HR Business Partner

Role type: Permanent, Full Time

Location: London, Hybrid

This is a strategically focused HR Business Partner role supporting the College Division entities (under GUS Group), working in close partnership with Senior Management Teams to drive and deliver the people agenda. Acting as a trusted advisor, the role shapes organisational effectiveness through workforce planning, organisational design, and data-driven insight, ensuring that people strategies are fully aligned to business priorities. The postholder will play a key role in influencing leadership decision-making, embedding a high-performance culture and strengthening capability across multiple entities.

With accountability for leading complex employee relations and organisational change initiatives, this role operates at the centre of both strategic delivery and operational excellence. The post-holder will be a commercially aware HR professional who can navigate ambiguity, manage risk, and deliver impactful HR solutions across a diverse and evolving environment. The role also drives engagement, talent development and governance standards, ensuring the organisation continues to build a resilient, high-performing and inclusive workforce.

Key Responsibilities:

• Partner with senior leadership teams to shape and deliver people strategy aligned to business priorities

• Act as the senior HR lead on complex employee relations matters, including restructures, senior-level cases and organisational change

• Drive performance management cycles and embed a high-performance, accountable culture

• Lead workforce planning and organisational design in partnership with Talent Acquisition

• Deliver and analyse engagement surveys, translating insights into measurable action

• Provide data-driven HR insight and reporting to support decision-making at leadership and Board level

• Lead strategic HR projects including salary benchmarking and job evaluation

• Drive talent development, succession planning and retention initiatives across the division

• Enhance leadership capability through targeted L&D interventions and HR best practice

• Support governance and compliance, including safeguarding responsibilities

About you:

You’ll be an experienced HR Business Partner with a strong track record of operating in complex, matrix environments. You’ll be comfortable navigating ambiguity, influencing senior stakeholders, and delivering both strategic and operational HR outcomes.

Key Requirements:

• Significant experience at HR Business Partner level (typically 5+ years)

• Strong employment law knowledge and experience managing complex ER cases

• Proven experience supporting organisational change and transformation

• Commercially aware with a pragmatic, solutions-focused approach

• Strong analytical capability, using data to influence decisions

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills

• Degree qualified (CIPD qualification desirable)

What we offer:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays - time to rest, recharge, and balance life beyond work.

• Hybrid working - most roles offer hybrid or flexible arrangements to support work-life balance.

• Contributory Pension Scheme - 5% personal contribution & 3% Company contribution, so you can build long-term financial security with added benefits of the company contributions.

• Private Medical Insurance (T&C's apply) - prioritising your wellbeing with speedy access to healthcare whenever you need support.

• Season Ticket Loan (T&C's apply) - spread the cost of your commute with an interest-free travel loan.

• Eye Care Vouchers - support for regular eye tests and essential eyewear. 

• Training & Development opportunities (T&C's apply) - access to short courses via FutureLearn and Group-wide professional development programmes.

• Staff Discount Scheme - via My Rewards Hub, from various retailers – Fashion, Grocery, Health & Beauty, Travel, Automotive, Furniture, Dining, Sports and Leisure, Electronics, etc

• Employee Assistance Programme - confidential support for your wellbeing, whenever you need it.

• Refer a Friend Scheme for staff members (T&C's apply) - earn rewards for helping us bring great talent into the team

If you feel this is the role you are looking for, please click below to apply for the role! 

We will screen all applicants and select candidates whose qualifications meet our requirements. We will carefully consider your application during the initial screening and will contact you if you are selected to continue for the next stage of the recruitment process. We wish you every success in your job search.

GUS is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, or religion or belief.

Our data privacy policy can be viewed here. 

Division

Global University Systems

Department

People

Locations

London, UK (Sceptre Court, EC3N 4DX)

Remote status

Hybrid

Job type

Permanent

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