About the role The People Operations Director is responsible for leading the operational delivery and continuous improvement of the firm’s People function. The role ensures that people services, systems, governance and operational processes are efficient, scalable, commercially focused and aligned to the needs of a modern professional services business. The role will lead HR operations, employee relations and policy, reward and people systems/data. A key focus will be driving operational transformation through simplification, automation, technology enablement, and the development of scalable service delivery models including shared services. This is a critical leadership role within the People leadership team, balancing strategic transformation with operational excellence and risk management. Key Responsibilities People Operations Leadership Lead and continuously improve the firm’s People Operations function across the full employee lifecycle. There’s a real opportunity here to develop a more commercially focused modern people function embracing technology and new ways of working. Deliver a high-quality, consistent and efficient service to employees, managers and partners. Establish clear operational governance, service standards and performance metrics. Ensure operational processes are compliant, well-controlled and fit for scale and growth. Lead and develop a high-performing operational People team. Build capability in service excellence, process improvement and data-led decision making. Foster a collaborative, accountable and customer-focused culture. HR Operations Shared Services Oversee all HR operational activity including onboarding, offboarding and lifecycle management, ensuring legislative and regulatory compliance throughout. Lead Talent acquisition and development operations processes and administration. Ensure all associated operational and contractual documentation is maintained and managed, through effective governance. Design and implement a scalable and commercial operating model for transactional people activity. Assess opportunities for: workflow automation self-service capability digitisation shared service structures third-party/outsourced support models Simplify and standardise processes across the function. Employee Relations Policy Lead the firm’s employee relations, policy and HR compliance framework, ensuring alignment with UK employment law and business needs. Ensure consistent and commercially sound management of ER matters. Oversee development and maintenance of people policies aligned to employment legislation and business requirements. Monitor ER trends and develop proactive interventions to reduce risk and improve manager capability. Reward Partner with senior stakeholders to develop a reward strategy, governance and reporting requirements. Oversee operational delivery of key reward processes including salary and bonus cycles. Support reward benchmarking, governance and pay framework processes to support a commercial and client focused reward strategy. Ensure effectiveness and integrity of reward-related processes and controls. People Systems, MI Vendor Management Lead the firm’s people systems, people data and management information capability. Drive systems optimisation and improved data quality and insight. Develop reporting and dashboard capability to support decision-making. Manage third-party vendors supporting operational delivery and systems capability. Identify opportunities to rationalise technology and improve efficiency.