Internal Applicants Only - HR Advisor – Bilingual – Welsh / English

Internal Applicants Only - HR Advisor – Bilingual – Welsh / English

19440BR

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Managerial, Professional and Specialist Staff – MPSS

This post is currently open to employees of Cardiff University only. Please do not apply if you do not have a current contract of employment with the University.

The College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences are looking to appoint a bilingual HR Advisor to work as part of a team to deliver and contribute to the provision of a customer-focused, professional Human Resources service.

Providing a professional, responsive and proactive HR advisory service to Schools within the College in English and in Welsh, you will assist in the delivery of the College’s and University’s strategic objectives by providing best practice advice and guidance, alongside the development and delivery of training and providing support for project work.

As an HR Advisor you will provide day-to-day generalist advice and support across the full employee life cycle to employees and managers within the College. Customer base to be determined from within the ten academic Schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, as well as the College team.

Applicants should be customer focused, have a thorough understanding of employment-related policies and procedures, and be able to demonstrate sound judgement in their application.

This role is eligible to be offered on a blended working basis, meaning that as well as spending time working on campus you can also choose to spend some time working from another location, e.g. your home. The University is committed to offering this flexibility, wherever the role and business need allows, supporting work-life balance.

The role is full time (35 hours per week) and fixed term to 31 July 2026. We would very much welcome an internal secondment.

Salary: £33,232 - £35,880 per annum (Grade 5); appointment is normally made at the bottom of the grade.

Closing date: Friday, 22 November 2024

Please be aware that Cardiff University reserves the right to close this vacancy early should sufficient applications be received.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment.

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

Job Description

To deliver an efficient, effective HR service which adds value through a continual improvement of HR service delivery and line manager capability using standard HR processes.

To contribute to the provision of a customer-focused, professional Human Resources service that meets the needs of the Schools within the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences by providing best-practice advice and guidance.

To assist in the delivery of the College’s and institution’s strategic objectives by undertaking supporting project work.

Key Duties

• To provide professional HR support to Heads of School, School Managers and staff on all aspects of University HR policy and procedures and current employment law, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action.
• To manage and resolve employee probation, grievance and disciplinary cases through internal procedures, assessing the risks, legal and other implications and financial impact.
• To provide professional advice and support on operational HR issues, such as disciplinary, grievance, performance management & absence management, HERA re-grading, recruitment & restructure queries.
• To establish, develop and maintain relationships with managers, staff and key contacts within the College, Schools and institution, to understand and advise on people management issues and queries within the College.
• To utilise the monthly people packs to review data and performance trends within the Schools which will support a proactive and responsive HR service.
• To coach line managers to manage and, ultimately, improve performance within the institution.
• To identify and highlight areas of HR changes to practices/policies/procedures which will have an impact on the role of the line manager.
• To oversee School recruitment activity to identify best practice, areas of consistency and opportunities for improvement.
• To support the continuous improvement of HR practices in collaboration with the College HR Business Partner, HR Manager and other HR professionals within the institution.
• To contribute to the development and delivery of specific HR projects, initiatives, training and development interventions within the College, Schools and institution as identified by the HRBP/HRM.
• To contribute to College HR projects as necessary.
• To contribute to the design and delivery of HR training activities.
• To establish effective working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links with the University’s Schools and Professional Services with the aim of enhancing the overall HR provision.

Specific Duties

• To provide first-level advice and support on performance management, absence management, recruitment, regrading, disciplinary and grievance issues, escalating more complex issues as appropriate to the College HR Manager initially and College HR Business Partner.
• Support the Schools’ recruitment processes, including advising on the drafting of job descriptions and their evaluation.
• To develop an understanding of current UK immigration law in order to provide first level advice on such matters to Schools, candidates and current staff.

General Duties

• To ensure that confidentiality is maintained when undertaking duties.
• To ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements in respect of equality and diversity, data protection, copyright and licensing, security, financial and other University policies, procedures and codes.
• Maintain and update personal and professional knowledge through continuous professional development and keeping up to date with employment law and HR best practice.
• To perform other duties as required which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Qualifications and Education

1. Degree/Graduate CIPD or equivalent relevant HR experience

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

1. The ability to communicate clearly, concisely and effectively, in English and in Welsh, to provide detailed HR advice and guidance both orally and in writing.
2. Relevant experience of working in a similar advisory role in a multi-functional organisation, supporting staff at all levels.
3. Professional knowledge of current UK employment law and HR best practice, with a demonstrated ability to apply these in case management support, conducting investigations, etc.
4. Demonstrable experience of delivering training material to staff at all levels.
5. Ability to interpret and provide advice on HR policies, terms and conditions.
6. Effective time management skills; flexible and adaptable to changing needs and demands.

Customer Service, Communication and Team Working

1. Demonstrable ability to communicate detailed and sensitive information confidently, effectively and professionally to a wide range of people
2. Demonstrable commitment to customer-focus and an ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of stakeholders. Demonstrable experience of identifying HR improvement opportunities and of proposing practical solutions.

Planning, Analysis and Problem solving

10. Demonstrable ability to apply critical thinking to explore practical solutions to potentially complex issues. Demonstrable ability to work autonomously to meet customer needs, planning and setting priorities to ensure deadlines are met.

Desirable Criteria

1. MCIPD
2. Experience of working in a Higher Education environment
3. Experience and working knowledge of the challenges faced by the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in a research-intensive institution.

Additional Information

Additional Information
It is the University's policy to use the person specification as a tool for shortlisting. Candidates should evidence that they meet all of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable. You are required to submit written evidence of how you fulfil each of the Essential Criteria in the Person Specification (and if met Desirable Criteria), using the same order/numbering in which they appear, in the form of a supporting statement.