The Advertising Association is looking for a pragmatic and hands-on Senior People Manager to provide maternity cover in a standalone role, supporting the people function across the entire AA Group. This is a part-time role (circa 3 days a week), reporting into the Finance Director. This role combines elements of people / HR leadership, strategic support, and day-to-day operations, covering responsibilities currently split between a senior People consultant (Director level) and a People Coordinator (part of the EA/Office Manager role)both of whom will be on going on maternity leave. As the Senior People Manager, you will oversee recruitment, learning & development (L&D), and employee relations, while also supporting wellbeing initiatives and ensuring day to day HR / People operations run smoothly and compliantly. This is an exciting opportunity for a well-rounded people professional who enjoys a broad role, balancing strategic support with hands-on administration and coordination in a collaborative, dynamic, and people-focused environment. About the Advertising Association Advertising is a key component of the creative economy in the UK and a major service export, crucial for funding sports, media, arts, and culture. The Advertising Association is a not-for-profit trade body that represents advertisers, agencies, and media, promoting responsible advertising and connecting the industry with government on policy matters. The Senior People Manager supports all UK sub-entities, workstreams, and levels of the AA, including Ad Net Zero and Ad Green. The group comprises five separate entities with combined revenue of circa £7million, across circa 35 roles in the UK. There is also a satellite US hub for Ad Net Zero that may require occasional remote support. Key Responsibilities Recruitment & Onboarding Partnering with line managers to support job description creation, recruitment strategy and designing effective interview questions and selection processes. Managing job postings via ATS (Hireful) and relevant job boards. Screening applications and advising hiring managers on candidate selection. Coordinating interviews and communicating with candidates. Drafting offer letters, contracts, and conducting pre-employment checks. Overseeing onboarding, including people inductions and supporting managers with 30-90 day goals. Learning & Development (L&D) Leading the L&D strategy, identifying key learning needs across the organisation. Sourcing cost-effective training initiatives and delivering in-house training where appropriate (e.g., people management, soft skills). Coordinating external training requests, tracking budgets, and managing best practice. Ensuring compliance with IPA CPD standards, including CPD Gold accreditation Employee Relations & Wellbeing Acting as the first point of contact for people-related queries, offering guidance on team dynamics, workplace conflicts, and performance concerns to all levels. Coaching and advising people managers (including senior leaders) on best practices in employee relations. Managing people policies and questions, fostering a pragmatic, de-escalation-first approach, while mitigating risk effectively. Supporting wellbeing initiatives, including acting as a Mental Health First Aider (training provided if necessary), and curating wellbeing resources and events. People Operations & Compliance Managing day-to-day people/ HR administration, including record-keeping and policy updates. Ensuring payroll and benefits updates are communicated to the finance team. Leading on topics such as absence management, probation periods, and family leave processes. Overseeing exit interviews and offboarding to ensure smooth transitions and effective feedback is gathered. Advising on employment law updates and best practices. Strategic People & Leadership Support Acting as a strategic people partner to senior leadership, including the CEO and Finance Director, providing insight into organisational design, salary reviews, and people strategy. Leading or supporting key people projects to enhance the people / HR function, culture, and employee experience, ensuring continuous improvement in areas such as onboarding, recruitment, performance management, pay structures, and employee engagement. Supporting bi-annual employee surveys, analysing results, and leading on the action plan, including embedding a new provider. Contributing to EDI initiatives for the organisation, to mirror the industry advice and commitments of All In internally (in collaboration with the external facing Inclusion Manager). Ensuring people compliance and best practices evolve in line with industry and legal updates. About you We are looking for an experienced People/ HR professional who is equally comfortable partnering with senior leaders and managing the day-to-day people function in a standalone role. You must be: A proactive and pragmatic people professional, comfortable balancing employee support with business risk management. Experienced in a relevant, similar sized, fast-moving, collaborative, environment that values pragmatic people support over rigid policy and processes. CIPD Level 5 or Level 7 qualified (or significant equivalent experience). Skilled in de-escalation and delivering practical people solutions that align with a creative organisations culture and needs. A strong communicator, able to engage with all levels of the business and influence a range of stakeholders. Highly organised, with the ability to juggle both strategic and administrative HR / people responsibilities. Comfortable leading or supporting transformative people projects that drive continuous improvement across people processes, employee experience, and culture, within an SME environment. The ideal candidate will: Be significantly experienced in a directly comparable role, such as a standalone HR / People role for an SME organisation within the creative / media / advertising industry. Be experienced in supporting an advertising agency through the IPA CPD Gold submission process. Have knowledge and understanding of trade bodies. Be a qualified mental health first aider, with a demonstrable passion for employee wellbeing. Have demonstratable strong knowledge and skills regarding L&D (including strategy, and design and delivery or training initiatives). How to apply To apply for this role, please click the button on the right and complete the application form. Please take your time answering the application questions fully, in your own words (not AI) so we can get to know the real you and why you are right for the role. Cover letters are welcome, but optional, and again, should be your own work, not AI, and showcase your suitability and enthusiasm for this specific role. Thinking of using AI in your application? Read this first we understand the benefits of AI (you can even read about our AI taskforce here). However, we want to know about the real you, so please ensure your application questions are your own thoughts, are tailored to the questions and this specific role, and tell us about you personally. We will use your application questions (and optional cover letter) to assess the effectiveness of your communication skills. Application deadline Monday 7th April at 9am. Location: Central London (Hybrid) Salary: £55-63k, FTE, depending on experience and qualifications (pro rata) Contract Type: Fixed-term maternity cover (approximately late May 2025 early September 2026) Working Pattern: Part-time, roughly 3 days a week (hybrid) We are a hybrid working company requiring employees to work in our Central London office circa 50% of their time, with a compulsory in-office day on Thursday. Given this is a part-time role of circa 3 days a week, we are open to finding a flexible working pattern that balances your needs with those of the organisation. Inclusion at the AA At the Advertising Association, in addition to the support we give to our members and the industry as a whole, we are on our own journey to make our organisation a more welcoming and inclusive place to work, where everyone can succeed. We strive to recruit people from diverse backgrounds and value the advantages diverse perspectives bring to our work. We welcome applications from everyone, regardless of their age, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, physical or mental ability. If you have any access needs related to your application that you wish to discuss with us, please email us and we will do our best to help. REF-220549 ADZN1_UKTJ