Early Careers Talent Acquisition Manager, International

Primary Details

Time Type: Full time

Worker Type: Employee

Early Careers Talent Acquisition Manager, International

Role Highlights

• Location: Leeds

• 12-month Fixed term Contract

• Lead the design, mobilisation and first delivery cycle of QBE Horizons Graduate Programme, while driving consistency across early careers activity including Apprenticeship, Work Placements and Internships across UK, Europe and Asia

• Hybrid role, happy to talk flexible working

The opportunity

This is a rare opportunity to build a major early careers programme from the ground up. We are looking for an experienced Early Careers Talent Acquisition Manager to design, establish and launch QBE Horizons Graduate programme across the UK and agreed European markets, while helping to drive greater consistency across internship activity in the UK, Europe and Asia and supporting the continued development of apprenticeship programmes.

You will bring hands-on expertise in creating and delivering graduate programmes, taking ownership of the critical mobilisation and first delivery cycle. Working closely with Talent Acquisition, business leaders and partners across QBE, you will turn an ambitious strategy into a practical, inclusive and repeatable programme that creates meaningful career opportunities and builds long-term talent pipelines.

Sponsorship may be considered: Having the right to work in the UK is a requirement for this role. QBE may consider sponsorship at its discretion.

About QBE

At QBE, we get to the heart of what matters for our customers. And we do it all with a human touch.

We’re an international insurer with more than 13,000 people working across 26 countries, which means we’re big enough for your ambitions, yet small enough for you to make a real impact. It’s an exciting time. We’re building momentum towards our vision to become the most consistent and innovative risk partner.

What if you could have a positive impact, at work and in the world? As part of the QBE team, you’ll get to spend every day working with people who are passionate, talented and kind.

Your new role

As Early Careers Talent Manager, you will lead the design and mobilisation of QBE Horizons, creating the foundations, partnerships, governance and candidate experience needed to launch and sustain a high-quality graduate programme. You will also help strengthen consistency across early careers activity more broadly and support apprenticeship activity as part of QBE’s wider talent pipeline strategy. You will combine strategic programme design with hands-on delivery, bringing stakeholders together across multiple functions and markets.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Designing the end-to-end graduate recruitment and selection approach, aligned to QBE’s workforce priorities and employer brand.

• Establishing QBE Horizons across the UK and agreed European markets, adapting the approach appropriately for local requirements and talent markets.

• Driving consistency across early careers activity for the International Division with a particular focus on internship programmes, shared standards, governance and repeatable delivery approaches.

• Supporting apprenticeship programme activity, including helping to shape demand, stakeholder engagement, recruitment planning and a consistent early careers experience.

• Working with business leaders to translate approved headcount into clearly defined graduate opportunities, role profiles and recruitment plans.

• Developing attraction strategies and building effective relationships with universities, schools, diversity organisations and external early careers partners.

• Designing inclusive, robust and scalable assessment and selection methodologies that identify potential, capability and alignment with QBE.

• Creating a best-in-class candidate journey from attraction and application through assessment, offer, onboarding and programme entry.

• Developing the operational processes, governance, timelines, communications and stakeholder responsibilities required to run the programme effectively.

• Establishing measures of success, including quality, diversity, candidate experience, conversion, retention and programme outcomes.

• Partnering with Talent Acquisition, People, Learning and business stakeholders to ensure a connected approach to recruitment, onboarding and development.

• Building a repeatable model, toolkit and knowledge base, and transferring capability into the Talent Acquisition team for future delivery.

• Partnering with Early Careers colleagues across Australia Pacific and North America to share best practice, identify opportunities for alignment and leverage existing tools, approaches and learning.

About You

You will be an experienced early careers or graduate recruitment professional who has successfully built, mobilised or significantly enhanced a graduate programme. You will be comfortable moving between programme strategy and detailed delivery, and able to create clarity and momentum in a new, multi-market initiative.

You'll also have:

• Significant experience in early careers, graduate or campus talent acquisition, with evidence of designing and delivering programmes end to end.

• Strong knowledge of graduate attraction, recruitment marketing, campus engagement, assessment and selection best practice.

• Experience of creating inclusive candidate journeys and building diverse talent pipelines.

• Excellent programme and project management skills, with the ability to establish governance, manage dependencies and deliver to fixed timelines.

• Confidence partnering with executives and senior leaders, influencing decisions and translating workforce needs into practical recruitment plans.

• The ability to operate across different countries and stakeholder groups, balancing consistency with local market requirements across graduate, internship and apprenticeship activity.

• Strong communication, facilitation and stakeholder management skills, with a collaborative and pragmatic approach.

• A data-led mindset and experience defining and tracking measures of recruitment and programme success.

• Experience of documenting processes, developing toolkits and transferring knowledge to build sustainable internal capability.

Benefits

We offer a range of benefits to help provide holistic support for your work life, whatever your circumstances. As a QBE employee you will have access to and benefit from:

As well as the benefits below, we also offer an extensive choice of other options to suit you!

• 30 days holiday a year with the option to buy up to 2 additional days.

• Pension: you are automatically enrolled into the QBE pension plan, which entitles you to receive employer contributions of 10% of your basic salary.

• Private medical insurance: we fund fully comprehensive private medical cover for you and all the family.

• Short-term remote work abroad: you can request up to 20 days per year to work remotely from certain locations abroad.

To learn more about the benefits of working with us, visit Rewarding our people - QBE European Operations: https://qbeeurope.com/careers/reward/

Awards & Recognition

We value our employees’ experience with us and are proud to have been recognised for the following awards:

• General Insurer of the Year 2026 at the British Insurance Awards.

• Insurance Post British Insurance Awards 2025: Winner, Commercial Lines Insurer of the Year; Winner, Reinsurer of the Year - QBE Re; Winner, ESG, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative of the Year; Winner, Insurance Personality of the Year - Chris Wallace, Executive Director UK Insurance.

• AXCO Global Insurance Awards 2024 Winner: Network Management of the Year.

• Insurance Business UK 5-Star Cyber Awards 2024: QBE rated as a 5-Star Cyber Insurer.

• Insurance Post British Insurance Awards 2023: QBE rated as a 5-Star Employer.

To learn more about our achievements, visit: https://qbeeurope.com/careers/awards/

Apply now and let’s make it happen!

If you’re looking for a role that combines your early careers expertise with the opportunity to build something with lasting impact, click Apply today.

Your career. At the heart of it.

Skills:

Business Management, Candidate Experience, Communication, Critical Thinking, Detail-Oriented, Employee Experience, Employer Branding, Intentional collaboration, Managing performance, Presenting with Impact, Recruiting, Recruitment Marketing, Stakeholder Management, Talent Acquisition, Talent Development

Application Close Date: 29/10/2026 11:59 PM

How to Apply:

To submit your application, click "Apply" and follow the step by step process.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

QBE is an equal opportunity employer and is required to comply with equal employment opportunity legislation in each jurisdiction it operates.