Reporting directly to the Global Head of People Partners, the HR Business Partner for EMEA will serve as a strategic partner to our regional leadership teams during a pivotal growth phase. This role uniquely combines regional expertise with global responsibility, supporting our worldwide R&D and Professional Services organizations while maintaining deep local market knowledge across DACH, UK and Nordics. This position requires a commercially-minded HR professional who thrives in fast-paced, data-driven environments and can seamlessly bridge local employment complexities with global operational excellence. Based in Germany, remote.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Business Partnership
- Partner with regional Sales, Product, and Operations leaders to align HR strategy with aggressive business growth targets
- Serve as the HR partner globally for R&D and Professional Services functions, providing strategic workforce planning and organizational development support across all international locations
- Lead cross-functional collaboration between regional compliance requirements and global team structures, ensuring seamless operation of distributed R&D and consulting teams
- Provide consultative support on organizational design, workforce planning, and talent strategy for its Countries.
- Lead strategic workforce analytics and insights to drive data-informed decisions on headcount planning, compensation positioning, and retention strategies
- Act as the primary HR liaison for M&A due diligence and integration activities in the region
- Support regional leadership with strategic workforce planning and organizational design initiatives
- Partner with hiring managers to optimize onboarding and integration processes for new hires
- Develop market-specific people strategies that resonate with Nordic business expectations and cultural values
- Collaborate with talent acquisition teams to ensure successful candidate experience and regional compliance
- Navigate intricate multi-country payroll, benefits, and compliance requirements (similar complexity to our Turkish operations analysis)
- Design competitive, locally-compliant compensation frameworks that account for significant tax and cost variations across markets
- Manage global compensation equity and career progression frameworks for R&D and Professional Services teams across multiple jurisdictions
- Lead annual compensation reviews, equity planning, and complex cross-border employee mobility projects
- Ensure compliance with diverse employment legislation across 5 countries while maintaining operational efficiency for global teams
- Drive leadership development initiatives and succession planning for high-growth teams
- Design and implement global career development pathways for technical and consulting professionals, ensuring consistent advancement opportunities regardless of location
- Lead change management initiatives during rapid scaling phases and organizational restructuring
- Develop and implement employee engagement strategies that maintain Centric's culture during international expansion
- Support performance management processes and career development frameworks
- Establish HR service delivery models that scale with business growth across multiple time zones and legal entities
- Build people analytics dashboards and reporting frameworks for both regional business leaders and global R&D/Professional Services leadership
- Lead HR technology implementation and optimization projects for the region while ensuring global system integration
- Manage complex employee relations cases and investigations across different legal frameworks
- Coordinate with global teams to ensure consistent HR policies while maintaining local compliance and cultural sensitivity
Experience & Background
- 8-12 years progressive HR experience with at least 4 years in business partner or generalist roles
- Proven track record in high-growth technology companies, preferably SaaS, software, or digital services
- Multi-country experience required - deep understanding of DACH, UK, and Nordics employment law and cultural nuances. Knowledge of other Countries will be welcome.
- International payroll and compensation experience managing complex tax structures and compliance requirements
- M&A or rapid scaling experience supporting organizations through significant growth phases
- Strong analytical capabilities with experience in HR metrics, workforce planning, and compensation benchmarking
- Proficiency with HRIS systems, payroll platforms, and people analytics tools
- Understanding of equity compensation, international benefits, and complex employment structures
- Experience with employment law across UK and Nordic jurisdictions
- Commercially-minded approach with ability to balance people strategy with business outcomes
- Executive presence and ability to influence stakeholders and regional leadership teams
- Global perspective with local expertise - ability to balance worldwide R&D and Professional Services needs with regional market requirements
- Cultural intelligence and sensitivity to Nordic business practices and employee expectations
- Matrix organization experience managing dual reporting relationships and cross-functional global teams
Personality & Working Style
- Entrepreneurial mindset - comfortable with ambiguity and building processes from the ground up
- Data-driven decision maker who combines analytics with human insight
- Collaborative influencer who can work effectively across cultures and time zones
- Results-oriented with track record of delivering measurable HR outcomes tied to business success
- Adaptable problem-solver who thrives in dynamic, fast-changing environments
You'll be joining Centric at an inflection point where your expertise will directly shape our European expansion strategy. This role offers the opportunity to:
- Build from the ground up - establish HR frameworks that will support hundreds of future hires
- Drive measurable impact - your work will directly influence our ability to compete for top Nordic talent
- Lead complex projects - from multi-country payroll optimization to M&A integration
- Shape culture - help maintain Centric's innovative spirit while scaling across diverse markets
- Career acceleration - high visibility role with direct exposure to executive leadership and growth opportunities
- Competitive base salary benchmarked to HR leadership roles in London/Stockholm markets
- Comprehensive benefits package optimized for UK/Nordic employment standards
- Flexible working arrangements with quarterly regional travel requirements
- Professional development budget and leadership coaching opportunities
Similar Jobs
What We Do
Centric Software® is the innovator behind the #1 Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) platform, Centric PLM™, that is blazing the trail for brands, manufacturers and retailers across all segments of the consumer goods industry. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Centric Software has shattered the mold to create state-of-the-art digital solutions to satisfy the needs of every player in the market, large and small, and supports their mission to develop high-quality, sustainable products that are on time and on trend.
- Centric PLM delivers enterprise-class merchandise planning, product development, sourcing, quality and product portfolio optimization innovations specifically for fast-moving consumer industries. Centric PLM streamlines the product development process from concept to retail.
- Centric Planning provides best-in-class data and visually driven financial, merchandise and assortment planning as well as store and vendor forecasting to maximize margins and for seamless and fast, pre and in-season execution.
- Centric Visual Boards improves collaboration and decision-making of merchandising and buying teams through intuitive digital boards, driving innovation and decreasing time to market.
All Centric solutions are market-driven, ensuring they meet the needs of customers. These innovations include the first ever PLM mobile apps, 3D CAD connectors, sustainability integrations, and more. Centric Software has the highest user adoption rates in the industry and proudly maintains a 99% customer retention rate due to its seamless implementation methodology which ensures that 100% of its customers go live. Centric Software is proud to provide the best solution, backed by the best team to service the best customers.
Centric Software is a subsidiary of Dassault Systèmes (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA). For more information, please visit www.centricsoftware.com.
