Partner HR Officer

The opportunity

We are looking for a Partner HR Officer to join our Global Partner HR team. This role will provide support to our existing Partner HR team, getting involved with day-to-day partner life-cycle activities. Strict confidentiality and discretion are key requirements of this role.

The firm

Bird & Bird opens up a world of possible for lawyers and professionals everywhere. Here you can advise major enterprises and high-growth businesses on matters that are often transformative in nature, and alongside people who are truly collegiate in the way they work with everyone at Bird & Bird. We are one international firm, where over 70% of our work involves teams from across our firm. And that is only going to increase. It is this common purpose and shared approach that makes for a more productive, and collaborative place to work.

Our promise

Bird & Bird is committed to maintaining an inclusive working environment and we are an equal opportunities employer. We will actively support and supervise your professional development. For those with the necessary attitude, experience and skills, we will ensure that the firm is a first-class platform on which you can develop into an industry leader. We support an agile working environment and are happy to discuss flexible working.

We are a disability, neurodiversity and mental health inclusive employer and want to ensure that candidates have a barrier-free recruitment experience. If you need reasonable adjustments for any of your interviews or assessments, please email us at [email protected] for confidential advice. Alternatively, you can call on +44 20 3017 6867 to discuss this.

The team

Bird & Bird's Human Resource (HR) team's mission is to empower and support all employees to achieve their potential at the firm. We do this by encouraging and building strong relationships across all departments to cultivate a friendly, collaborative environment.

In London, the team comprises of HR professionals across all areas from graduate and lateral recruitment, learning & development to teams specialising in generalist HR, our HR system, Partner HR, corporate social responsibility and diversity; all working alongside our international colleagues in supporting our 32 global offices. From your first to your last day at the firm, we will act as your supportive advisors to ensure that you can perform to the best of your ability in your role. Collaborative and committed to creating a valuable service to the firm, we are focused on providing the best service to all Bird & Bird employees and Partners.

The Partner HR team consists of 5 people, headed by the Head of Partner HR. The team reports into, and works closely with, the Chief People Officer to provide global client groups with a high quality, responsive and proactive HR and Talent service.

What you'll do

The successful candidate will be part of the Partner HR team. The main objective of this team is to provide first-rate advice, guidance and support to our 400+ partners and future partners in all aspects of HR and Talent management.

The main objectives of the role are:

Partner On-Boarding and Integration

• Work with the Partner HR PA and liaise with the Partner Talent Acquisition team to ensure a good understanding of the pipeline of lateral joiners.
• Draf all partner joiner paperwork including offer letters, partner affiliate agreements, LLP deeds for manager approval.
• Liaise with the local HR teams on the drafting of terms of employment.
• Work with the Partner HR PA on the collation and sending out of all offer packs.
• Work with the Partner HR PA and other functions on the implementation of the integration plan for each new joiner.

Allocations and Annual Reviews

• Support the managers in the administration of the partner annual reviews – including profit allocation for Members, as well as annual review for Local Partners and partners on an Individual Arrangement. This includes:
• preparing draft comms, reviewers list and timetables;
• liaise with Finance and other functions to collect relevant information and documentation;
• together with the partner HR PA, ensure the systems and data are up to date;
• together with the Partner HR PA, be the first point of contact and expert on the systems;
• work with the Partner HR PA to ensure a smooth organisation of meetings

Counsel and Partner Promotions

• Support managers in the identification and mapping of talent and promotion pipeline.
• Collect all relevant data regarding business cases (including financials), collate documents and prepare summaries.
• Provide administrative support to the managers around promotions.

Partner Leavers

• Support the managers in drafting leaving terms and other relevant documentation.
• Liaise with Finance and other functions to collect relevant information.
• Work with the partner HR PA to ensure a smooth management of the leaver administration.

General

• Producing confidential documents and sensitive information, ensuring all details are proof-read before being circulated.
• Responding to general Partner HR queries that come into the Partner HR email group.
• Support managers in processing requests relating but not limited to parental leave, sickness absence, part time working arrangements and international secondments.
• Ensure the Partner Space on the Intranet is kept up to date, liaising with colleagues across Business Services as and when necessary to ensure content is refreshed.
• Support managers in policy review.
• Attending meetings and taking notes, as requested.
• Supporting projects as requested.
• Cover for the Partner HR PA as and when required.
• Any other ad hoc projects or activities as needed.

About you

This role would particularly suit someone with an interest in HR (preferably in the legal industry) or an Administrator who is excited by the opportunity to establish their career in a leading global firm. If this sounds like you, we would love to hear from you.

Your competencies and experience

• An ability to ensure all tasks and sensitive information are handled confidentially and appropriately.
• A focus on service delivery and attention to details.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent organisation skills, the ability to work under pressure and manage conflicting priorities.
• Ability to liaise effectively with senior internal stakeholders.
• Strong relationship-building skills and a team player attitude.
• Working knowledge of Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
• A degree or equivalent qualification is desirable.
• Previous experience in a professional environment is desirable.
• A background of working in HR would be beneficial but is not essential.

The main responsibilities of this role are outlined above; however, this description is not exhaustive, and the job holder may be required to undertake additional duties from time to time to ensure the smooth running of the department. The role may require some working outside our normal working hours of 9:30am- 5:30pm.

Bird & Bird is committed to creating and sustaining a diverse and inclusive environment. We are delighted to confirm that we have achieved Mansfield UK Certification. This certification was achieved by considering at least 30% women, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, lawyers with disabilities and LGBTQ+ lawyers for at least 70% of UK fee earner and leadership positions. We are committed to continuing to participate in Mansfield Rule UK and continue to work towards ensuring a diverse pool of candidates are considered for our roles, in line with the Mansfield Rule. You can read more about this here.