Junior HR Advisor

Who are we?
Howden is a global insurance group with employee ownership at its heart. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 24,000 employees spanning over 56 countries.
People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down headhunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work / life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.
Job Title: Junior HR Advisor
Contract: 12 Month Fixed-Term-Contract
Role Purpose
We are looking for a motivated and enthusiastic individual to provide dedicated HR support within our Howden Retail division. You'll work closely with the HR Advisory Lead, other HR Advisors and HR Business Partner, acting as the first line of defence for HR issues, employment relations and generalist queries. You will also work collaboratively with HR Employee Services and HR Centres of Excellence (incl. Talent Acquisition, HRIS & Reward).
As a key contributor, you will thrive in our dynamic and fast-paced environment, you'll embrace the complexity and commerciality that accompanies Howden's growth plans. This role involves navigating ambiguity, turning it into opportunity, and working collaboratively with the broader HR Team to craft the operational landscape of our newly established Retail business.
Key Accountabilities·
Serve as the initial contact for general inquiries and address routine Employee Relations matters, with a key focus on absence, long term sickness and flexible working requests, collaborating with your HR Advisor colleagues, HR Business Partner and HR Advisory Lead for significant issues.
Ensuring the relevant MI tracker or system is updated and the HR Advisory Lead is aware of any trends.
Complete weekly reporting for key stakeholders demonstrating activity levels within the HR Advisory team and highlighting any trends.
Support probationary extensions, flexible working applications, performance management processes, as well as disciplinary, capability and grievance cases.
Provide advice and direction, scripting conversations, note taking, drafting and issuing paperwork as required.
Ownership of sickness and long term absence cases, including occupational health assessments, return to work arrangements, Group Income Protection applications and line manager support.
Support operational M&A / new initiative activity as required.
Support the annual compensation and promotions process as required.
Proactively run exit interviews for members of staff (excl. senior management), advising the HR Business Partner of any key business insights and feedback.
Offer on-demand, custom letters, and administrative support when needed.Other responsibilities
Collaborate with the HR Business Partner on various projects, and contribute to other initiatives as needed, such as policy and process reviews, training program development, SMCR process implementation, talent and goal setting, early careers, diversity & inclusion, and manager training.
Keep informed of all regulatory and legal changes which impact on the job role and contribute to the continuous improvement of HR procedures, policies and practices.
Maintain and produce reports utilising Workday e.g. headcount, absence, talent, objectives etc.
Upskilling managers on Workday self-service in collaboration with HR Employee Services.
Verify data and Workday records, making sure job titles, teams, and cost centers are accurate, and sending relevant notifications to the appropriate business collaborators.
Weekly reporting of HR Advisor team activity from the ER App
Skills & Experience
Demonstrable experience in an HR Assistant or Junior HR Advisor role.
Experience using Workday.
CIPD level 3 (or equivalent) qualified, or willing to work towards.
Comfortable in a fast-paced and constantly evolving environment with high volume case management experience.
Strong customer focus and employee experience mind-set - using this for continuous improvement in service delivery.
Able to manage own caseload and adhere to service delivery SLAs
Good Excel, PowerPoint and Word skills.
Willing to travel (inside of the UK) as required
What do we offer in return?
A career that you define. At Howden, we value diversity – there is no one Howden type. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:
Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new
We support each other in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges
We are determined to make a positive difference at work and beyond
Reasonable adjustments
We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs. Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.
If you're excited by this role but have some doubts about whether it’s the right fit for you, send us your application – if your profile fits the role’s criteria, we will be in touch to assist in helping to get you set up with any reasonable adjustments you may require.
*Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.
Fixed Term Contract (Fixed Term)