Head of Performance & Talent Development

Shoosmiths LLP; Greater London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job description

Head of Performance & Talent Development

As Head of Performance & Talent Development (P&TD), you will be responsible for the Firm’s P&TD strategy and team - which exists to enable Shoosmiths’ people to make the most of their talent and realise their potential; driving individual, team and organisational performance as a result.

The P&TD Team consists of three ‘pillars’ or sub-teams, with dedicated operational support. These three pillars are Design & Delivery, Digital Learning, and Talent, plus one operational advisor (11.5 in total). The firm’s current Head of P&TD has 5.5 direct reports.

We are looking for a dynamic and experienced Head of P&TD to join our People Directorate. Preferred locations for the role are London, Birmingham, Manchester or Leeds. This role is pivotal to enabling the performance of the business and ensuring we have the rights skills and capabilities for our future success. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record in talent development, coaching, learning, leadership and management and performance improvement. We are looking for vision, a passion for all things performance related, true commerciality and a desire to partner collaboratively across the firm, which can be evidenced from experience in any sector.

As the Head of Performance & Talent Development, you will also sit on the People Executive reporting to the Director of People to provide support and development of our broader People strategy.

The Team

The P&TD Team delivers business critical projects and ongoing support that enable long-term, sustainable high performance (or ‘excellence’) across the Firm. It does this by co-creating relevant learning materials that are meaningful to the Firm’s people, impactful, and available in the flow of work - when colleagues need them most. The team works strategically - in alignment with the Firm’s 2030 Strategy - with the intention of improving the Firm’s commercial performance, whilst protecting what makes Shoosmiths special - its culture. It does this by equipping colleagues with the mindset, skillset and toolset necessary to deliver an outstanding client experience, both internally and externally.

The Firm

Shoosmiths is the law firm clients choose for excellent service, incisive thinking and above all for our ability to focus on what matters. From offices across the UK and Brussels, we support some of the world’s most exciting and ambitious businesses; amazing clients making an impact. We empower our people to be their authentic selves and deliver together in supportive teams committed to excellence and innovation. The first top 50 law firm to achieve ‘Platinum Standard’ Investors in People, our values and culture are not just words on our website but are the heartbeat of the firm.

We have an outstanding benefits package to complement our competitive remuneration system. In addition to the competitive salaries, great working environment and high-quality work, we believe that all staff should be rewarded for their commitment to the continued success of the firm through a comprehensive and flexible range of benefits.

• Strategic leadership: Develop and implement a comprehensive performance and talent development strategy that aligns with the firm's business objectives and culture.
• Performance development: Oversee the design and execution of performance development processes, including objective setting, performance reviews, and feedback mechanisms to ensure continuous improvement and high performance.
• Talent development: Identify and nurture employees through tailored development programs, succession planning, and career pathway initiatives, working in partnership with HR Advisory colleagues to own and deliver the various talent management processes.
• Leadership and management development: Create and deliver leadership and management development programs to build a strong pipeline of future leaders within the firm.
• Training: Design and implement training programs that address the skills and competencies required for various roles within the firm, ensuring employees have the tools and knowledge to excel. Coordinate and support training activities firmwide, including when delivered by teams outside P&TD.
• Continuous improvement and learning: Foster a culture of continuous improvement by implementing learning initiatives that enable self-service skill development.
• Apprenticeships: Oversee the firm's approach to and support of business services apprenticeships.
• Coaching: Own and oversee the firm's approach to internal and external coaching, including personally coaching Partners / senior leaders from time to time.
• Facilitation: Where required, facilitate and deliver sessions at conferences, roadshows, senior leadership meetings etc.
• Data-driven insights: Utilize data and analytics to measure the effectiveness of performance and talent development activities and align these with the evolving needs of the firm and to identify trends, forecast future talent needs, and drive strategic decisions.
• AI, technology and continuous improvement: Oversee and drive a focus on continuous improvement, including exploration and adoption of technology best practice and AI tools. Champion a technology-enabled approach to service delivery.
• Collaboration: Work closely with senior leadership, colleagues in the People Directorate, and others across the firm to ensure alignment and integration of performance and talent development initiatives. This includes the firm’s Internal Training Faculty, which is currently being established with the intention of further improving the quality of training across the firm.
• Compliance: Ensure all performance and talent development practices comply and support with relevant regulatory requirements.
• People and team leadership: Develop, coach and manage the P&TD team to maintain high performance and ensure a supportive team culture. Manage the functional budget commercially and strategically.
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI): Collaborate with the DEI team to integrate inclusive practices into talent management and development programs.
• Employee engagement: Develop and implement engagement strategies to improve employee satisfaction and retention through learning and talent development. Input into initiatives to measure employee engagement and implement action plans to address feedback.

Qualifications and Skills:

• Highly commercial and financially literate, with proven ability to target proposals and activities towards furthering the business strategy.
• Extensive experience in learning, performance development, talent management / development, and leadership development.
• Proven ability to design and implement effective training and development programs.
• A deep understanding of coaching methodologies. Professional certifications in coaching and assessment tools such as Hogan, Core Strengths, MBTI would be highly desirable.
• Familiarity with new learning technologies, such as AI learning tools and immersive / experiential learning experiences.
• Strong facilitation and public-speaking skills.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the proven ability to build strong business relationships and work collaboratively with diverse teams.
• Strong external / professional network.
• Proven strategic thinking and leadership skills with the ability to influence at all levels of the organisation. Adept at problem-solving.
• Excellent understanding of change management approaches and strategies and proven ability to lead, drive and manage change.
• Proficiency in using data and analytics to drive decision-making and measure program effectiveness.
• Proven expertise in project management, including the ability to lead and oversee multiple projects simultaneously - at pace - ensuring timely delivery, adherence to budget and alignment with strategic goals.

Equal opportunities

Our approach to our people is underpinned by our approach to diversity, inclusion and well-being. Our ambition is to build a diverse and ambitious workforce that reflects all backgrounds and talents, and a workplace that is supportive and inclusive, recognises and nurtures talent, and has a strong sense of community between colleagues.

This means that everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, whatever their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, disability, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.