HR Business Partner (maternity cover)

Winckworth Sherwood LLP; London; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job description

This full time (35hrs a week), London based, 12-month fixed term contract HR Business Partner role, is to cover a period of maternity leave. You will be working within the firm’s HR department, which consists of ten people.

As the HRBP, you will report directly to the Head of HR and will have supervision responsibilities for the HR Advisor and HR Assistant & Partnership Support. Given this as well as business partnering, you will need to have strong HR generalist (including leading more complex ER casework) and HR operations experience, including management of processes to be successful in this role. You will work closely with the rest of the HR team to deliver cyclical HR activities.

Day to day tasks will include:

• Being the key point of contact for the business and people managers, being counted on for timely assistance when it’s needed. Providing sound, pragmatic, commercial advice to manage people related risks and compliance management.
• Partner with the business to ensure that their people related strategies and aims are delivered.
• Manage the day to day running of the operational side of the HR team, managing the HR Assistant and HR Advisor to successfully run probationary periods, FTC management, sickness absence, parental leaves, flexible working requests and general HR queries. To ensure that all processes are completed in good time and in line with WS protocol and external guidance.
• To lead on Employee Relations issues and guide more junior members of the HR team in their casework and advice to the business. This role will have responsibility for proactively managing their own case workload.
• To take an active role/lead on cyclical HR projects including salary review, benefit renewal and review projects.

ABOUT YOU

This is a great opportunity to join a friendly, fun and collaborative HR team. The role isn’t siloed to manage a particular practice group, so you will gain exposure to all 15 of our fee-earning practice groups and 6 business services groups, meaning the chance to work with a variety of personalities and ensuring no two days are the same!

You will have:

• Experience of working in a law firm as an HR professional or, within an LLP.
• Experience of leading salary review projects.
• Experience of working as an HR generalist, with line management responsibilities. You'll be CIPD qualified (Level 5 or 7) or equivalent through experience, with thorough knowledge of employment law and its application and the resolution of general HR queries.
• Great communication and relationship-building skills, good attention to detail, and the ability to work across multiple priorities.
• Solid experience of handling a range of employee relations casework, liaising with business stakeholders on their people priorities and confident and proactive management of HR processes from beginning to end.

WHY US

Winckworth Sherwood is an exciting, diverse, and growing business. We are a full-service law firm with a diverse client base, that prides itself on providing advice across a broad range of sectors and markets. Delivering a first-class service is key to everything we do.

Our clients range from some of the UK’s largest businesses and institutions, housebuilders and developers through to investors, professional partnerships, family offices, not for profit organisations and private individuals – all of which benefit from the flexible, practical approach of our lawyers.

We recognise that our people play a key part in our success and as a result we are committed to their development and well-being. We promote a healthy work-life balance and flexibility, keeping our people motivated and stimulated to deliver great things.

YOUR APPLICATION JOURNEY

Application review

Your profile will be screened by a member of the WS recruitment team. If your CV is shortlisted, you will be invited to have a short call with our Recruitment Manager, Ash Evans, to discuss your interest in the vacancy. No AI is used in our application screening process! Every candidate who applies to this role will be told if they have been successful or not in moving to the next stage.

1st interview (in person at our London office)

This will be with the Head of HR and Recruitment Manager, who will discuss your interest in the role, what you are looking for professionally, and ask some competency/behavioural questions that relate to the key skills/behaviours needed for this position.

Every candidate who reaches this stage will be offered the chance to have a feedback call with our Recruitment Manager to understand why they weren't progressed to the next interview stage, so that you can use this feedback to help with other job applications.

2nd interview (in person at our London office)

At this more informal second stage, you will meet our HRBP, HRIS & Benefits Analyst and also one of your potential direct reports (the HR Assistant & Partnership Support).

This is also a good opportunity to ask any final role/firm specific questions.

Every candidate who reaches this stage will be offered the chance to have a feedback call with our Recruitment Manager to understand why they weren't offered the position, so that you can use this feedback to help with other job applications.

Offer of employment

If you are successful and accept our offer of employment, we will submit your details to our background screening company (Giant), who will conduct a series of background checks. Once these have been completed and we have separately validated your proof of right to work in the UK, a start date can be agreed, and your onboarding schedule can be planned.