Interim Global Employee Relations Lead

12 Month Fixed Term Contract

Location: London
Work Arrangement: 3 days a week in office
Level: Senior and Expert level
Salary: Not provided

Who you are

• We are looking for someone who combines deep ER expertise with strong commercial judgment, an ability to simplify complex situations, and a mindset oriented toward scalable design
• A minimum of ~6 years experience in a dedicated ER role, such as an ER Manager role or ER CoE role. Experience must include designing and implementing ER frameworks, policy and tooling
• Proven track record operating in a global business with employees across multiple regions
• Proven ability to build policy, processes, and training from scratch or in a rapidly evolving environment
• Strong investigative skills and a deep understanding of employment law across multiple regions
• Experience integrating AI tools or technology into HR/ER processes (or strong appetite to develop this skill)
• Excellent communication, coaching, and influencing skills
• High integrity, sound judgment, discretion, and a balanced, pragmatic approach

What the job involves

• We're looking for an experienced Employee Relations Manager to design and elevate our global ER approach
• This role is ideal for someone who thrives in building frameworks from the ground up and someone who can take existing ER foundations, strengthen them, and enable our People team to confidently handle ER matters at scale
• This is not a full-time case-handling role. Instead, you will focus on building the systems, tools, policies, and capabilities that enable our People teams and managers to manage ER situations effectively
• You will also act as a backup subject-matter expert for complex or sensitive cases when needed
• They will modernise how we approach ER globally, leveraging process redesign, technology, and AI, while striking the right balance between legal compliance and pragmatic business outcomes

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop a clear ER strategy and operating model that aligns with our business structure, risk appetite, and future scale
• Create modern, user-friendly frameworks, playbooks, and toolkits that equip People Partners and managers to independently navigate ER issues (grievances, disciplinaries, performance management, redundancies, sickness absence management, etc.)
• Design decision trees, case categorisation models, escalation pathways, and quality standards that reinforce consistency, speed, and commercial decision-making
• Introduce mechanisms that reduce dependency on ER specialists while improving capability across the People Partner and leadership populations
• Develop and deliver structured training for People Partners, managers, and leaders on ER best practices, investigations, performance management, and policy application
• Provide live, on-the-job coaching and case mentorship to build capability and reduce escalations
• Build digital self-service content and learning modules that empower employees and decrease reliance on ER experts
• Facilitate quarterly ER simulation training using real Checkout case patterns to build confidence and decision-making ability
• Audit and benchmark existing ER policies, identifying opportunities for simplification, clarity, and alignment to our culture, legal standards, and commercial needs
• Draft and implement updated and new ER-related policies (conduct, grievances, investigations, performance management, etc.) that are globally consistent but locally adaptable
• Build a global ER policy architecture that supports scale, transparency, and ease of application by non-experts
• Assess and strengthen Employee Relations case management practices by identifying opportunities where tooling could add value, and designing and embedding effective internal processes, frameworks, and guidance to enable consistent, efficient case management and reporting
• Redesign ER processes end-to-end to make them scalable, efficient, data-driven, and globally consistent
• Identify opportunities to embed AI in workflows (case intake, document drafting, triage tools, early-risk detection, theme identification, etc.) to improve speed, accuracy, and decision consistency
• Define governance, controls, and safe-use practices for AI-supported ER tools in partnership with Legal, Tech, and Compliance
• Lead implementation of new systems, workflows, and tooling that modernise the ER experience for People Partners, managers, and employees
• Constantly identify friction points and redesign processes that balance compliance with pragmatic, commercially-sound outcomes
• Act as a strategic advisor for complex and sensitive cases, balancing legal risk, culture, commercial impacts, and reputational considerations
• Provide high-quality support for high-risk or high-complexity cases, including sensitive conduct issues
• Drive consistency and fairness across decisions by supporting calibration, case reviews, and cross-team alignment discussions
• Serve as the primary escalation point for ER appeals and critical decision reviews
• Use ER data, insights, and trends to identify behavioural themes, systemic risks, and opportunities for proactive intervention
• Partner with People, Legal, and business leaders to design interventions that strengthen trust, fairness, accountability, and performance discipline
• Ensure the ER approach reinforces positive employee experience, organisational values, and an environment where good performance and good conduct are expected and managed consistently
• Continuously scan for external developments in ER, AI, legal changes, and people risk—and translate them into actionable improvements at Checkout