Head of Human Resources

Head of HR

North West HQ | up to £100,000 + package

We are partnering with a large, successful organisation to appoint a senior HR leader for one of its key business units.

This is a substantial and operationally complex division with a large blue-collar workforce, national footprint and significant growth agenda. As the business continues to evolve at pace, this appointment will play an important role in ensuring its people strategy, organisational capability and workforce can support its future ambitions.

Reporting into senior leadership and working closely with the business unit leadership team, you will take ownership of the people agenda for the division, whilst leading and developing an established HR team.

The remit is broad and will encompass organisational design, workforce planning, leadership capability, talent and succession, attraction and retention, reward, employee relations and the continued development of the people infrastructure required to support a rapidly growing operation.

A key aspect of the role will be building credibility and influence across a highly operational stakeholder group.

You will be working with commercially focused leaders who may not always naturally look to HR for solutions. As such, you will need to be resilient, robust and pragmatic, with the confidence to challenge constructively, navigate difficult conversations and build strong relationships at all levels.

Your credibility will come from understanding the business: its customers, contracts, commercial pressures, operational challenges and workforce. You will be able to translate the people agenda into practical solutions that support business performance, communicating in a way that resonates with your stakeholders rather than relying on traditional HR language.

Experience supporting a significant blue-collar or operational workforce will be important. You will understand the challenges associated with workforce availability, skills, attraction and retention, productivity, employee relations and developing management capability across geographically dispersed operations.

The organisation's HQ is North West based (Greater Manchester/Cheshire base) and, given the pace of activity and change within the business, a regular presence at HQ will be required, alongside close engagement with the leadership team and wider organisation.

The business has a national operational footprint, so the successful individual will also need to be comfortable with regular UK travel as required, spending time across the operation and developing a strong understanding of the business at both strategic and operational level.

The individual

We are looking for an established senior HR leader who has operated within a sizeable, complex and ideally multi-site organisation.

Experience within infrastructure, engineering, construction, utilities, manufacturing, logistics or another environment with a significant operational workforce would be particularly relevant.

You will bring experience of supporting an organisation through growth, transformation and change, alongside the ability to balance longer-term strategic priorities with the immediate requirements of a fast-moving business.

You will be comfortable operating with senior leadership, leading an HR team and influencing across a diverse stakeholder population.

Above all, you will bring commercial credibility, resilience, sound judgement and pragmatism, with the ability to build trust and influence stakeholders through a strong understanding of their business and operational priorities.

This is a significant HR leadership opportunity within a successful and growing organisation, offering the scope to shape the people agenda and make a tangible contribution to the next stage of its development.

For a confidential conversation, contact Vanessa Jackson or Colin Youle at We Are Adam.

Equity, diversity, and inclusion are integral to everything that we do. We are committed to these values, and they are central to our mission. We encourage applications from all backgrounds and communities, and we are more than happy to discuss any reasonable adjustments that you may require.