People Manager

We’re looking for a detailed oriented, proactive and highly organised People (HR &ER) Manager, with a proven track record employees relationships and talent management activity. This is a newly created role that will report into our Senior People Partner in the UK, whilst working closely with other UK based members of the People Partner community, and the wider People Team. This role will play a critical part in co-ordinating the management and reporting of employee relations cases, as well as handling lower risk ER cases end to end. It will also play a key part in the management and implementation of core people activities such as Onboarding, Performance Management, Talent Planning and Employee Engagement Surveys across the UK, and in doing so support the effective and efficient delivery of our overall People plan. This is a full-time role, based in London, on a hybrid working basis, with a minimum of 3 days a week in the office. ABOUT THE ROLE This is a varied and multifaceted role which will execute on a number of core processes and projects that support the delivery of our People Partnering support and associated projects in the UK Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to: Employee Relations Proactively advise on best practice people management and support managers and employees with low-risk ER issues. Practically this means having ER cases that are assigned to you e.g. probation reviews, flexible working request, grievances, disciplinary action, with support and guidance provided by Senior People Partners or our external 3rd party ER advisors. Support Senior People Partners in the UK with the coordination of ER case management. Practically this means attending meetings to take notes, and managing an ER case tracker, extracting key metrics and insights to enhance our understanding of ER cases. Act as a trusted partner to employees and management, fostering a positive and inclusive work environment. Coordinate the execution of DSAR requests working closely with IT to confirm the search parameters and ensuring all requests are met in a timely and compliant fashion. We will provide training in this area. Engagement Work with the UK People Partner community to drive communications and responses rates around our annual employee engagement survey. Operationalise the creation of Loop Actions Plans across the UK to address challenges and opportunities as identified in the engagement results. Contribute ideas on initiatives to drive engagement and play a key role in maintaining focus and updates on actions plans throughout the year. Performance & Talent Management Own the coordination of our performance management process across the UK. Ensure proactive communications to ensure employees have clear and measurable objectives, are receiving regular feedback and performance reviews from their line managers. Track compliance around performance management and create useful insights and metrics in relation to performance ratings to feed into individual talent decisions. Attend key performance and talent management meetings and help prepare content and slides, and summarise key takeaways e.g. performance calibration meetings. Maintain overall performance and talent management data and records. Provide managers with first line guidance and support on questions relating to performance and talent management. Support managers and the UK Senior People Partner in addressing performance issues, including implementing Get on Track plans (informal and formal). To work with People Operations, to own the regular creation of insightful, accurate and up-to-date HR management reports that support business and HR decision making e.g. Gender Pay Gap, attrition and exit data reports. Onboarding Manage and coordinate the delivery of Hello, our onboarding programme in the UK for all new joiners. Ensuring the content is up to date, key speakers are booked in and all supporting logistics are in place. You’ll have support from our Central Talent Development Team on this activity. Attend the majority of Day 1 Hello programme to deliver content and facilitate smooth delivery. Act as ongoing point of contact for new joiners in the UK in their first 3 months. Provide guidance to new joiners on their three-month probation review including training, documents and coaching. Be a point of contact to support any emerging poor performance issues during probation for both employees and managers. Wellbeing & Diversity & Inclusion Support the UK Senior People Partner with driving initiatives aimed at enhancing employee wellbeing including our Self Space 1;1 therapy programme and regular workshops. Play a key role in the coordination and logistics of local DE&I plans, including helping to set up regular ELNs (Employee Led Networks) meetings and other events aimed at building our employee culture. Other Naturally as with all roles there will be some administrative aspect to this role. Typically we’d expect this role to coordinate and see through tasks such as raising PO’s, insuring inter-company cross-charges for external invoices e.g. legal fees, occupational health referrals and so on. In addition, you will play a key role in helping managers use Workday correctly and keeping it up to date. ABOUT YOU This is a fast-paced role that will be full of variety and potential for growth and development for the right candidate. You’ll need to hit the ground running, but you’ll be surrounded by lots of support from other members of the team. To be successful in this role, you’ll need a healthy mix of all these qualities and skills: Circa 4-5 years of HR experience working in a fast-paced, matrix environment. If you’re familiar with the creative industries even better. Demonstrable hands-on expertise in employee relations, performance and talent management. You’re used to managing a variety of ER cases yourself, and you’ve worked directly with managers to coach and advise them Sound understanding of UK employment legislation. Proven ability to instil confidence and influence and coach others Exceptional communication skills, whether its in person, on email or on slides – your ability to communicate clearly, accessibly and succinctly is second to none. You know how to communicate HR matters in a way that non-HR people understand. Excellent understanding of HR practices within all HR departmental areas including recruitment, employee relations, workforce administration, employee engagement, payroll, reward and recognition, welfare, learning and development and HR systems. If you’ve used Workday before – that will be a huge advantage. An eagle eye for detail, your attention to detail is second to none. As comfortable with words as you are data. You know how to manipulate data on Excel, and extract key insights The capacity to make quick but rational decisions. The ability to think innovatively and rationally about decisions and come up with creative solutions The ability to accept and provide feedback, be challenged on your advice and work well under pressure Proactive – you don’t wait to be asked, you spot what needs to get done and you do it. You’re able to prioritise so the important and urgent things get done at the right time. Strong emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and rapport across all levels of the organisation. Strong problem-solving abilities and the confidence to manage difficult employee relations issues, including CCMA cases. Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a collaborative, creative environment. You're comfortable with presentations with an appetite to be a fabulous facilitator. You enjoy the challenge of juggling several projects and challenges at the same time and can identify priorities and switch focus with ease No task is too big or too small, and you will willingly roll your sleeves up to immerse in what needs to be done to create the right People experience. You work well under pressure, remaining focused and tenacious, and thrive in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment. WHAT YOU’LL GET: For the right candidate, we will offer a competitive salary and benefits package. APPLICATIONS CLOSE: Sunday 01 March 2026. No recruiters. ABOUT M+C SAATCHI GROUP: M+C Saatchi Group has pledged its commitment to create a company that values difference, with an inclusive culture. As part of this M+C Saatchi Group continues to be an Equal Opportunity Employer which does not and shall not discriminate, celebrates diversity and bases all hiring and promotion decisions solely on merit, without regard for any personal characteristics. All employee information is kept confidential according to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). #LI-JM1