Country HR Head

Country HR Head UK & Ireland

For Human Resources Europe

Location: Weybridge, UK

In this role you will partner across the HR functions (Strategic HR Business Partners / COE Talent Acquisition; Learning and Development; Reward, Recognition and Mobility / HR Governance / Payroll and Service management) to deliver value-added service for people based in the UK. You will manage a team of 10 with 6 direct reports who provide solutions for all UK based functions, that includes Pan European, UK country level team and hosted functions.

We have a great people culture, and we encourage and support our people’s desire to do meaningful things, drive HR projects, and the option to relocate and work in other countries and fields. You will have the opportunity to be exposed to different business areas across Sony functions like Sony Music, Sony Picture, Sony Entertainment, and executive leadership teams.

You will:

- Assess and anticipate the needs of managers and employees and feeds back to Centers of Excellence and Strategic HR Business Partners to consider changes and future development across Sony Europe
- Act as a local HR partner for daily interaction with the business and people - Talent discussions, Development, Engagement, Trainings, Org development, Restructuring, Efficiency and Effectiveness, Communication, Wellbeing, Inclusion, Equity and Diversity
- Be accountable for the CHR People Partners performance and results, provide direction, guidance, and support with complex cases. Ensures deliverables, SLAs and KPIs for the UK scope are met by entire CHR UK team in a quality and time
- Align with Strategic HRBPs about Business priorities and agree on suitable solutions, managing escalations, legal issues/ compliance/grievances
- Implement Global / Pan-European employee relations projects and policies in the country while ensuring Legal compliance and governance
- Manage Country HR team to run activities under the framework and directions with the COE teams
- Define needs for country initiatives, consult with HR Governance, COE and SHRBP and seek for the solutions under the European framework
- Be accountable for compliant Health & Safety solutions in the country and provide guidance and support to the Health and Safety manager who is a direct report
- Advise payroll team where required (e.g. Business changes, legislation changes if known)
- Function as an escalation point and work closely with the payroll head in case of emergencies to help resolve issues in the UK and be responsible for the legal dispute’s representation in the country.
- Support and ensure adherence to agreed processes with the Service team and conducts regular service reviews.

You will bring
- University Degree / (Bachelor or Master or similar Degree)
- Strong understanding of HR Functions
- Extensive HR experience, ideally with Employee Relations specialism
- Broad experience and knowledge of the UK legal HR framework.
- Experience in working with Employee forums and Worker Councils / Unions
- Experience within an international matrix organization
- Experience working with and influencing Senior Management on HR issues.
- Have a proven track record of developing and maintaining positive relationships with key stakeholders across the business and externally
- Fluent in English, any of the country’s languages is an advantage
- Willing to travel when required including internationally (less than 5x / year)

Your new office in Weybridge

Based at the Weybridge office, you will enjoy a vibrant and friendly working environment with full accessibility. We have an onsite canteen with a wide range of options available, and a barista style coffee shop. There is a well-provisioned onsite gym run by our own Sony Wellbeing Coordinator, with classes on set days in the mornings, at lunch and after work hours. We have a staff car park which includes electric charging points, an undercover and secure bike rack (useful if you’ve made the most of the Cycle-to-Work scheme), or if you will use public transport we have a shuttle bus service that regularly runs between train station and the office at peak times.

Take a look at our Weybridge office here:
Life at Sony

We ensure competitive salaries and benefits by using established benchmarking. We encourage healthy work-life balance supported by hybrid and flexible working policies. We are a positive community who dream big together, respect each other, and enjoy a collaborative culture.

We like to celebrate our colleagues who make a real difference using our recognition platform. We also provide access to numerous services and platforms for all aspects of wellbeing. We listen to our people through conversations and surveys, respect their suggestions, then act on them. We also provide allowances for volunteering days so that our staff can support the causes they are most passionate about.

You can build your career around you with our fantastic range of learning & personal development programs to enha