EMEA HR Operations Analyst
Position Purpose
The EMEA HR Operations Analyst supports the delivery of standardized, efficient and compliant HR Operations services across EMEA. Acting as a Workday and HR Operations subject matter expert, the role ensures high-quality execution of HR processes, data governance, reporting, workforce administration and operational support for HR Business Partners, Local HR teams and HR Centers of Excellence.
The position plays a key role in maintaining workforce data integrity, supporting annual HR programs, monitoring process compliance and driving operational excellence across the employee lifecycle.
Key Responsibilities
HR Operations Service Delivery
- Manage HR requests through SIMON/ServiceNow in line with service level agreements.
- Provide operational support to HR stakeholders across EMEA.
- Ensure accurate case management, documentation and issue resolution.
Workday & Process Governance
- Serve as a first-line expert for Workday processes and HR transactions.
- Troubleshoot process issues, workflow errors and approval routing challenges.
- Monitor compliance with established HR policies, controls and governance standards.
Data Quality, Reporting & Analytics
- Maintain workforce data integrity through audits, validations and corrective actions.
- Deliver HR reporting, workforce analytics and organizational insights.
- Support workforce planning and data reconciliation activities.
Workforce Administration & Organizational Support
- Support organizational changes, restructures, acquisitions, workforce migrations and large-scale employee data updates.
- Execute approved workforce transactions while ensuring governance and compliance requirements are met.
Annual HR Programs
- Partner with Compensation, Talent and HR teams to support annual processes, including merit reviews, bonus cycles, performance management and workforce planning activities.
- Ensure data readiness, validation and process execution throughout annual HR cycles.
Recruitment & Employee Lifecycle Support
- Collaborate with Talent Acquisition to support hiring, onboarding and workforce administration activities.
- Monitor data quality and process effectiveness across the recruitment-to-hire lifecycle.
Compliance & Cross-Functional Partnership
- Support audit, GDPR and regulatory compliance activities.
- Work closely with Payroll, Time & Attendance, Compensation & Benefits, Technology and ServiceNow teams to ensure accurate and efficient HR operations.
Continuous Improvement & HR Capability Building
- Maintain process documentation and standard operating procedures.
- Support HR user training and Workday adoption initiatives.
- Identify opportunities to improve processes, controls and service delivery.
- Develop and deliver training, guidance materials and knowledge-sharing sessions for HR teams to ensure consistent and accurate completion of HR transactions in Workday and ServiceNow.
Key Competencies
Technical
- Workday HCM
- HR Operations & Workforce Administration
- HR Reporting & Analytics
- Data Governance & Compliance
- ServiceNow / Case Management
- Advanced Excel and reporting tools
Behavioral
- Customer Focus
- Analytical Thinking
- Attention to Detail
- Collaboration
- Accountability
- Continuous Improvement
Success Measures
- Service level achievement.
- Workforce data accuracy and integrity.
- Compliance and audit results.
- Quality of HR process execution.
- Stakeholder satisfaction.
- Effectiveness of reporting, problem resolution and continuous improvement initiatives.
Summary
The EMEA HR Operations Analyst is responsible for ensuring the accurate execution, governance and continuous improvement of HR processes, workforce data and reporting across EMEA. The role serves as a critical link between HR Operations, HR Centers of Excellence, HR Business Partners and business stakeholders, enabling a scalable, compliant and data-driven HR service delivery model.
#LI-FC1
We are an equal opportunity employer, and we strictly prohibit and do not tolerate discrimination against employees, applicants or any other covered persons because of race, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, gender identity or expression, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any legally protected characteristic.
Skills Required
- Workday HCM expertise
- HR operations and workforce administration experience
- HR reporting and analytics skills
- Data governance and compliance knowledge
- ServiceNow or case management experience
- Advanced Microsoft Excel and reporting tools
- Analytical thinking and attention to detail
- Stakeholder collaboration and customer focus
Sonoco Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Sonoco and has not been reviewed or approved by Sonoco.
-
Retirement Support — A 401(k) with a strong employer match, including safe‑harbor and year‑end true‑up features, is highlighted in recent plan materials. This level of retirement support is presented as a competitive component of total rewards.
-
Healthcare Strength — Medical, dental, and vision coverage, alongside disability, EAP, and FSA/HSA options, form a comprehensive core package. This breadth is characterized as competitive and adds meaningful value to overall compensation.
-
Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is considered fair to competitive across many roles, with production and skilled trades pointing to solid hourly rates and overtime opportunities. Relative positioning against similar‑sized firms is portrayed as favorable.
Sonoco Insights
What We Do
Founded in 1899, Sonoco (NYSE: SON) is a leading manufacturer of consumer, industrial, healthcare and protective packaging. With more than 19,000 employees working in 34 countries, Sonoco serves many of the world’s best-known brands. Our integrated packaging solutions help define brand personalities, create unique customer experiences and enhance the quality of products and the quality of life for people around the world. It’s all in the service of our purpose: Better Packaging. Better Life. Sonoco is committed to creating sustainable products, services and programs for our customers, employees and communities. Sonoco was listed as one of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies for 2021 as well as being included in Barron’s 100 Most Sustainable Companies for the third year in a row. Learn more at Sonoco.com








