling Our Riverside Way, ensuring our ways of working are embedded in all we do and ensuring the achievement of our aspired culture.
• Support the Director of People & Culture to direct the design and implementation of an effective operating model, organisational structure, to foster modern, approach to organisational development culture mindsets and practices.
• Influence and develop strong partnerships to create synergies and innovative, shared solutions across TRGL that enables the right culture and experience.
• Build a diverse, high performing, and customer focused team with modern ways of working and the right knowledge, behaviours and capabilities that enables the effective execution of our vision, strategy, and goals.

Leading Service & Solution Delivery:

• Drive a culture of continuous service improvement, promoting cross-organisational working, to deliver best practice services and frameworks that meet developing and evolving business needs and ensures strong governance and control.
• Enhance people experience capabilities by leveraging and leading resources, both internally and externally.
• Leading and be accountable for the improvement of the colleague experience, researching and recommending initiatives and providing insight into colleague voice that improves colleague engagement, appreciation and the experience and allows us to attract and retain talented people.
• Supporting in the development the people strategy and long-term colleague experience, ensuring effective communication and promotion on what we are doing to improve experience.
• Custodian of the Groups values and behaviours, developing mindset and ensuring engagement and ownership across Group, embedding across the colleague lifecycle and championing, enabling Riverside to achieve its aspired culture.
• Leading colleague EDI, a trusted advisor to Group on all EDI matters, ensuring we stay compliant and our colleagues feel that they can be their true selves at work.
• Representing People Services on steering and internal / external best practice and sector groups.
• Influencing and putting plans, initiatives and solutions in place that achieve our colleague EDI objectives, support colleague groups and support our business to be reflective of the communities we serve.
• Supporting the health and wellbeing of our people by demonstrating root cause research and having in place a plan and initiatives that truly support the wellbeing of our people improve attendance and sickness absence.
• Communicate in an engaging way our employee value proposition and brand, internally and externally, working with Strategy and Communications to ensure our people are aware of how we are listening and acting on feedback, and delivering against our people strategy and developing a positive culture.
• Including an engaging Leadership and people manager events.
• Develop, ideas and facilitate and events, agenda and content at various levels and sizes that is innovative, modern and inspires and motivate our leaders and colleagues.
• Ensure that the people strategy plans and initiatives are communicated in an engaging way and that colleagues are clear what we are doing to improve experience and act on their feedback.
• Develop and control the annual operating and capital expenditure budgets for own area to ensure spend is consistent with the organisation’s overall strategic objectives and is within plan and that suppliers and contracts for all organization development are current, effective, governed and that we receive value for money and an excellent service.
• Oversee the development of frameworks, policies, guidance, and toolkits to underpin the People Strategy and EDI Objectives, provide guidance and strategic direction to People Services colleagues, to enable effective implementation of all initiatives within area of accountability across the Group.
• Ensure the development and achievement of service level agreements (SLAs), identifying key performance indicators (KPIs) to enable monitoring of and reporting on service delivery. Regularly reviewing and analysing KPIs to continually improve service in line with customer need and addressing underperformance.
• Maintain industry knowledge and expertise, keeping abreast of organization development best practice, analysing data and trends identifying opportunities to contribute to and shape future decision making.
• Ensure that all information security requirements, including data protection, are met in accordance with the Group’s policy, procedures, and statutory requirements.
• Ensure that health and safety requirements are met in accordance with the Group’s policy, procedures, and statutory requirements.

Person specification:

Knowledge, Skills and Experience:

• Track record of success in a senior leader level in improving colleague experience and engagement, covering all aspects of the role meeting demanding objectives, delivering business performance that exceeds expectations.
• A culture change agent, who is credible and passionate about people who can positively build relationships and influence the business to seek positive change.
• A trusted advisor and expert on colleague EDI, with demonstrated ability to advise the business at a senior level and to put in place the right initiatives that shift the dial on EDI whilst keeping the organisation safe.
• Ability to present and facilitate to audiences of various sizes and levels, engaging them in the topic and inspiring to achieve the change that is needed, ability to influence at sector wide level.
• Evidence of good people leadership and coaching in a diverse service delivery environment in a similar area of expertise, across diverse geographies and roles.
• Experience of building and managing effective relationships and strong credibility at a senior level including those with boards, customers, partners, and a wide range of stakeholders within the organisation development space.
• Demonstrated experience in strategy development and planning of culture change, EDI, employee engagement and experience services and teams and related projects for a large, complex, matric organisation.
• CIPD qualified, or organisation development equivalent qualification.
• Deep technical expert with comprehensive up to date knowledge of best practice relating to EDI, culture change, colleague experience, wellbeing and engagement.
• Experience of supplier management and delivery of organisation development and learning interventions through 3rd party suppliers.

• Strong ability to effectively influence which instils confidence with peers, colleagues, boards, and stakeholders, developing good reports and recommendations.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including the ability to explain organisation development impacts to the in a clear way.
• Deep understanding of current and emerging practices relating to area of expertise and how others are using them to drive and improve our business.
• Resilient, able to work in a large, complex, and complicated group of businesses with different demands and tensions in a financially constrained environment.

• Understanding of social housing sector and the challenges it faces.
• Evidence of continued professional development.
• Membership of relevant professional Institute.

If you share our values and are excited about making a significant impact at Riverside, please ensure you attach a current CV and covering letter. At Riverside we recruit to potential not just on skills and experience, so we encourage you to apply even if you don't feel you meet all the essential criteria on the job description.