About the role:

Gentoo is looking for an experienced HR Business Partner to join the team to cover maternity leave, the role will be offered on a 12-month fixed-term contract basis, starting around mid-September. The role is based at our Sunderland head office, with hybrid working options. In this fast-paced role of HR Business Partner, you will provide flexible generalist HR partnering to deliver best-in-class service to the Gentoo group. You will also support the Senior HR Business Partners to deliver the People strategy and objectives ensuring alignment with our culture and values.
Gentoo is one of the largest employers in Sunderland, and a leading provider of social housing in the North East. We are a strong purpose-driven, charitable organisation that provides more than 60,000 people in the City of Sunderland with a place they can call home. We employ over 1,000 people in more than 200 different job roles. Each one is rewarding and challenging. We are proud to make a difference in our communities and in our tenants’ lives. The health and wellbeing of our colleagues is our priority. We acknowledge a healthy and happy workforce contributes to a positive working culture.

What we are looking for:

An experienced HR Business Partner who applies a commercial and professional approach to delivering business focused solutions, who can quickly build personal and functional credibility with key stakeholders. With experience working in an organisation of a similar size in the role of HR Business Partner, with a focus on and responsibility for:

People Strategy – Collaborating in the development of and accountable for the development and delivery of a People Strategy. Ensuring cost-effective solutions and strategic value, whilst aligning with organisational culture and values.

Employee Relations – Developing an effective partnership with the Trade Unions. Participating in Trade Union discussions. Coaching Managers with disciplinary, grievance and sickness reviews, when necessary, with the goal of managers managing the process with minimum HR support.

Compensation & Benefits – Undertaking a key role in the development of and ensuring compliance with market-competitive compensation and benefits strategy to drive business performance. Sourcing and analysing external benchmark data for compensation, and benefits. Sharing best practices, ensuring organisations operate at the median of the market. With responsibility for job design and competency development.

Talent Management – Driving Talent Management, succession, and retention strategies. With a consistent approach to talent management and succession planning that delivers clear actions around succession, diversity, training and development, performance management and career planning.

Resourcing – Advising and supporting in recruitment activities where necessary, ensuring resourcing plans are executed to attract, select and place the best, diverse talent (internal and external) with a focus on cost-effectiveness. Experience in developing longer-term workforce plans with a specific focus on improving capability, leadership development and performance.

Organisation Design – To ensure the business area of responsibility is appropriately designed to deliver maximum impact in the short and long term.

Project Management – Utilising interpersonal skills to lead and deliver HR-related business projects.

Performance – Ensuring consistent performance standards have been understood and maintained. With accountability for own KPI’s and Objectives.

Employee Engagement – Working with Learning & OD to partner on Employee Engagement strategies and implementing solutions.

Qualified or willing to work towards MCIPD.

Closing date:

15-Oct-2023

We're a housing association that provides more than 60,000 people in Sunderland with a place they can call home. We're a values-driven organisation, with a clear vision, a social purpose and a commitment to investing in people, place and property. We believe everyone has the right to live in a good quality home they can afford and invest millions of pounds every year in keeping our existing homes safe, secure, and compliant.

We're also playing our part in addressing the UK housing crisis locally, by building hundreds of new, modern and contemporary homes for rent in Sunderland - homes that meet the needs of local people. Not only do we provide vital housing - we support our tenants, residents and communities by investing in services that help people live their best possible life.

This includes helping people to work, victims of domestic abuse and anti-social behaviour, young people to live independently, as well as a wellbeing service that supports our elderly tenants and residents.