HR Advisor

This role will be based on site, primarily in the named location with the opportunity to work remotely available in line with our Adaptive Working Framework. We have one simple promise – to make a positive impact. Through our ground-breaking research, teaching excellence and commitment to sustainable living, we are changing lives for the better. The University of Derby is a modern university with a modern outlook. Everything we do is driven by delivering excellence and opportunities for our students, our staff and our region.

We have some of the best university facilities in the UK and achieve outstanding results for our teaching and research and have been awarded Gold in the prestigious Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023 – making it one of the top universities in the country recognised for its outstanding student experience and student outcomes. Financially strong and seriously ambitious we offer our employees an inclusive culture that centres itself around staff wellbeing, where you can be confident you will receive all the help and encouragement you need to build a rewarding career with lots of opportunities to enhance your skills.

In People Experience and Culture, we foster a culture of excellence which positively impacts the student experience and supports the University’s growth and success. We focus on the wellbeing of our colleagues, and support our leaders to create engaged, goal-aligned teams that power our organisation and community. We bring a future-focussed approach to people and skills challenges, using data-led insights to partner our colleges and directorates in securing the right people, at the right time, with the right skills, and right culture that allow us to meet our strategic objectives.

We have a unique opportunity for an HR Advisor to join the University on a temporary, part time basis. As part of the HR Business Partnering Team, you will be responsible for providing first-line professional HR guidance and support to managers, as well as managing HR casework. Working collaboratively, you will work with the business to deliver efficient, proactive, innovative and pragmatic business-focused HR solutions and recommendations.

You will also work proactively with the business to improve employee relations through coaching and building management capability to support effective people and performance management. You’ll have current knowledge of employment legislation, its application and best practice, combined with HR generalist experience in a large and complex organisation. This role involves working with various stakeholders to develop their HR skills through a coaching approach, to ensure a high-quality staff experience across the organisation.

This role is part time 16 hours per week (across Wednesday, Thursday and Friday), for a fixed term contract until 31st December 2026. The ideal candidate will hold a relevant degree or possess equivalent HR experience. They will also be Associate CIPD qualified or able to demonstrate equivalent relevant professional experience. They will have proven HR generalist experience within a large and complex organisation, including managing complex employee relations casework.

The successful candidate will be skilled at building effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and will have experience of designing and delivering training, workshops or coaching sessions. The ideal candidate will also have experience of contributing to and delivering HR projects, using their expertise to support organisational priorities and drive positive outcomes.

• Proactively manage both formal and informal HR cases and work collaboratively to provide support at all levels, ensuring a consistent approach in line with legal requirements and University policy.
• Respond to HR related queries as a first line advisor to managers across the organisation, delivering extensive advice on employment law and HR practises; this will include advising on employment status, job evaluations / job description development and supporting the broader recruitment processes.
• Meet regularly with people managers to ensure best practice for dealing with HR concerns so that these are proactively managed in a timely manner before escalation of concerns.
• Work with allocated areas to provide first line support to develop underpinning professional people management skills and knowledge.
• Support all stages of HR processes covering disciplinary / capability and grievance and provide expert advice to panel members and Chairs that is in line with legal precedents and internal policy. This will include complex casework.
• Proactively work with areas to address issues such as absence levels and support managers to effectively manage this through the use of MI and the University’s wellbeing and Occupational Health provision.
• Work collaboratively with the Organisation & People Development function to develop people management capabilities across the organisation including delivery of HR related development / briefing sessions.
• Highlight and report trends / risks within the HR portfolio to HR SMT and make recommendations to address this where appropriate.
• Contribute to changes regarding policy, frameworks and processes to adopt best practice approaches to reflect case law and legislation.
• Ensure all case details (including case files), documentation and resolutions are accurately recorded including note taking when required, ensuring that data governance and record retention requirements are followed.
• Advise employees on details of employment conditions.
• Liaise with Trade Unions as appropriate.
• Support the Business Partnering team to deliver strategic projects across the University.

Qualifications:

• Chartered CIPD qualified or working towards.

Experience:

• HR generalist experience in a large and complex organisation.
• Experience of managing HR case work.
• Experience of building relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Experience of working in a unionised environment and supporting strong employee relations.
• Experience of developing and delivering training / coaching to a wide range of stakeholders.
• Experience working with HR policies and procedures to interpret, advise and implement such agreements and procedures.
• Experience of working on HR projects.

Skills, knowledge & abilities:

• High level and current knowledge of employment legislation / case law and best practice and its application.
• Ability to work autonomously and proactively.
• Ability to write concisely to provide both qualitative and quantitative information in correspondence and reports.
• Ability to research, analyse and reason logically within tight and conflicting timeframes.
• The verbal communication skills to communicate with a diverse client group and provide challenge where needed.
• Ability to work with line managers at all levels and develop their HR skills using a coaching approach.
• Demonstrable skills and ability to ensure that sensitive employee relations issues are appropriately resolved, preventing undue escalation.
• Ability to interpret and utilise HR data to support decisions and actions.
• Ability to contribute to the broader University’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity Strategy.
• A pro-active approach to own development.
• Ability to problem solve and provide innovative solutions to complex HR issues.
• Ability to identify development needs.
• Knowledge of the best practice on recruitment and selection.

Generous annual leave entitlement of 38 days inclusive of bank holidays and concessionary days (pro rata). Suite of holistic wellbeing benefits and support including family-friendly policies, generous sick pay provision and comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme. Access to a variety of staff discounts at high street retailers. Discounted onsite gym. Holiday purchase. Cycle to Work scheme. A flexible working environment. A commitment to personal and professional development.

For further information and informal enquiries regarding the role, please contact Laura Chadwick, HR Business Partner via l.chadwick@derby.ac.uk. For enquiries regarding your application and for sponsorship eligibility, please contact the recruitment team via recruitment@derby.ac.uk.

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers under the Skilled Worker route for this role; however, applications are welcome from candidates who are able to demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

The University of Derby is committed to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion, regardless of age, disability, trans status, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief (or none), sex and sexual orientation. We are Disability Confident Employers, demonstrating our commitment to disability inclusion, and invite applicants to highlight adjustments they may require to ensure equitable participation in our recruitment processes.

Further, we are committed to ensuring an environment which is trans and non-binary-inclusive for all our staff, students, partners, and visitors, and continuously review our policies, guidance and training. When applying to join the University, you can choose your preferred title, including the gender-neutral title 'Mx'. We also ask our candidates if they would like to share their preferred pronouns. This is voluntary but demonstrates our commitment to inclusivity for trans and non-binary candidates. Once employed, you can add pronouns and preferred names onto our system.

The University of Derby undertakes anonymised shortlisting during the staff recruitment process. This means that, when shortlisting, panel members will not be able to see an applicant’s name and will see an applicant number instead. This demonstrates the practical steps we are taking to remove barriers to recruitment by minimising the possible impact of our unconscious bias.

However you identify, we actively celebrate the knowledge, experience and talents each person brings. Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds; therefore we are particularly interested to hear from applicants who will help our leaders and teams be more reflective of our student population.

At the University of Derby, we are passionate about embedding sustainability into everything that we do. We aim to bring environmental sustainability into all aspects of the University, including teaching, research and operational activities. In line with the University's strategic framework, we expect all our staff to embed sustainability into their working practices and support the University's objective to reach net zero carbon by 2050.

Don’t miss your chance – join the team and make a difference today!