HR Advisor

Who are we?

Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. 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 18,000 employees spanning over 100 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.

HR Advisor

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 Head of HR, and HR Business Partner, acting as the first line of defence for HR issues, employment relations cases and generalist queries. You will also work collaboratively with HR Centres of Excellence (incl. Talent Acquisition, HRIS, Payroll & 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.

This role allows for flexibility in location, with a hybrid work pattern (2-3 days in-office) and travel to other office locations within the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland is required.

Within this role you will be responsible for:

• Welcoming new joiners to Howden, supporting new starters to complete all pertinent information and actioning any new joiner questions or queries accordingly.  
• Completion of all HR transactions within Workday within the Service Level Agreement to ensure employees are paid correctly and any changes are reflected accurately
• Responding to HR queries received via the HR Inbox accurately, professionally and in accordance with the Service Level Agreement
• Act as a guardian for data integrity within the system, ensuring that any concerns regarding data and security are raised and resolved
• Review and process job changes through Workday (team organisation changes, transfers, promotions, leavers etc.)
• Serve as the initial contact for general inquiries and address Employee Relations matters, collaborating with the HR Business Partner and Head of HR for significant issues.
• Provide advice and direction, scripting conversations, note taking, drafting and issuing paperwork as required. Ensuring the relevant MI tracker or system is updated and the Head of HR is aware of any trends.
• Mentor, support and upskill first line leaders in order to develop employee relations and manager capability.
• Ownership of sickness and long-term absence cases, including occupational health assessments, return to work arrangements, group income protection applications and line manager support.
• Work with the Head of HR to deliver successful M&A / new initiative activity.
• Support the annual compensation and promotions process.
• 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, CBI/SMCR process implementation, talent and goal setting, early careers, diversity & inclusion, and manager training.
• Keep informed of all regulatory and legal changes in both Ireland and the United Kingdom which impact on the job role and contribute to the continuous improvement of HR procedures, policies and practices.

Workday / HR Systems

• 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 centres are accurate, and sending relevant notifications to the appropriate business collaborators.

Role Requirements:

• Minium of 5 years’ experience working within HR Generalist role scope.
• Experience using Workday.
• CIPD qualified /Third level business related qualification with a HR focus.
• Experienced employee relations capability.
• Solid understanding of Republic of Ireland employment law and United Kingdom employment law preferred.

• 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.
• Good Excel, PowerPoint and Word skills.
• Ability to travel within the Republic of Ireland and Northen Ireland weekly. 

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.