Head of HR and Corporate Services

Introducing Zinc Network

For over fifteen years, Zinc Network has been helping governments and businesses navigate the world's most complex challenges using communications, technology, and behavioural science. We work on some of the toughest briefs: protecting children online, strengthening democratic resilience, and championing purpose-driven technologies and organisations.

Working in partnership with a global network of media outlets, communities, and influencers, we help clients understand complex issues, design and deliver behavioural interventions, create compelling campaigns, activate trusted grassroots networks, and evaluate impact. We're now building Kora — our AI-powered platform that systematises this expertise into scalable technology, enabling clients to work faster, more impactfully, and more cost-effectively.

We're looking for people who want to operate at the intersection of geopolitics, security, and technological disruption, and who are committed to building a safer, more secure world.

Role Purpose

The Head of HR and Corporate Services leads Zinc's people function and provides senior oversight of the wider Corporate Operations portfolio, ensuring the organisation has effective people practices, governance and operational infrastructure to support its strategy and workforce.

As Zinc's senior HR lead, the role provides expert advice to leaders and managers across the employee lifecycle, ensuring people policies, organisational practices and employee relations are legally compliant, consistent and aligned with organisational needs. The role also provides leadership and oversight across business operations and compliance, working through specialist colleagues and external advisers to ensure risks are effectively managed and appropriate standards are maintained.

Core Responsibilities

HR Strategy & People Leadership

· Lead Zinc's HR and people agenda, translating organisational priorities into effective people plans, policies and practices.

· Act as the organisation's senior HR adviser, providing expert and pragmatic guidance to the Director of Group Finance, Managing Director and senior leaders on complex people matters.

· Ensure HR policies, practices and employment arrangements remain compliant with UK employment legislation, monitoring forthcoming legislative changes and briefing senior leadership on the implications for Zinc.

· Ensure effective recruitment and onboarding practices are in place, supporting managers to attract, select and integrate talent into the organisation.

· Identify emerging people risks and use workforce data and insight to inform organisational priorities, planning and improvements to employee experience.

Employee Relations & Employment Practice

· Lead and advise on complex or sensitive employee relations matters — including performance, conduct, capability, grievance and absence — providing constructive challenge to managers and ensuring issues are handled fairly and consistently.

· Oversee employment contracts, contractual frameworks and significant variations to terms and conditions, ensuring appropriate legal and organisational standards are maintained.

· Lead or advise on organisational change processes, including restructuring, consultation and redundancy where required.

· Manage relationships with external employment lawyers and specialist advisers, ensuring appropriate documentation, governance and confidentiality are maintained across sensitive matters.

Performance, Capability & Organisational Development

· Lead the development and continual improvement of Zinc's performance management approach, ensuring clear expectations, meaningful feedback and appropriate accountability across the organisation.

· Identify capability requirements and skills gaps, and develop practical approaches to management and leadership capability that support managers in leading their teams effectively.

· Support succession and workforce planning, ensuring critical organisational capabilities and future resourcing requirements are understood.

· Oversee employee engagement, wellbeing and organisational culture, using feedback and insight to drive improvements that reinforce accountability, inclusion and high performance.

Reward, Benefits & People Governance

· Provide oversight of Zinc's reward and benefits framework, ensuring arrangements and provider relationships remain appropriate, equitable and effectively governed.

· Support senior leadership in salary benchmarking, pay review and reward decisions, providing HR advice and appropriate market insight.

· Oversee HR systems and employee data, ensuring accurate, secure record-keeping and reporting in line with data protection requirements and organisational retention policies.

Corporate Operations & Compliance Oversight

· Provide senior oversight of Zinc's wider Corporate Operations portfolio, reviewing significant operational and compliance issues and determining appropriate escalation or response in conjunction with the Director of Group Finance.

· Agree priorities with the Business Operations & Compliance Manager, ensuring significant operational and compliance risks are identified, appropriately managed and escalated.

· Provide senior challenge and guidance on corporate risk, ISO management systems, organisation-wide information security and data protection compliance, client compliance and accreditation, drawing on external or specialist expertise where required.

· Provide oversight of Zinc's office management function, working with the Office Manager to ensure the workplace, facilities and day-to-day operational support meet organisational needs.

· Promote effective coordination between HR, business operations, compliance and other functions to ensure coherent Corporate Services delivery.

Leadership & Team Development

· Lead and develop the Corporate Services team, setting clear objectives, accountabilities and standards of performance.

· Directly manage and develop the HR Executive, providing professional HR supervision, coaching and opportunities to build knowledge and capability.

· Directly manage and develop the Business Operations & Compliance Manager, providing regular supervision, coaching and professional development opportunities.

· Build capability, resilience and a culture of continuous improvement across Corporate Services, embedding knowledge and accountability within the team rather than relying on individual employees.

Organisational Policy, Risk & Continuous Improvement

· Oversee the development and maintenance of organisational people and Corporate Services policies, ensuring clear ownership, appropriate governance and consistent implementation.

· Identify opportunities to improve Corporate Services systems and processes, ensuring the function remains proportionate to organisational needs while providing effective support and challenge to the wider business.

· Sponsor specific cross-functional Corporate Services projects and organisational change initiatives, ensuring they are effectively scoped, resourced and delivered.

Candidates who receive a job offer will be required to:

· Disclose any previous disciplinary action resulting from a substantiated safeguarding or workplace investigation, including any breaches involving trafficking-related activities.

· Undergo background checks including employment verification, sexual offender registry check (where available), identity confirmation, and anti-terrorism vetting.

Zinc Network is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We welcome applications from people of all professional, cultural, and personal backgrounds.

Essential

· Significant senior HR experience, with strong technical knowledge across employee relations, employment law, performance management, organisational change and the employee lifecycle.

· CIPD qualification or equivalent professional HR expertise and experience.

· Demonstrable experience providing senior HR advice to executives, leaders and managers on complex and sensitive people matters.

· Strong practical knowledge of UK employment legislation and its application within organisational decision-making.

· Experience leading complex employee relations matters, organisational change and employment-related risk.

· Experience developing and implementing HR policies, frameworks and people practices.

· Experience of workforce planning, organisational development, performance management and management capability development.

· Strong people leadership experience, with the ability to develop junior HR capability and lead multidisciplinary Corporate Services colleagues.

· Experience overseeing broader corporate, operational, governance or compliance responsibilities alongside HR.

· Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, with confidence providing constructive challenge at senior level.

· Strong judgement and the ability to balance legal, people, operational and organisational considerations when advising on complex matters.

· Ability to operate independently, prioritise competing organisational requirements and determine when executive or specialist escalation is required.

Desirable

· Chartered CIPD membership or equivalent senior professional accreditation.

· Experience within professional services, consultancy, international development, government contracting or another regulated environment.

· Experience working with geographically dispersed or international workforces.

· Direct experience of information security, data protection or ISO management frameworks (e.g. ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials).

· Experience with reward, benchmarking and organisational design.

· Experience supporting organisational restructuring, growth or transformation.

· Experience managing outsourced professional and operational service providers.

Zinc Network is committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package that supports your wellbeing, work-life balance, and professional development. Below is a complete overview of the benefits available to you. 

• Competitive Pension Scheme 

•  Season Ticket Loan 

• Private Healthcare 

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) 

• Free Eye Test Vouchers 

• Free Daily Breakfast 

• Hybrid Working 

• Flexible Working Hours 
• Cycle to Work Scheme 

Annual Leave Entitlement 

• 25 days annual leave per year (pro-rata for part-time employees) 

• 8 UK bank holidays (pro-rata for part-time employees)