Chief People Officer

We’re partnering with a private equity-backed global business that has just become independent and is already buying its next chapter. A carve-out and an acquisition, in flight together. There is no playbook for that, and no quiet quarter to find one.

They are looking for a Chief People Officer who is a commercial operator first and a people leader second. Someone who reads a P&L as fluently as an engagement survey, and who sees the organisation as the engine of the value creation plan.

The mandate

• Partner directly with the CEO and Board to turn the value creation plan into organisation, talent and leadership decisions that move revenue and margin
• Design and deliver the people side of a carve-out and an integration at once: operating model, org design, workforce planning, leadership structure and culture
• Build a people function fit for an independent, scaled business, then make it commercial, data-led and fast
• Lead the roll-out of AI and analytics across people and the wider organisation, with real adoption and measurable outcomes
• Hold the line on risk across multiple jurisdictions without slowing the business down
• Challenge the executive team and the investors when the commercial case calls for it, with evidence and with the backbone to be heard

What you bring

• Private equity experience is essential. You have worked inside a PE-backed business and understand the pace, scrutiny and hold-period logic that comes with it
• Real commercial credibility. You can link every people decision to growth, productivity or margin, and you are comfortable being judged on it. The commercial piece of this role is exceptionally important
• A global lens on growth. You have built and scaled people strategy across multiple markets, and you understand how pay, talent and leadership need to flex region by region to protect the commercial plan
• Transformation design and execution, not just the slide. You have built the model and then delivered it
• A keen eye for data. You find the signal, tell the story and make the call
• A track record of rolling out AI or new technology in a people context
• Comfort in high ambiguity. You can set direction when the picture is incomplete and keep a team moving through it
• The robustness to challenge and the judgement to know when
• Energy for pace. This is a role for people who thrive on it
• Open on sector. Your PE-backed track record matters more than the industry you earned it in

Where and how

• London is the ideal base. We will consider other European cities for the right person
• Regular global travel is part of the role. You will be with colleagues and clients across regions, not managing from a distance

Why this one

You will build the people agenda for a business at its most formative point, with a seat in the conversations that decide where it goes next. You will have an investor group and CEO who want a true partner, not a policy owner.

If you are the person who would run towards this, or you know them, message me directly or email [email protected]. All conversations are confidential.