ABOUT THE COMPANY:
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action – helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future. We help people overcome poverty and conflict. Working with communities, we leverage local logic to help people transform their lives. To grow more food, earn higher incomes and ultimately advocate for their needs. We see global challenges as an invitation to pioneer innovative, sustainable solutions
JOB SUMMARY
Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.
The Programme
In this role you will be part of the Mercy Corps Europe People team whilst also enjoying benefits of being part of the ONE global People team. This team of people specialists work together ensuring Mercy Corps attracts, develops, and retains the best global talent to enable it to be a world-class, cutting edge, humanitarian organization, creating transformational change in the world.
Our aim is to drive strategic thinking and planning at all levels of the organization; driving talent management to support team members achieve their highest potential, delivering great practices that promote the organizational culture. To achieve this, we align conversations on developing all colleagues; enhance everyone’s experience with HR services, keep the organization focused on what has the greatest impact; leverage our comparative advantages in the crowded and competitive international relief and development landscape; and assure we are constantly learning from our work and the external environment.
The Position
This role sits in our Europe people team and reports to the HR Director in Europe. The responsibility of this role is to act as a Business Partner to all colleagues based in UK and across our European locations, ensuring a positive, equitable and consistent employment experience for all. You will act as a strategic, thought leader, working in partnership with our European leadership teams helping to guide, advise, mentor and coach them with their employee and team related questions. You will be accountable for strategic and operational matters which arise as a result of business priorities. You will collaborate with your peers across the European and global people teams to deliver great service to all. You will be asked to promote our Mercy Corps values and behaviours and role model these with all those you connect with in your role. There will be many opportunities for you to lead and manage projects which prioritise the well-being of our people. We want you to be a problem solver, who can respond quickly to challenges in the workplace and the wider external regulatory environment; anticipate potential barriers and find opportunities to overcome these which meet the needs of the business. You will be our champion of global people initiatives across Europe promoting consistency of systems and processes in support of our people. We are looking you to be innovative, be curious and challenge our current ways of working to continuously improve the way we work.
Essential Responsibilities
Strategy & Planning (20%)
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Advocate for proactive people focused policies and initiatives that align with Mercy Corps’ strategic priorities and promote positive organisational culture.
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Remain current in your knowledge on trends in global human resource management, particularly in the international humanitarian aid sector.
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Provide input to global People team Centres of Expertise on systemic challenges and work with others to find solutions.
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Anticipate and adapt to changing people’s needs and actively participate in transformation across business to meet these needs.
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Be an external networker, participate in HR forums, networks and discussions; enjoy developing and learning through these networks, and bring new thinking into the organization whilst also positioning Mercy Corps externally in the HR space.
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Provide guidance and input on business unit restructuring, transfers, hiring and succession planning.
Consultancy (30%)
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Collaborate closely with members of the global People team and peers across Mercy Corps to ensure a ‘one Mercy Corps’ approach to how we work.
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Develop meaningful relationships with senior leaders and people managers; collaboratively solve problems, guide and coach them to find solutions to People related challenges. Support managers where performance may not be meeting Mercy Corps’ standards.
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Maintain in-depth knowledge of legal requirements related to day-to-day management of team members, reducing legal risks, and ensuring regulatory compliance. Partner with internal and/or external counsel as needed/required.
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Be the first point-of-contact for performance management questions and participate in the development and cascade of global performance management policy, process, templates, and guidelines.
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Work with People Managers and team members to proactively manage performance, capability issues arising; liaise and manage all People Relations (PR) cases collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders.
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Develop, coach and mentor junior HR team members across Europe.
Operations (30%)
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Collaborate with Talent Acquisition to process and onboard new hires into Europe.
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Collaborate with PR to offboard leavers from Europe.
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Actively monitor and respond to People related queries to submitted to Europe People team.
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Contribute to developing global, regional, and departmental data which forms part of quarterly and annual reporting with trends, metrics and KPIs. Collaborate with HRIS teams to manage and maintain accurate data for decision-making.
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Manage performance management process annually, supporting development and career planning.
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Keep up to date and ensure compliance with all statutory requirements in Mercy Corps’ European jurisdictions.
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Review and refresh Europe-specific policies and processes.
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Coordinate with finance to ensure payroll/benefits are processed for each European jurisdiction in a timely manner.
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Manage positive wellbeing culture across Europe, including workplace safety.
People Projects (20%)
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Support the Compensation & Benefits team advising managers, senior leaders, and One People Team with compensation issues to ensure fair and equitable application of compensation policy as well as assisting team members with pay related issues as needed.
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Support deployment of “All Voices” survey and develop action plans in conjunction with leadership.
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Support Employee Experience initiatives, aligning into talent and development across Europe.
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Manage DEI activities aligned into all People initiatives.
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Perform other related duties as assigned.
Supervisory Responsibility
None.
Accountability
- Reports Directly To: You will report into the HR Director.
- Works Directly With: You will work collaboratively with the global HR people team; Finance & Compliance; Corporate Accounting; regional and country- level leadership; other internal/external stakeholders.
Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills
In this role we require you to be able to demonstrate:
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Minimum of five years’ experience working in Human Resources, including exposure to Talent Acquisition, Compensation and Benefits, Performance Management.
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BA/BS in Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field, preferred.
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Working knowledge of HR practices in the UK and wider European context.
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Fluency in English language, other specific languages (French, German, Dutch) desired but not essential.
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Client centric with a high level of attention to detail.
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Work autonomously whilst operating in a changing and uncertain business landscape.
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Ethical working practice, maintaining confidentiality.
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Strong analytical, mathematical, and problem-solving skills, effective organizational and interpersonal skills, strong written and verbal communication.
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Interrogate data and use data sources to support evidence-based people decision making.
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Manage workload in a remote work arrangement. Able to maintain operational consistency with other team members and actively keep management informed.
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Proven experience and intermediate skills in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook, as well as the ability to navigate SharePoint.
Success Factors
You should apply for this role if you are a curious learner, self-directed, innovative and action orientated. We need you to be able to work independently, manage your deliverables as priorities in the business change. You will be empowered to speak up and share when you need additional support. You will thrive in a fast-paced environment prone to rapid change and be willing to increase your responsibility over time. The most successful Mercy Corps team members have a positive approach, a strong commitment to teamwork and personal accountability and the ability to be flexible and ensure that effective communication is a priority in all situations.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
The position can be based from either our London or Edinburgh office. The role may require some travel to support local People matters, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.
Fostering a diverse and open workplace is an important part of Mercy Corps’ vision. Mercy Corps is an Equal Opportunity Employer regardless of background. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment.
Ongoing Learning
In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate a percentage of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the
Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to
Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct eLearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.
As a safeguarding measure, Mercy Corps screens all potential US-Based employees. This is done following the conclusion of recruitment and prior to assuming full employment.
Our screening process is designed to be transparent and completed in partnership with new Team Members. You will have the opportunity to disclose any prior convictions at the conclusion of the recruitment process before the check is initiated. We ask that you do not disclose any prior convictions in your application materials or during the recruitment process.
How to Apply
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