Project Contractor

Vanguard is one of the world's largest investment management companies with 17,000 employees world-wide and a presence in 13 countries. Our European business has enjoyed phenomenal growth and success in recent years tripling in size and recently opening its second UK office in Manchester.

In this newly created contract role, we are looking for an Employee Relations specialist to join our expanding European HR Crew Relations team.  The focus of this role will be being a key HR contact in a wider European project team, applying an employee relations lens.

The HR team at Vanguard is a small, close-knit, and supportive team.  We pride ourselves on our ability to add value and ensure the business can achieve their ambitious goals.   Join us in our mission to enable organizational success!

6 month Temp Contract.

In this specialist role you will:

• Liaise with external European counsel, internal legal counsel and Head of Crew Relations for Europe to create European employment contracts, policies, and procedures in relation to any new European office openings.
• Provide employee relations advice in relation to any European office incorporations, escalating to Head of Crew Relations for Europe, where appropriate.
• Provide key insight, MI and reporting data to enable commercial decisions to be made at the strategic level in terms of European projects.
• Working in collaboration with internal legal counsel and HRBPs to review existing UK HR policy and procedures and their adequacy to meet the emerging workforce and HR agenda needs. 
• Where required, assist in employee relations cases, as needed, focused on sickness absence, performance, flexible working, grievances and disciplinaries.
• Coach managers and employees on policies and procedures to foster an environment of policy adherence and awareness of local employment law legislation.

What will help you be successful:

• Previous experience in providing advice, from a HR policy and ER perspective, on the incorporation of new entities in Europe would be an advantage.
• Experience in creating and implementing HR policies and procedures in Europe is preferred.
• Strong experience with a depth of knowledge in creating and implementing HR policies and procedures in UK.
• Ability to work at pace with a commercial, pragmatic, and risk orientated mindset.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to actively listen, challenge and influence thoughts and actions.
• An eye for attention to detail.
• Commitment to our core values of CARE, INCLUSION, INTEGRITY and TENACITY

Special Factors

• Vanguard is not offering sponsorship for this position.

About Vanguard

Vanguard is an investment company unlike any other. It was founded by Jack Bogle in the US in 1975 on a simple but revolutionary idea: that an investment company should manage its funds solely in the interests of its clients.  Jack helped bring investing to the masses with the index fund. Index funds do not pick individual shares or bonds to beat the market. They track the performance of the entire market.  Or as Jack put it, "Don't look for the needle in the haystack. Just buy the haystack!”.  We have stood for low-cost, uncomplicated investing ever since. Over the last 45 years people have come round to our way of thinking and more than 30 million investors worldwide now trust us with their money

Inclusion Statement

Vanguard’s continued commitment to diversity and inclusion is firmly rooted in our culture. Every decision we make to best serve our clients, crew (internally employees are referred to as crew), and communities is guided by one simple statement: “Do the right thing.”

We believe that a critical aspect of doing the right thing requires building diverse, inclusive, and highly effective teams of individuals who are as unique as the clients they serve. We empower our crew to contribute their distinct strengths to achieving Vanguard’s core purpose through our values.

When all crew members feel valued and included, our ability to collaborate and innovate is amplified, and we are united in delivering on Vanguard's core purpose: to take a stand for all investors, to treat them fairly, and to give them the best chance for investment success.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for most of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. Most teams work Tuesday-Thursday in the office, but for some jobs we need our crew to be in Monday-Friday. We will discuss the working pattern for your role during the interview process.

Our commitment to equal employment opportunity

Vanguard is an equal opportunity employer. Vanguard is committed to providing all crew members a working environment that is free from discrimination, prejudice and bias. Through this Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy, Vanguard reaffirms its commitment to equal employment opportunity for all applicants and crew members without regard to race, colour, national origin or ancestry, religion, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital status, veteran or military status. In addition, Vanguard prohibits discrimination based on genetic information, as well as any other protected characteristic.

We will make reasonable accommodations if you need assistance completing this application or to otherwise participate in the application process. Please inform [email protected] if you need any help.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.