ER Specialist UKI & US

As an Employee Relations Specialist at SUSE, you will be part of the Global ER Team and will report to the Global ER & People Policy Director, based in Germany. The team is collectively responsible for supporting and enabling positive global employee relations across SUSE, leading the relationships with our Works Councils in Europe, supporting team members and team leaders during ER case management, identifying trends, opportunities and initiatives to improve employee relations and keeping up to date with local employment legislation obligations and best practice. The team will also own the creation and implementation of global people policies to support the SUSE culture, strategy and company growth.

This ER manager role will primarily be focused on UK, Ireland and the US ER team when needed. There will also be a need and opportunity to develop expertise in other countries to support colleagues during peaks in workload, cover for holidays etc. Whilst candidates will need to have an existing level of knowledge and expertise in their primary countries, this role will therefore provide an excellent development opportunity to learn about global support.

The ER team works in close collaboration with the People Business Partnering team, ensuring alignment with activity in the teams they support.

The position is remote/hybrid (office location: Staines-Upon-Thames).
 

Focus areas

Employee Relations and Works Council Collaboration:

• Acting as a trusted advisor for team members and team leaders; providing top quality and timely guidance and support for resolving workplace issues and concerns and fostering a supportive and inclusive work environment.

• Playing the role of subject matter expert on the full range of employee relations from disputes, ill health, performance management and conduct situations.

• Acting as a guardian and champion of SUSE values and ensuring they remain at the forefront throughout everything you do.

• Developing and implementing strategies to proactively address and prevent workplace issues, ensuring alignment with SUSE culture, using data, trends and insight from exit interviews etc

• Contributing on continuous process improvement and support in trainings for team leaders to solve Employee Relation Cases in the best way

• Supporting implementation of change management projects and organizational change programmes.

• You promote our brand as a people team and work as an integral part of the wider people team supporting the team to deliver a best-in-class HR service to all team members and leaders, identifying opportunities for improvement and enabling solutions and actions. 

2. Policy Development and Compliance:

• Ensuring compliance with country, federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations.

• Playing a key role in the development and revision of Global SUSE people policies and procedures, promoting fairness, consistency, and alignment with the SUSE culture and values.

• Conducting regular policy reviews to identify areas for improvement and ensuring policies reflect the core values and best practices of SUSE.

• Providing guidance to leaders and team members on policy interpretation and application, fostering a culture that embodies the essence of SUSE.

Required Experience & Skills:

• A commitment to promoting fairness, diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace, aligned with SUSE culture.

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, or a related field; or equivalent work experience.

• Proven experience in employee relations, with experience of support in UK/Ireland and the USA and a track record of delivering top class outcomes.

• Strong understanding of employment laws and regulations in countries you will support. 

• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to handle sensitive matters with confidentiality, empathy, and a focus on the SUSE culture.

• Strong problem-solving and conflict resolution skills, guided by SUSE values.

• Solution focused attitude with the necessary communication style to challenge respectfully but robustly where appropriate

Personal Attributes:

• Growth mindset with a commitment to reflection, learning and continuous development.

• High integrity – makes and keeps commitments and knows how to build a long-term relationship with customers and colleagues.

• Proven organizational skills and the ability to prioritize competing tasks effectively and work to tight deadlines.

• Excellent attention to detail.

• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced, dynamic environment that champions the SUSE culture.