Associate Director, People Operations - Series B, Biotech

Associate Director, People Operations

Location: Remote-first, with occasional UK travel required

Salary: up to £100,000

The Opportunity

Hawkwood is partnering with a well-funded Series B, clinical-stage biotech business to hire an Associate Director, People Operations as it continues to grow across the UK and US.

The company is developing new treatments for depression and neurological disorders, bringing together scientific expertise, a collaborative culture and a clear ambition to improve patients’ lives. As the organisation grows, this hire will play a key role in building the People processes and infrastructure that support its next stage of development.

Working closely with US-based People leadership, you’ll take ownership of day-to-day People Operations across both countries. There is significant scope to shape how things work: identifying priorities, simplifying processes and building consistent ways of working while respecting local requirements.

This is a hands-on role with responsibility for both setting operational direction and delivering the detail. You’ll need to enjoy making the fundamentals work well, from onboarding and payroll coordination to reliable systems, clear policies and a thoughtful employee experience.

The immediate focus is People Operations, with opportunities to contribute more broadly to business partnering, performance, engagement and organisational development as the business evolves.

What you’ll do

• Own day-to-day People Operations across the UK and US, ensuring processes are accurate, efficient, compliant and consistently delivered.
• Manage end-to-end employee lifecycle processes, including onboarding, offboarding, employee changes, benefits administration and payroll coordination.
• Maintain reliable HR systems, employee records and reporting, ensuring data is accurate, confidential and useful for decision-making.
• Build and improve policies, processes and guidance that are easy for employees and managers to use, and proportionate to the needs of a growing business.
• Create consistency across UK and US operations while accommodating differences in employment requirements, benefits and local practices.
• Manage relationships with external HR advisers, payroll providers, benefits brokers and other partners to deliver a high standard of support.
• Use people data, employee feedback and recurring queries to identify improvements, make recommendations and follow changes through to implementation.
• Provide practical support to employees and managers, contributing to performance reviews, engagement initiatives, recruitment and wider People projects as the organisation develops.

You will bring

• A minimum of six years’ progressive HR experience, with a strong foundation in hands-on People or HR Operations.
• Experience within a small or scaling biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare or life sciences business.
• Strong working knowledge of UK employment practices and operational compliance, with experience applying this in day-to-day decisions.
• Experience managing employee lifecycle processes, HR systems, employee records, benefits administration and payroll coordination.
• A track record of taking ownership of processes and improving their quality, efficiency and ease of use.
• The ability to set priorities and translate them into practical delivery while remaining closely involved in the detail.
• Strong stakeholder relationships and the confidence to offer clear recommendations, manage upwards and challenge constructively.
• A thoughtful, approachable style, with sound judgement, discretion, attention to detail and reliable follow-through.
• Comfort working independently in a growing organisation where priorities and processes continue to evolve.
• An appetite to develop your understanding of US People Operations. Previous US experience would be welcome, but is not essential.

We recognise how challenging the current job market is for candidates, and Hawkwood are therefore striving to provide the best candidate experience we can. If you are interested in this opportunity, we kindly request that you apply via this LinkedIn advert, as opposed to sending us an email or LinkedIn direct message.

We are eager to ensure that each candidate application is considered fairly and receives a consistent experience. Unfortunately, we cannot ensure this standard if you enquire about a role via email or LinkedIn message, as it falls outside of our established process.