Job Description

We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide.We work directly with individuals to help them gain the skills, confidence and connections to transform their lives and shape a better world in partnership with the UK. We support them to build networks and explore creative ideas, to learn English, to get a high-quality education and to gain internationally recognised qualifications.Working with people in over 200 countries and territories, we are on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2021-22 we reached 650 million people.Contract Type - IndefiniteLocation - Malaysia - Wisma Selangor DredgingClosing date - Monday 3rd June 2024 23:59 UK timeYou must have the legal right to work in Malaysia at the time of application.There is no relocation or sponsorship support.British Council supports working in new ways such as hybrid working, subject to full approval by line management and conditional upon our ability to provide the appropriate level of service. This may not be appropriate for all roles but can be explored at interview.About the role:The Lead People Advisor will lead the people solutions agenda in the hub, supporting delivery of our employee value proposition and delivering legally and culturally compliant advice and guidance to all stakeholders on all aspects of the People function employee cycle.This role will ensure the proactive management and mitigation of legal and operational risk relating to Human Resources including adherence and advice on policies and processes and coaching and guidance for line managers to enable early resolution of workplace conflict and grievances.This will require reviewing, analysing and driving the People function advisory model using a systematic, integrated approach with a focus on continuous improvement and conflict resolution as well as a service orientation that delivers a seamless employee experience in line with our employer value proposition.Main ResponsibilitiesLeadership & management

• Provide people solutions to support the implementation of business plans across the regions. Work in partnership with people business partners to support local management to identify the people implications of strategic and business growth plans across defined organisational areas, providing local insight relating to market conditions, legal context, etcLead the team of geographically dispersed Advisors responsible for providing expertise, advice and specialist support, building the capacity and capability required to deliver the agreed services.

Relationship & stakeholder management

• Manage the relationship with key stakeholders and develop an in-depth knowledge of the businesses by understanding their financial positions, short, midrange and long-term plans and the culture being driven in order to advise on people implications of the business plans.
• Manage Union /legal relationships with the Country Directions. Support CDs with their relationship with unions.
• Manage the relationship with People Solutions and ER resources within the hub and relevant resources with People Experience and Insight to ensure consistent use of frameworks and processes.

Subject Expertise

• Apply advanced HR functional knowledge to solve a range of complex business issues across the regions.
• Support understanding of complex problems and enable informed business-planning, decision-making and/or the development of new or improved policies and practice by providing local knowledge and insight.
• Manage low risk ER cases within hub and uses standard methodologies and frameworks to drive consistency across the team. Works with ER /caseworkers where necessary.
• Build management capability through delivery of advisory services that build management confidence to address people-related challenges and encourages early resolution in the case of workplace conflict.

Service improvement

• Takes an employee centric and service focused approach to the delivery of Advisory Services. Work closely with People Operations lead to review all aspects of the service provided to stakeholders.
• Actively champion and review organisational compliance with policies and practices, understanding reasons for non-compliance and making recommendations to address this.

Strategy and Planning

• Feeds into the development of the hub People Plan for PS and leads on key People activities.

Role Specific skillsData LiteracyData driven: Grasps & uses data to make decisions and inform practice (developing)Business AcumenCustomer understanding - Understands customer needs & applies user-centric principles (developing)People AdvocacyRisk mitigation and ethics: Ensures ethical conduct and compliance, and mitigates people risks (developing)Execution ExcellenceAction orientation: Implements actionable and adaptive plans to achieve results (developing).Problem solving: Finds practical solutions to navigate and overcome obstacles (developing).Interpersonal skills: Achieves shared goals using effective interpersonal skills (developing).Minimum/essential requirements

• Experience of leading a geographically dispersed team delivering People function solutions across multiple geographies and time zones
• Demonstrable experience of working at a senior level with a People function team, and understanding of and ability to use, core HR policies and processes within a legal context
• Experience of working within external legal providers and internal CoEs, in particular, Employee Relations

Language RequirementsThe British Council systems and global processes operate in English. Written and verbal proficiency (CEF C1) in English is requiredA connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.Equality , Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) StatementThe British Council is committed to policies and practices of equality, diversity and inclusion across everything we do. We support all staff to make sure their behaviour is consistent with this commitment. We want to address under representation and encourage applicants from under-represented groups, in particular, but not exclusively, on grounds of ethnicity and disability. All disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria are guaranteed an interview and we have Disability Confident Employer Status. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with.We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989.Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed; these will include qualification checks, reference checks, identity & criminal record checks in line with legal requirements and with the British Council\'s Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.If you have any problems with your application please emailPlease note: Applications to this role can only be considered when made through the Apply section of our careers website. Our \'ASK HR\' email is only to be used in case of a technical issue encountered when applying through the careers website. Emails with supporting statements and CV/Resumes sent to this email address will not be reviewed and will be deleted.

British Council