Senior People partner
(12-MONTH FTC)
£56,126 (London) / £51,937 (out of London)
In the office 2 days a week (minimum)
As the Senior People, Culture & Inclusion Partner, you will be a key player in supporting the leadership of the People Team at NCVO, ensuring the successful execution of our people strategy and shaping an inclusive, dynamic, and high-performing culture across the organisation.
You will take operational accountability for the day-to-day leadership of the team, driving key initiatives within recruitment, people management, culture, and inclusion. Working closely with the People, Culture & Inclusion (PCI), Partners you will have a significant influence on embedding best practices, advancing KPI’s, and ensuring our culture thrives.
NCVO has around 80 staff, including 30-line managers, working in different locations and delivering a wide range of activities
This role manages three members of staff.
Main accountabilities of the post
1. People & Culture Leadership:
Lead and manage the People Team, ensuring efficient operations and alignment with NCVO’s policies and strategic people goals.
Provide direct leadership and mentorship to the team, fostering a high-performance culture of accountability, collaboration, and progression.
Take operational ownership of recruitment processes, ensuring a seamless talent acquisition journey from attraction to onboarding, with a particular focus on creating an exceptional new hire experience.
Champion the development and implementation of key policies and ways of working initiatives, working closely with the Head of PCI and stakeholders from the leadership team.
2. Strategic People Management:
Collaborate with the PCI partners on the development of a comprehensive learning and development strategy, fostering a growth-oriented, skills enhancement and career progression.
Drive the integration of performance reviews and management frameworks to enable the delivery of our new strategy.
Support the Head of PCI with the design and delivery of our new behaviours frameworks to align with organisational values and goals.
Support the development of the payroll, HR and L&D systems to ensure we are using them to their maximum capacity.
Developing our policies and processes so we are fair, viable and equitable in practices.
Overseeing key people systems, working on KPI’s report enhance efficiency, increase digital capabilities, and strengthen our data-driven approach to people management.
3. Recruitment & Talent Development:
Expertise in Recruitment & Onboarding: Lead the review and enhancement of the recruitment and selection process, ensuring it attracts diverse, high-quality talent. This includes overseeing every stage from sourcing candidates to onboarding, with a special focus on creating an engaging and welcoming induction experience for new hires.
Refine and enhance our recruitment processes, ensuring that the organisation attracts and retains top talent, and builds strong pipelines for future roles.
Work closely with hiring managers to ensure consistency in recruitment practices and alignment with NCVO’s values and culture.
Develop and implement strategies to strengthen employee engagement, inclusion, and performance, in collaboration with our senior management team.
Monitor and analyse people data to assess the effectiveness of recruitment, retention, and development strategies.
4. ED&I (Equality, Diversity & Inclusion):
Support the Head People, Culture & Inclusion in embedding the organisation's EDI strategy, with a particular focus on creating an environment of belonging.
Collaborate with the PCI Partners to ensure the integration of EDI principles across all HR and organisational practices.
Oversee the completion of the Pay equalities, Quarterly KPI’s and HR Metrics reports
5. Operational Excellence & Budget Management:
Oversee the day-to-day operations of the People Team, ensuring the alignment of priorities and delivering results on key initiatives.
Ensure policies and procedures are followed and support the development of people policies in partnership with union representatives and other relevant parties.
6. Collaboration & Stakeholder Engagement:
Work closely with senior leadership, including the Executive Team and other key stakeholders, to ensure that people’s priorities are aligned with organisational objectives.
Cultivate strong relationships with union representatives, recruitment agencies, and external organisations we work with to support our strategy.
Contribute to the development of our people plans and carryout training needs analysis with teams.
NCVO exists to help charities be the best they can be for the communities they serve. We do
this in three main ways:
1. Connecting charities together into a community
2. Providing charities with the right tools, learning and advice
3. Advocating for the sector.
As a membership organisation representing the needs of 17,000 voluntary organisations, we
understand the challenges facing communities across the country. At NCVO we are transforming the way we work, combined with a renewed focus on what we think will make the biggest difference. We are working to four strategic goals: support volunteers and charities by sharing solutions; make the case for charities and volunteering; connect and convene our networks so that we’re stronger together; and evolve with the sector as we develop new ways of working. We want to achieve our goals guided by refreshed values: collaborative, inclusive, open, and ambitious for charities and volunteering. We work in a fast-paced environment where we need to quickly pivot to new and emerging opportunities so we can be the voice of the sector and advocate for our members, at a time when government must better understand communities.
Autonomy and decision-making
The post holder will be a key player in supporting the leadership of the People Team, in collaboration with other members of the team and within the context of NCVO’s strategic priorities. The role is responsible for making key operational decisions, providing expert advice, and deputising for the People, Culture & Inclusion Lead as required.
Accountability for leading the day-to-day operations of the team and managing the budget.
Communications
The postholder communicates both internally and externally with a wide range of people and organisations.
Internal
People Team, Senior Management Team, Executive Team, Union Representatives, All Staff
External
Recruitment Agencies, Sector Partners, EDI Networks, Professional Bodies, Employment Advisors.
9. Essential knowledge and skills required
Knowledge
- Chartered Member of CIPD (or equivalent).
- Experience within the voluntary sector or non-profit organisations.
- Familiarity with union relationships and working alongside them.
Skills
- Expertise in designing and implementing onboarding and induction processes that provide a smooth transition for new hires, ensuring they feel welcomed, prepared, and connected to NCVO’s culture from day one.
- Exceptional leadership, management, and coaching skills with the ability to inspire teams and develop talent.
- Strong analytical and data-driven mindset to drive improvements in recruitment, talent, and performance.
- Exceptional communication and influencing skills, with the ability to engage stakeholders at all levels.
Experience
- Extensive experience in HR leadership roles, particularly with a focus on recruitment, talent acquisition, and onboarding.
- Proven track record of developing and leading people projects that drive organisational success.
- Strong knowledge of EDI principles, with experience in driving culture change and creating inclusive environments.
- Expertise in HR technology, particularly HRIS, ATS, and LMS systems.
- Experience in managing HR operations and a team of People partners and coordinators
