Chief People Officer

Parkinson Lee Executive Search are the retained partner to the Personal Group Holdings Plc, one of the UK's leading employee benefit and insurance firms, in the search to appointment a new Chief People Officer.

Personal Group has a vision to help organisations build and maintain a healthy, happy and productive workforce. Through their insurances and bespoke benefit platforms, their purpose is to protect the unprotected and connect the unconnected. The company has a turnover of circa £75 million turnover and employs around 270 people.

AIM-listed since 2000, their strategy is focused on widening their footprint across a broader range of industries, predominantly by driving insurance sales through new and existing channels, transforming reward and benefits, and accelerating their SME offering.
Demand for their services has never been greater as employers put an increased focus on improving their employee value propositions. Employers increasingly see employee benefits and well-being services as essential for recruiting and retaining staff in a competitive talent market.

The current CPO is set to retire this year, as a result an opportunity exists for a new CPO.

Reporting directly to the CEO, the CPO will be responsible for the Group's people and cultural agenda. Taking overall management accountability for the HR function, leading and directing the associated operational activities to ensure alignment with the strategic aims and objectives of the organisation.

As a trusted partner to the leadership team, the CPO will be the subject specialist around people, culture, regulation, compliance and HR initiatives and solutions. They will be expected to drive organisational transformation and change, developing a high-performance HR service to support the company's overall business strategy.

The CPO will be responsible for all departments within the HR function including HR Operations, Talent Acquisition and Development, HR Services, Reward & Benefits, Culture & Engagement plus Health & Safety/Facilities Management.

Key Responsibilities:

*Develop the HR strategy that delivers against commercial business requirements
*Provide strategic direction to the business in key activities including leadership development, talent management, succession planning and resource planning
*Provide executive level coaching and mentoring to the Leadership Team on people issues, and in relation to their broader individual development journey towards becoming exceptional leaders
*Ensure the business manages its people agenda within legal and regulatory frameworks and all policies and practices are best practice, as well as ensuring all elements of people risk are appropriately and adequately controlled
*Participate in Remuneration Committee work as the internal lead for all things Reward, and work with Chair of Remuneration Committee to deliver the strategic agenda
*Help to reinforce and stitch together the culture and shared values across the business and employee lifecycles
*Ensure adequate training is delivered to give employees sufficient knowledge of their regulatory responsibilities
*Point of escalation/counsel for the HR Operations team on operational HR activities
*Manage all assigned cost centres, headcount and other budgets appropriately
*Provide ethical leadership and direction, role modelling the Company's values and acting with integrity at all times
*Strategic and tactical decision making in conjunction with the CEO / Board / SLT on a broad range of people-focused topics (policy, ethical, values, financial, regulatory, legal etc.)

Key stakeholders will include the CEO, the Board and Board Committees, Senior Leadership Team, HR Team and external employment law firms. You will also provide specialist guidance and support to finance, legal, compliance, internal audit and procurement with regards to legislation and regulation.

Parkinson Lee are looking to speak to individuals that can demonstrate:

*Commercially focused HR leadership experience at board level, ideally operating within a number one HR position, or a number two looking to take a step up into a first time CPO appointment
*Experience of working within a regulated background, preferably Financial Services
*Working knowledge of rewards and recognition from a regulation / compliance background, understanding legal and financial frameworks
*Strong leadership skills with a passion for mentoring and coaching high performing teams / individuals
*Proven business acumen with the ability to make a positive contribution to wider business strategies
*Strong emotional intelligence, excellent communication skills and stakeholder management couple with a passion for supporting internal staff and external partners
*Proven Talent Acquisition, able to attract, hire, train and develop top talent focusing on diversity and inclusion
*Experience working within a fast paced, changeable environment and able to challenge and stand by decisions
*Able to be office based in Milton Keynes c3-4 days a week for the first year.

In return, our client is offering significant six figure salary and wider executive benefits package. For more information, please contact Parkinson Lee Executive Search.