Head of People & Talent

👋 About us

Our mission is to help people navigate relationship change with kindness, clarity and practical support. From moving in together to getting married, separating, co-parenting or blending families, amicable helps thousands of couples have better conversations and make clearer decisions.

Our digital, human approach combines technology with expert support to make things simpler, fairer and more accessible. We help people focus on what matters most, while reducing the cost and stress of navigating relationship change.

amicable is growing quickly as demand increases and the way people approach relationships continues to evolve.

Our values bring our purpose to life and make what we do and how we do it unique: we are Kind to everyone we encounter, we embrace Trust & Professionalism, with a quest for Customer Focus that drives us to be more Pioneering.   

We are proud to be part of the Octopus Group.

💼 About the role

People are at the centre of everything we do at amicable - for the couples we help, and for each other. We're now looking for a Head of People & Talent to lead our People function and make sure amicable attracts, develops and keeps brilliant people. 

This is a role for someone who hits the ground running. You'll own hiring, onboarding and performance, holding a genuinely high bar so every person we bring in raises the standard of the team they join. You'll lead our people data and reporting, working with our Operations Director and the wider leadership team to shape how we deliver our people priorities, and manage our Talent Manager and People & Talent Assistant and working closely with our fractional L&D partner. 

You'll combine strong HR judgement with hands-on delivery and bring real curiosity about where AI can change how this function works – not just speeding up reporting, but finding new ways to spot patterns, solve problems and make decisions. 

Most importantly, you'll need to align with our values - they guide every decision we make, and everyone at amicable embodies them. 

This role is hybrid – you'll mainly work from home, with a minimum of 1 day a week in our Holborn or Richmond office. 

🔥 Key responsibilities

People & Leadership 

• Partner with our people managers, helping them get the best from their teams 
• Build genuine relationships across the business, so you proactively understand their needs
• Translate business priorities into practical people plans that managers and teams can act on 
• Manage and support our Talent Manager and People & Talent Assistant 

Hiring & Onboarding 

• Own our end-to-end talent acquisition approach, holding a genuinely high bar - quality over volume
• Work with our Talent Manager to manage and evolve our recruitment process and tools  
• Own onboarding end to end, working with tech and hiring managers so every new hire feels welcome and ready from day one 
• Coach and develop hiring managers to build their own capability 

Data & Insight 

• Tracking the metrics that show how the function and business are doing on our HRIS and ATS
• Bring rigour to people data – leave, sickness, objectives, performance - so leadership always has a clear, evidence-based view 
• Use that data to tell a story and influence stakeholders, not just report numbers 
• Monitor retention data, spot trends, and put targeted interventions in place 

Policy & Culture 

• Write and maintain policies in amicable's voice - warm, plain English, no legal jargon – while keeping them legally sound 
• Own and evolve our performance management framework and Mental Health First Aid programme 
• Champion diversity, equity and inclusion across our policies and practices 
• Design and deliver initiatives that strengthen engagement, wellbeing and belonging, including employee engagement surveys 

Reward & Recognition 

• Use benchmarking and insight to bring data-led pay recommendations to the leadership team  
• Design recognition programmes that celebrate great work and reinforce our values 
• Help review and build out our benefits offering 

Learning & Development 

• Support our L&D Partner, making sure learning is aligned to business needs 
• Support career development, progression and internal mobility 

HR Operations & Compliance 

• Keep people policies, procedures and contracts legally compliant and up to date 
• Oversee employee relations casework with sound judgement and a fair approach 
• Lead on right to work, GDPR (people data) and health & safety as it relates to people 

😊 About you

• A proven track record of getting things done in fast-paced environments – ideally in a high-growth start-up or scale-up  
• Strong employee relations and employment law knowledge – you handle complex cases with confidence, calm and good judgement  
• Experience building or leading a small People team and getting the best out of them  
• A natural business partner – curious about what different teams need, confident challenging and guiding rather than just taking a brief, and skilled at building relationships and influence at every level  
• Experience owning talent acquisition, including employer brand, agency relationships and hiring quality  
• Comfortable with reward – pay review cycles, salary benchmarking, data-led recommendations  
• Experienced in HRIS, people data and reporting – you use data to drive decisions, not just to report on them  
• Genuinely excited about using AI and modern tools to work smarter, not just to tick a box  
• A proactive, hands-on problem solver – equally comfortable thinking strategically and delivering operationally, with a high degree of autonomy across competing priorities  
• You've made a measurable difference to culture and engagement before, and you care enough about it here to instinctively work with our values in mind 

⛳️ Compensation, perks & benefits

• Salary: Up to £90,000 per year depending on skills, experience, qualifications and location
• Joining a mission-driven, high-growth company where impact, innovation, and collaboration are at the heart of everything we do 
• Private Health Insurance 
• Group Life Assurance 
• Employee Assistance Programme 
• 28 days holiday plus bank holidays per annum 
• Electric Vehicle Scheme 
• Share Incentive Plan
• Cycle to Work Scheme 

We respect and value people’s differences and believe that our teams are at their best when their members feel safe to bring their whole self to work. We are committed to creating an inclusive experience as well as equal opportunities for growth and development for all.