The Role
Serve as the primary People contact across the business, managing People KPIs, engagement surveys, performance reviews, employee relations cases, manager training, onboarding strategy, and People administration automation. Coach managers, advise senior stakeholders, handle ambiguity, and support employees with a calm, empathetic, and credible approach during a 12-month maternity cover.
Summary Generated by Built In
We're growing fast, and our People function needs to keep pace. Sophie, our People Partner, is heading off on leave for 12 months and we need someone who can step in and keep things moving from day one. You'll be the first point of contact for all People queries across the business, owning KPIs, engagement, performance reviews and ER casework. You'll report into our VP of People.
We’re looking for someone who's approachable and calm under pressure, with a coaching mindset. You'll empower managers to solve problems themselves rather than doing it for them. Comfortable working without a rigid playbook, switching context quickly between competing priorities, and confident pushing back constructively on senior stakeholders when needed. High EQ, and genuinely comfortable with ambiguity.
Given this is a maternity cover, we'd love to hear from people who can start before October to allow for a 2 week handover.
Given this is a maternity cover, we'd love to hear from people who can start before October to allow for a 2 week handover.
Key Responsibilities 🗝️
What You'll Own 📋
- Act as the go-to contact for all People queries across the business
- Own and report on People KPIs
- Run and analyse engagement surveys
- Own the performance review cycle
- Handle people cases end to end
- Deliver manager/management training
- Shape onboarding strategy
- Identify and implement AI/automation opportunities across People admin, freeing up time for direct partnering
Skills, Knowledge and Expertise 🚀
Essential experience & skills
- HRIS proficiency & people analytics (we use Humaans)
- Performance review cycle management
- Comfortable using AI/automation to reduce People admin
- A confident, credible communicator with senior stakeholders
- Calm under pressure
- A coach at heart
- Compassionate and approachable
Desirable experience & skills
- Manager coaching/training design
- Engagement survey tools (e.g. Culture Amp)
- Onboarding strategy design (not execution)
- Recruitment-tech or B2B SaaS background
- High EQ, with strong active listening skills
- Comfortable with ambiguity in a scale-up
- A proactive relationship builder
- Comfortable representing Zinc in the People space (content, community)
- UK employment law & ER experience
What we offer 🍉
- 24 days holiday + Bank Holidays + your birthday off 🎉
- £1200 annual benefits allowance (ThanksBen, from month 2)
- Early finish Fridays (16:00)
- Yearly company retreat abroad ✈️
- 30 days to Work from anywhere 🌍
- Statutory pension with NEST (3% employer, 5% employee)
- Unlimited access to Spill Therapy
- Company socials, quarterly team socials Free Monday lunches
- Nursery workplace benefit scheme (Yellownest)
- Celebrated Zinc anniversaries 🥳
About
Who are Zinc? ⚡️We believe in better background checking: making them easy, instant and delightful - for candidates and HR teams across the world 🌎. Founded in 2017, we've grown year-on-year, reaching the Times Top 100 fastest growing businesses, the Deloitte EMEA fast 500 and winning the 2026 HSBC x WIRED Award in the Trailblazers Category.But we're not all work, our founders Luke and Charlotte are hot on being a culture first business. By this, we don't just mean an active calendar of company and team events (although these are great! 🍻 🥂🍕🎯) - our culture is defined by respect, fostering support for new ideas, promoting flexible work environments and operating with autonomy and low ego. 🔥💥❤️It's not just us who think they've done a stellar job - we've won awards for being a Top Place To Work in 2025 and 2026 from Tembo and SeedLegals 💚What are our values? 🧩🧩🧩Our values are: Pragmatism, Integrity, Empathy, Collaboration, Empowerment and Speed. We call them the PIECES that make Zinc (see what we did there 😂).How do we work? 🧑🏽💻👩🏼💻👨🏿💻We operate on a hybrid working model, with everyone coming to our Shoreditch Offices on Mondays and Thursdays, and working from home on the others. We believe this is a great balance between having space for deep work and in-person collaboration ⚡️⚡️⚡️
Skills Required
- HRIS proficiency and people analytics experience, preferably using Humaans
- Performance review cycle management experience
- Experience using AI or automation to reduce People administration
- Confident and credible communication with senior stakeholders
- Ability to remain calm under pressure
- Coaching mindset
- Compassionate and approachable working style
- Manager coaching or training design experience
- Experience with engagement survey tools such as Culture Amp
- Onboarding strategy design experience
- Recruitment technology or B2B SaaS background
- High emotional intelligence and strong active listening skills
- Comfort working with ambiguity in a scale-up environment
- Proactive relationship-building skills
- UK employment law and employee relations experience
- Availability to start before October for a two-week handover
Am I A Good Fit?
Get Personalized Job Insights.
Our AI-powered fit analysis compares your resume with a job listing so you know if your skills & experience align.
Success! Refresh the page to see how your skills align with this role.
The Company
What We Do
Zinc builds automated reference and background checking tools designed to improve candidate experience and set new industry standards, offering automated pre-screening employment software for HR and recruiting teams to verify candidates' backgrounds and hire at scale.
