HR Manager (Part-Time) - EmpowerRD

About EmpowerRD

EmpowerRD is a fast growing startup based near silicon roundabout in central London, UK. We work with innovative companies across the UK to help them claim R&D tax credits from the government for the innovation they have undertaken. Traditionally companies have worked with providers who offer support through an offline service led process to secure these incentives. EmpowerRD has developed a SaaS platform and married it up to a team of experts to create a claiming process fit for the digital age.

About the Role

EmpowerRD is looking for an experienced, versatile HR Manager to build and run the people function as a stand-alone role, reporting directly to the CEO. This is a rare opportunity for a generalist who can move fluidly between strategic people planning and rolling up their sleeves to get the operational basics right.

You'll be the go-to person for everything HR, from onboarding a new starter to advising the CEO on org design and reward strategy in the same week. No two days will look the same, and you'll need to be equally comfortable in an operational leadership conversation and an employee admin spreadsheet.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic HR

• Partner with the CEO and leadership team to shape people strategy aligned to business
• goals.
• Advise on organisational design, workforce planning, and change management as the
• company grows
• Own and evolve compensation and benefits strategy, including benchmarking
• Build a culture and engagement plan appropriate to the company's size and stage
• Provide the CEO with a trusted, confidential sounding board on people matters

Full Employee Lifecycle

• Lead recruitment and hiring processes end-to-end, working with hiring managers
• Design and run onboarding and induction for new joiners
• Manage performance review cycles, goal-setting frameworks, and development planning
• Handle employee relations casework: grievances, disciplinaries, absence management, and informal conflict resolution
• Manage leaver processes, exit interviews, and offboarding
• Oversee promotions, internal moves, and restructuring where needed

HR Operations & Compliance

• Maintain and improve HR policies, the employee handbook, and contracts of employment
• Ensure compliance with UK employment law and keep policies current with legislative change
• Manage HR data, records, and reporting (headcount, turnover, absence, etc.)
• Own or oversee HRIS/payroll administration and liaise with external payroll providers as required
• Manage employee benefits administration and provider relationships

About You

• Proven HR generalist experience, ideally including time as the sole or senior HR presence
• in a small or scale-up business
• Demonstrable experience across the full employee lifecycle - recruitment through to offboarding
• Comfortable operating both strategically and hands-on - equally at ease advising a CEO and processing a contract change yourself
• Strong working knowledge of UK employment law and practical application of it
• CIPD qualified (Level 5 or above) preferred
• Confident, self-directed, and comfortable working autonomously without an HR team around you
• Excellent judgement and discretion - you'll be trusted with sensitive and confidential information from day one
• Strong communication skills, able to flex between board-level conversations and one-to-one employee support

What EmpowerRD Offers

• A genuinely influential role, shaping the people function from a foundational stage
• Direct access to and partnership with the CEO
• Part-time flexibility (3 days/week) with in-office collaboration Tuesday & Thursday