HR Operations Specialist

Location : UK, London Status : 9-month fixed-term contract Reports to : Global HR Operations Director Job purpose: The HR Operations Specialist is responsible for driving high-quality HR service delivery across the employee lifecycle, with a particular focus on establishing and supporting the Foundation’s new Geneva office. Acting as a key point of contact, the role will provide first-line support for Geneva-based and global employee queries and manage non-complex employee relations cases in partnership with HR Business Partners (HRBPs). During this fixed-term contract, the focus will be on operational excellence: supporting the practical set-up of the new Geneva office, leveraging systems (HiBob), managing end-to-end employee lifecycle processes, ensuring payroll and benefits alignment, and improving day-to-day service levels for colleagues. As this is a new office, the postholder will need to be flexible, hands-on and willing to assist with a broad range of office establishment and operational activities as priorities evolve. Principal accountabilities: Employee Query Resolution & Relations Support: • First-Line Support: Act as the first-line contact for employee and manager queries (specifically supporting the Swiss workforce), ensuring timely, helpful, and high-quality resolution of day-to-day inquiries. • Employee Relations (ER): Manage and resolve non-complex employee relations cases, providing practical guidance to managers and escalating complex matters to HR Business Partners (HRBPs) where appropriate. • Stakeholder Collaboration: Partner closely with HRBPs to ensure a joined-up approach to supporting employees and operationalizing team changes. Policy Development & Operationalisation: • Lead the research, drafting, and regular review of global HR policies, ensuring they are market-competitive and aligned with the Foundation’s values. • Translate complex policies into clear, actionable Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and user-friendly guidance for HR, managers and employees. • Take ownership of the "operationalisation" phase of any new policy, ensuring all administrative workflows, system updates, and communication plans are executed to a high standard. Geneva Office Set-up & Swiss HR Operations: • Support the establishment of effective HR operations for the new Geneva office, ensuring core processes including onboarding, benefits, leave management and terminations are aligned with applicable Swiss requirements and Foundation standards. • Coordinate accurate payroll inputs and benefits administration for Geneva-based employees, working closely with internal teams and external providers. • Liaise with local advisers, payroll and benefits providers, and relevant internal stakeholders to support compliant and effective employment operations in Switzerland. Process Implementation & Improvement: • Identify inefficiencies in current HR workflows and lead process improvement initiatives to streamline delivery and reduce manual intervention. • Ensure that the HRIS (HiBob) is fully leveraged to automate policy-driven processes, maintaining high data integrity. • Establish "gold standard" execution for HR administrative cycles, ensuring the team delivers a seamless experience across the employee lifecycle. Operational Execution & Support: • New Office Support: Work flexibly across HR and wider operational priorities to help establish the Geneva office, including employee onboarding, local documentation, provider coordination, office readiness activities and other practical set-up support as required. • Provide high-level operational support to the Global HR Operations Director on complex cases, the Geneva office set-up and wider HR initiatives. • Collaborate with HR Business Partners to ensure that ope