As a Senior People Partner, you will be a trusted advisor to a member of the Partnership Executive team and /or their senior leadership team. Your core mission is to shape and drive the delivery of People plans that directly enable the overall business strategy. This is about ensuring we have the right talent, in the right place, and at the right time, fostered by an inclusive and empowering culture. In a rapidly evolving environment, you will lead proactive workforce planning and support effective change delivery to ensure the business meets its current priorities and is future-ready. You will be instrumental in influencing the People agenda both at a business and pan-Partnership level.
You will play a pivotal role in guiding, coaching, and influencing leaders through strategic insight, challenge, and collaboration. We are looking for someone who can build deep, credible relationships across the Partnership, grounded in trust, business understanding, and sound judgment. As a proactive thought partner, you will shape decisions, anticipate risks, and identify opportunities to unlock commercial performance through our people. You must be prepared to provide honest counsel, even when challenging, ensuring leaders always consider the people impact and opportunity in every decision, and act as an exemplar of the Partnership Behaviours.
Salary - £70,500 - £110,500
Contract type - Permanent
Working pattern/flexible working - The Partnership has adopted a hybrid working approach, meaning you'll be able to work a mixture between the office and home based upon your personal needs whilst balancing the needs of the business.
You should expect to be working from a Partnership location 3 days per week.
Key Responsibilities
Be a trusted advisor to Senior Directors, shaping and executing the people plan within the business area.
Act as the voice of the People agenda with Senior leaders, ensuring alignment between business goals and people initiatives.
Diagnose and scope people change initiatives that support the transformation and growth of the business area.
Lead the creation and implementation of the People Plan in alignment with the overarching Partnership strategy.
Influence and contribute to the pan-Partnership people agenda through engagement with COEs and aligned People resources, ensuring the unique needs of the business area are effectively represented and addressed.
Lead strategic workforce planning activities in partnership with Strategy & Workforce Planning and Demand & Capacity Planning to ensure optimal resource allocation and capability building over the life of the Partnership plan.
Support diversity and inclusion efforts, embedding inclusive practices in leadership, talent development, and recruitment.
Partner with People Centres of Expertise (CoEs) to:
Support senior recruitment strategies
Navigate complex employee relations (ER) issues
Address future capability and succession requirement
Essential skills/experience you’ll need
Proven experience in a senior HR business partnering or strategic HR leadership role, ideally within a complex, matrixed organisation.
Demonstrated ability to influence and advise senior leaders (Executive Director /Director) on strategic people matters.
Track record of developing and delivering People focused plans or initiatives aligned to business strategy.
Experience in leading or supporting large-scale organisational change, workforce transformation, and capability building.
Experience in talent management, workforce planning, and diversity & inclusion strategies.
Experience working closely with Centres of Expertise (e.g. Talent, ER, TA) to deliver cohesive people solutions.
Desirable skills/experience you may have
Degree in Human Resources, Business, or related field (or equivalent experience).
CIPD qualification (Level 7 or equivalent)
Evidence of continued professional development in leadership, organisational development, or strategic HR practices.
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Closing Date:
March 9, 2026
Pay:
Contract Type:
Hours of Work:
Job Level:
Where You'll Be Working:
London Central Office, 1 Drummond Gate, London, , SW1V 2QQABOUT THE PARTNERSHIPWe’re the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We’re not just employees, we’re Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there’s never been a more exciting time to join us.
We’re ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.
As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect.
We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we’re free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective.
As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.
Important points to note:
It’s important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you’ll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third-party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.
We also recommend that you apply as soon as possible as vacancies can close early if we see a high number of applicants.
We want all of our Partners to have a good work-life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview.
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What We Do
Working in Partnership for a happier world. Our Partnership is an ongoing experiment to find happier, more trusted ways of doing business, for the benefit of us all. We work together to create a successful business and a fairer, more sustainable future for Partners, customers, suppliers and communities. Our Partnership is owned entirely in trust by Partners which means we are more than employees; we share knowledge, power and profit. Our Purpose inspires our principles, drives our decisions and acts as our guide. Visit www.jlpjobs.com directly to view our current opportunities.
