Lead HR Business Partner in Manchester

We are recruiting for a Lead HR Business Partner to join our HR team in Bristol, Birmingham or Manchester. This is a full time, permanent opportunity which can be offered on a hybrid working basis. Working as part of a busy and forward thinking team you will be partnering with a range of key stakeholders including Group Leaders, Equity Partners, Business Service Directors and/or senior management.

Your Role

• To lead, coach and develop a team of (Senior) HR Business Partners and HR Advisor(s) to ensure they are performing at the highest level as commercial trusted advisors, employee champions and change agents; meeting the firm's needs in a rapidly changing and demanding environment.
• To provide advice, guidance and direction, and consultative services to the (Senior) HRBP’s and HR Advisors on people related matters and act as an escalation point.
• To challenge existing ways of working to ensure HR are 'fit for purpose' to achieve the aligned strategic goals.
• To lead a team of (Senior) HRBPs and work with the centres of excellence to support people activities across the Employee Life Cycle e.g. strategic resource planning, the annual performance management cycle, salary review, promotions process, talent management, succession planning.

Business Partnering

• To influence and execute the People strategy and ultimately, firm strategy; ensuring business goals can be achieved through robust, commercial and successful people plans.
• To work with their aligned leadership team to design and deliver Group People Plans which support Group strategic objectives, whilst aligning these with the firm wide people strategy.
• To develop strong business relationships and to be recognised as a trusted commercial advisor to Partners and senior managers in their aligned Group(s).
• To gain a deep knowledge and understanding of their aligned Group(s), using this to proactively identify internal/external influences, risks and opportunities and anticipate the needs of key stakeholders.
• To work with Partners and the Senior Management Team of their aligned Group to manage their Talent and Succession pipeline, both with consideration of internal development and strategic external recruitment.
• Responsible for designing and implementing change and transformation programmes across their aligned Group(s) and for supporting (Senior) HR BPs with similar activity: this may include organisation restructures and TUPE.
• Working with the (Senior) HR BPs and HR Advisor to spot trends and examples of poor practice or procedure in their aligned Group(s) and challenging and coaching the Partners and senior management team to improve.
• To foster excellent inter team working relationships across the HR Teams – HRBP and centres of excellence as well as across business services more widely.
• Working with the Organisation Development team to identify current and future skills gaps across the Partners and senior management teams of their aligned Groups and design relevant interventions.
• Working with Reward to ensure a consistent approach to reward is maintained across the Firm.
• Working with Recruitment to ensure all strategic lateral and senior hiring activity in their aligned Group(s) is managed in collaboration with Partners and the senior management team.
• Analysing and interpreting trends in management information to design appropriate interventions and initiatives.

Senior HR Expert

• To lead on significant people and transformation projects across the Firm.
• To build and maintain strong internal and external networks across the Firm and HR profession.
• To act as a point of escalation for complex employee relations, supporting managers with case management for complex employee relations issues, including supporting with preparation of any employment tribunal claims.
• Acting as the main point of contact between the centres of excellence and the Firm to ensure initiatives meet the needs of the Firm and are implemented successfully.
• Act as a key contributor within the HR senior management team, leading and contributing expertise to key projects and providing direction on strategy and operational plans to colleagues.
• Acting as a recognised expert in employment law, staying up-to-date on case law and best practice to reduce legal risks and ensure regulatory compliance.
• Act as an executive coach that works with the Partners and senior management team to help them gain self-awareness, clarify goals, achieve their development objectives, unlock their potential, and act as a sounding board.
• Acting as an effective deputy when the Head of HR Business Partnering is unavailable.
• Responsible for sharing expertise and acting as a coach and/or mentor to support the development of HR colleagues.
• Maintaining external networks to keep abreast of best practice across the HR profession.

Your Skills and Experience

• An experienced Lead or Senior HRBP with a track record of operating at a senior level within a HR team.
• Experience of leading and managing a high performing team of HR professionals.
• Experience of successfully developing, implementing and managing strategic people and key change initiatives; translating strategy into operational plans.
• Proven ability to quickly build credible working relationships with both internal and external clients at a senior level.
• Proven ability to influence, coach and challenge senior leaders.
• Demonstrates strong business/commercial approach and understanding of business needs.
• Strong knowledge of employment law.
• Strong employee relations experience with experience of managing complex cases.
• Robust, resilient, approachable and diplomatic communication skills, with the ability to present complex ideas and confidence to deal with challenging senior leaders.
• Strong project management and organisational skills, able to prioritise and manage multiple workstreams and meet deadlines.
• An individual who is able to effectively work with complexity and ambiguity would thrive in this role.
• Excellent technical HR Knowledge - CIPD qualified or relevant experience to demonstrate level of competence.
• A willingness to travel to different UK locations to support offices across Great Britain.

Your Team

The HR team consists of the HR Business Partners, Reward, Recruitment and Organisational Development, with specialists in Learning and Development, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing and Sustainability. Making sure everyone thrives during their time at TLT is the focus of our HR team’s work every day. We provide strategic and operational support to our leaders and teams and our HR specialists make sure our people are skilled, creative, valued, motivated, flexible and committed, working in a culture that enables them to perform at their very best.

The HR Business Partner team consists of Senior HR Business Partners, HR Business Partners, HR Advisors and a HR Operations team.

About TLT

Fast paced, fast growing and forward thinking, TLT is the law firm that helps clients stay one step ahead, and we do the same for our people. We work with high profile clients in innovative sectors. With local, national and international reach, we have over 1,800 people in offices across the UK and a network of partner firms across Europe, India and the US. TLT was named Law Firm of the Year at the Legal Business Awards 2023. This marks the third year in a row the firm has taken away this accolade in industry awards - having previously been named Law Firm of the Year at The Lawyer Awards in 2021 and the British Legal Awards in 2022.

Our purpose is to protect, prepare and progress our clients for what comes next and it’s essential that we do the same for our people, our planet and our communities too. In our open and collaborative culture, we encourage everyone to be their whole self, to have a voice and to contribute.

Our Benefits

We value our employees highly and we want you to feel valued. You’ll receive a competitive salary with an annual pay review. You will also have access to an extensive range of benefits via our flexible benefits scheme including 25 days holiday (which will increase to 30 days based upon length of service) and private medical insurance.

At TLT we have a progressive fully flexible working approach. We empower our people to work in a place and at a time that meets their needs, those of their clients and of the wider team and firm. Part of this agile approach is a focus on hybrid working and supporting the work/life balance of our people. We’re happy to talk about how flexible working can work for you and this role.