HR Business Partner - 18-Month FTC, Alderley Park, UK

HR Business Partner (18-Month Fixed-Term Contract)

Location: Alderley Park, Cheshire (Hybrid)
Contract: 18-Month Fixed-Term Contract
Reports to: UK HR Director

About the Role
We are seeking an experienced and commercially focused HR Business Partner to join our team. This role will partner closely with business leaders, managers and employees, providing expert HR support across the full employee lifecycle. The successful candidate will combine strong business partnering capability with extensive employee relations experience, delivering pragmatic, solutions-focused advice that supports both business objectives and employee engagement.

Operating within a global organisation, you will be comfortable working across a complex stakeholder environment, supporting both site-based and remote teams. You will act as a trusted advisor to managers, helping them navigate people-related challenges while driving a positive employee experience and ensuring compliance with employment legislation and company policies.

Purpose of the Role

The HR Business Partner provides expert HR support across the full employee lifecycle, partnering closely with leaders, managers and employees to deliver pragmatic, commercially focused people solutions that support business objectives and employee engagement.

Operating within a global organisation, the role supports both site-based and remote teams across the UK, providing trusted advice and guidance on a broad range of people matters. The HR Business Partner is responsible for coaching leaders, managing complex employee relations matters, supporting organisational change, and ensuring compliance with employment legislation, company policies and best practice.

The role works closely with local and global HR colleagues and Centres of Excellence to support the delivery and implementation of people initiatives, including leadership development, talent management, organisational effectiveness, employee engagement and culture programmes.

Key Responsibilities

Business Partnering & Employee Relations

· Partner with business leaders and line managers to align people priorities with business objectives.

· Provide expert advice and coaching on a broad range of employee relations matters, including disciplinary, grievance, absence, capability, conduct and performance issues.

· Lead and manage complex and sensitive employee relations cases from investigation through to resolution.

· Support fair, consistent and legally compliant decision-making across the organisation.

· Identify recurring people issues and recommend practical solutions to improve organisational effectiveness and employee experience.

Leadership Coaching & Manager Capability

· Act as a trusted advisor to managers, supporting effective people management and leadership decision-making.

· Coach and develop managers to strengthen capability in performance management, employee engagement, communication and change leadership.

· Support leaders in enhancing team effectiveness, role clarity and organisational performance.

Workforce Planning & Organisational Effectiveness

· Partner with managers to understand current and future workforce requirements.

· Support workforce planning, succession planning and organisational design activities.

· Identify capability gaps and assist in the development of appropriate resourcing and development plans.

· Collaborate with Talent Acquisition to ensure recruitment activity aligns with business requirements.

HR Operations & Process Improvement

· Work closely with HR Operations to support the effective delivery of key HR processes, including onboarding, probation, performance management and offboarding.

· Review and improve HR policies, procedures and processes to drive consistency, efficiency and compliance.

· Ensure accurate and timely HR documentation, reporting and record keeping.

· Contribute to HR projects and continuous improvement initiatives.

Organisational Development & Global People Initiatives

· Support the delivery of local people priorities and organisational development initiatives.

· Collaborate with global HR colleagues and Centres of Excellence to implement and embed global people programmes.

· Contribute to leadership development, talent management, succession planning, employee engagement and organisational effectiveness initiatives.

· Promote a culture of continuous learning, professional development and inclusion.

· Support organisational change activities, including restructures, consultations, business transformation and change management programmes.

Governance, Compliance & People Insights

· Provide authoritative advice on employment legislation, HR policies and best practice.

· Ensure HR practices comply with legal, regulatory and internal governance requirements.

· Analyse people data and trends to identify risks, opportunities and areas for improvement.

· Use data and insights to inform decision-making and support workforce planning activities.

· Support the review, development and implementation of HR policies and procedures.

Knowledge & Experience

Essential

· Significant experience in an HR Business Partner, Senior HR Advisor or similar HR generalist role within a complex organisation.

· Extensive employee relations experience, including the management of complex and sensitive cases.

· Strong working knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice.

· Experience partnering with managers and leaders at multiple organisational levels.

· Proven ability to influence, coach and challenge constructively while building strong stakeholder relationships.

· Experience supporting organisational change, restructuring or transformation initiatives.

· Experience using people data and insights to support business decision-making and workforce planning.

· Demonstrated ability to improve HR processes and drive best practice.

· Experience working collaboratively with HR Operations, Talent Acquisition and specialist HR functions.

Desirable

· Experience working within a scientific, technical or regulated environment.

· Experience working within a global or matrixed organisation.

· Knowledge of organisational design principles and workforce planning methodologies.

· Experience supporting leadership development, talent management or organisational development initiatives.

Qualifications

Essential

· CIPD Level 5 qualification, or equivalent knowledge and experience.

· Strong technical knowledge of employment law and HR practices.

Desirable

· CIPD Level 7 qualification and/or Chartered CIPD membership.

· Coaching qualification or experience applying coaching methodologies.

· Training or accreditation in organisational development, change management or related disciplines.

Competencies

Lead by Example

· Demonstrates integrity, professionalism and accountability.

· Builds trust and credibility with leaders, managers and employees.

· Exercises sound judgement and maintains confidentiality.

Drive Results

· Takes ownership of issues and delivers high-quality outcomes.

· Balances commercial considerations with employee experience and compliance requirements.

· Uses data and insight to support effective decision-making.

· Demonstrates a proactive and solution-focused approach.

Collaborate & Influence

· Builds strong relationships across teams, functions and geographies.

· Influences stakeholders effectively through credibility, insight and partnership.

· Communicates clearly and adapts style to meet audience needs.

· Supports change and continuous improvement through collaboration and engagement.

Continuous Improvement

· Identifies opportunities to enhance processes, capability and organisational effectiveness.

· Promotes best practice and continuous learning.

· Demonstrates adaptability and resilience within a changing business environment.

FR : Dans le cadre de sa politique Diversité, Evotec étudie, à compétences égales, toutes les candidatures dont celles des personnes en situation de handicap.

EN: In the frame of our Diversity policy, Evotec considers, with equal competences, all applications including people with disabilities.

IT: In compliance with fundamental ethical and professional principles and with Legislative Decree 198/2006, Evotec is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to fostering a safe, diverse, and inclusive workplace built on mutual respect. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified candidates and employees based on their skills, experience, and professional qualifications. In line with our ethical and professional principles, all employment-related decisions, including recruitment and selection processes, are made fairly and without any form of discrimination. All qualified candidates will be considered for employment regardless of race, color, sex, age, disability, genetic information, gender expression, gender identity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law.

About Us

Established in 1999, Cyprotex has over 150 staff based at its sites in the UK (Alderley Park in Cheshire) and in the USA (Watertown, MA). We operate as a contract research organisation and we have over 1700 customers worldwide within industries such as the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and personal care and the chemical and agrichemical markets. Outstanding customer service excellence and quality are key focuses of the business. In addition to our customer projects, we invest heavily in Research and Development of new techniques – many of these projects are exploring new in vitro or in silico methods to understand how chemicals or new pharmaceuticals may behave in humans in terms of their safety or efficacious effects.

Cyprotex is a growing and successful business and we are constantly recruiting for motivated and hardworking staff who thrive within a dynamic and vibrant organisation. We are committed to providing an environment where employees can learn and develop their skills and are recognised and rewarded for the contribution they make to the Company. Much of our work is performed in multi-disciplinary project teams that enables exchange of ideas and knowledge, enabling people to develop and take on additional responsibility either within the team or across teams in the business.

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