Head of Human Resources

Midlands (Hybrid)

up to £120,000 (DOE) plus annual discretionary bonus

Middlemore are partnering with a mid-sized, complex financial services organisation to appoint a Head of HR into a pivotal leadership role within its People function, working with the Global HR Leader (based in the UK). This is search for a senior HR leader who thrives in intellectually demanding environments and enjoys operating at the intersection of strategy, operations and senior stakeholder influence.

ABOUT

The role offers the opportunity to lead a well-established HR delivery structure while shaping how the organisation develops, engages and manages its people. Reporting into the Global HR Leader the Head of HR will lead the core of the HR function and ensure the delivery of high-quality HR services across the organisation. You will oversee a multi-disciplinary HR team covering supporting UK and international colleagues.

This role will play a critical part in ensuring the HR function is aligned, credible and delivering real impact across the business.

Alongside operational leadership, you will work closely with senior leadership to help shape and implement the organisation’s people agenda, ensuring HR insight is integrated into business decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a multi-disciplinary HR team, deputising for the Global HR Lead
• Act as the thinking-partner to the Global HR Lead - co-creating the people and culture strategy, and then working to operationalise that through the wider team
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders on organisational, talent and people-related matters
• Support HR Business Partners in shaping strategic workforce discussions with senior stakeholders
• Ensure the effective management of complex employee relations and sensitive people matters
• Help embed a stronger performance and feedback culture across the organisation
• Lead initiatives relating to leadership development, succession planning and talent management
• Ensure people data and insight are used effectively to support decision-making

The Environment

This is a high-touch, consultative leadership environment where senior stakeholders are highly capable and expect clear thinking, practical advice and confident delivery. Success in the role will require someone who is comfortable navigating complexity, influencing senior professionals and leading an experienced HR team. The culture values pragmatism, credibility and collaboration over bureaucracy.

Candidate Profile

We are interested in speaking with HR leaders who bring a combination of strategic perspective, operational depth and leadership capability.

You are likely to have:

• Experience operating as a Head of HR or senior HR leader within a complex organisation
• A track record of leading multi-disciplinary HR teams
• Strong stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence senior leaders
• Experience dealing with complex people matters and organisational change
• The ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on operational leadership
• A commercial and pragmatic approach to HR
• Experience in financial services, corporate or white-collar professional sectors will be required, although we are open to a range of backgrounds where the organisational complexity is comparable.

Personal Qualities

The successful individual will bring:

• Credibility and presence with senior stakeholders
• Confidence to challenge constructively and contribute ideas
• Pragmatic judgement when navigating complex people issues
• Leadership without ego, capable of leading a strong HR team collaboratively
• Reliability and ownership, stepping forward when leadership is required

If this is something of interest then please apply, alternatively you can reach out directly to jenna.stocks@middlemore.co.uk