Head of People and Organisational Development

2 days ago

London, United Kingdom Royal College of Nursing Full time

There is more to the RCN than you might think. We’re a trade union with a membership of over half a million nurses, midwives, nursing support workers and students. We support their practice, represent them, lobby on their behalf, and develop them. We exist to make a positive difference – to the working lives of our members and ultimately to standards in patient care. Our employees are drawn from many walks of life – we are nurses, marketers and communicators, administrators, IT professionals, policy and finance experts, lawyers… together we are so much more.

We couldn’t do what we do without our people. We're accredited with Investors in People Silver Standard. Our people are our greatest asset, and we want people who can contribute to our purpose in line with our values.

As a function, the RCN’s People and OD (POD) Department’s purpose is to enable the RCN to succeed through its people. We seek to create the best possible experience of work and working life for our people, support and empower our people through people-centred policies, practices and provisions and recruit, develop and engage our people to thrive in their roles.

By striving to be an exemplary employer, our work contributes to the RCN’s credibility as a trade union, and as the voice of the nursing profession.


As our Head of POD, you’ll lead the delivery of our purpose by working strategically and proactively across the organisation to ensure the overall service delivery of the department aligns with the RCN’s strategic plan and organisational priorities to drive organisational effectiveness, foster good employee relations and engagement, and maintain constructive working relationships with trade unions and staff.

As well as contributing to the development and monitoring of our People Strategy, you will ensure that activities represent the very best in HR practice fit for the RCN and are delivered to the highest standards, with the organisation and its people’s needs at the forefront. Working closely with senior leadership and executive team members you’ll also ensure the POD department understand and meet their needs and that they understand the work of the POD Department.

You will manage the overall service delivery of the reward, operations, learning and organisational development and people services (encompassing equity, diversity and inclusion, people analytics, reward, HR systems, people resourcing and people policy) and people business partnering functions ensuring initiatives, projects, policies and activities are consistent, up to date, relevant and in line with statutory requirements, maximising opportunities for growth and minimising organisational risk when needed.

The ability to foster strong professional relationships and encourage close collaboration between departments is at the heart of this leadership role.

As an Affiliate member of CIPD or other relevant professional body with a Level 7 HR qualification or equivalent qualification and/or experience you’ll also need contemporary knowledge of all areas of HR practice including EDI, employee relations, learning and reward.

You will need experience of working effectively in a trade unionised environment with responsibility for organisation-wide human resources activity as well as experience of making a positive contribution to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion agendas.

To succeed at the Royal College of Nursing all you need to do is think bigger, better and brighter. And with an attitude like that, anything’s possible.

What we offer you

We expect you to look after your customers. And we expect you to be rewarded for it. We offer an impressive range of benefits, a broad range of learning development opportunities and an award-winning health and wellbeing programme. We offer annual leave up to 32 days plus bank holidays and three additional days for the Christmas break plus generous maternity, adoption, paternity, and shared parental leave packages.

We offer a competitive pay structure with annual pay progression until you reach the top of the salary scale. We normally offer new employees the first point of the salary range, although you may be able to negotiate a higher starting salary depending on your skills, experience and current salary.

We are a diverse organisation and understand everyone has different needs and many of our employees enjoy flexible working enabling them to deliver results whilst having a good work life balance. Our hybrid working model allows for up to 60% of your working time to be carried out from home. At least 40% of your working time will be spent working in person.


Our selection process

Please click the ‘apply now’ button to submit a CV and answer the supporting questions online demonstrating how you meet the criteria for this role. You may not be shortlisted if you don’t. Please ensure your CV is in a simple format with minimal tables and sections. Any identifying information in your application will automatically be anonymised for shortlisting purposes.

We want your experience applying for a job with us to be the best it can be. We may hold our interviews and assessments in person or by video call. If you foresee any problems, please let us know.

Equal opportunities for everyone

Equity, diversity and inclusion are a priority for us and we aim to foster an inclusive environment so our people can bring their authentic selves to work. This is integral to our mission to enable you to support our members and ensure their voice is heard by all UK governments to get the best outcomes for them and their patients.

As a proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme we actively encourage applications from people with disabilities.

Contact details

For more information or for an informal discussion about the role please contact Geraldine Zake, Executive Assistant to Chief People Officer at Geraldine.Zake@rcn.org.uk who will arrange a time.

For more information about the recruitment and selection process please contact recruit@rcn.org.uk

  • Opening date: 18 December 2024
  • Closing date: 11.59pm on 19 January 2025
  • Assessment centre: 04 February 2025 in person at RCN UK HQ
  • Interviews: 10 February 2025 in person at RCN UK HQ
  • Interview date:
  • Contracted hours: 35
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