HR Operations Manager

Universal Investment is Europe’s leading third-party Management Company (ManCo) and fund services provider. For nearly 60 years, we have partnered with institutional investors and asset managers to deliver innovative fund solutions across all asset classes.

With operations across Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, Poland, the UK, France, Sweden and Singapore, we offer opportunities to make an impact. We are looking for people who are curious, entrepreneurial, and eager to challenge the status quo. If you think beyond the obvious, embrace challenges, and thrive in a fast-moving environment, Universal Investment could be the right place for you.

Join a business where your ideas matter, your impact is visible, and your growth is part of our success.

Join our HR Operations team as an HR Operations Manager and take ownership of HR Operations service delivery across Poland, the UK, and Ireland. In this role, you will be responsible for ensuring efficient and compliant HR administration, payroll coordination, employee lifecycle processes, and vendor management across three countries. Working closely with HR, Finance, and external providers, you will drive operational excellence, process improvements, and a consistent employee experience while serving as a trusted partner to the business.

Your tasks and responsibilities:

• Own and oversee HR Operations processes across Poland, the UK, and Ireland , ensuring compliance with local regulations and company standards.
• Act as the main HR Operations partner for stakeholders across Poland, the UK, and Ireland.
• Drive harmonization, standardization, and continuous improvement of HR Operations processes across the three countries.
• Lead, coach, and develop a team of HR Operations professionals, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Provide functional leadership and subject matter expertise in HR Operations, driving best practices and process excellence across the organization.
• Oversee HR administration processes across the employee lifecycle, including hiring, employee changes, leaves of absence, and terminations.
• Ensure accurate and timely payroll preparation activities and effective collaboration with external payroll providers.
• Manage relationships with external vendors, payroll providers, and service partners, ensuring service quality, compliance, and contractual obligations are met.
• Act as an escalation point for complex employee, manager, payroll, and HR administration inquiries.
• Administer and oversee employee benefits programs in partnership with vendors and internal stakeholders.
• Build effective partnerships with HR Business Partners, Finance, Accounting, Controlling, IT, Procurement, and external service providers.
• Monitor operational KPIs, service levels, and team performance metrics to identify trends and drive continuous improvement.
• Lead process optimization, automation, and HR system enhancement initiatives to improve efficiency and employee experience.
• Ensure compliance with labor law requirements, GDPR regulations, internal controls, company policies, and audit standards.
• Support audits, governance reviews, and compliance activities by ensuring accurate documentation and process adherence.
• Partner with Finance, Accounting, and Controlling teams on payroll reporting, reconciliations, headcount reporting, accruals, and budget-related activities.
• Drive knowledge sharing, process standardization, and best-practice adoption across the HR Operations team.
• Support organizational change initiatives and the implementation of new HR programs, policies, and systems.

Your skills and experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, Economics, or a related field.
• 7+ years of experience in HR Operations, HR Administration, Personnel Administration, Payroll Operations, or Shared Services environments.
• Proven experience operating at Manager level within HR Operations, including ownership of end-to-end HR processes, vendor management, and stakeholder engagement in a multi-country environment.
• Strong expertise in employee lifecycle management, payroll preparation, benefits administration, and HR Operations processes.
• Experience managing relationships with external payroll providers, benefit providers, and other HR service vendors.
• Strong knowledge of employment legislation, labor regulations, GDPR requirements, and HR compliance standards.
• Experience partnering with Finance, Accounting, and Controlling teams on payroll reporting, reconciliations, and compliance activities.
• Experience driving process improvements, operational excellence initiatives, and HR system implementations.
• Advanced knowledge of HR systems such as Workday, SAP HCM/SuccessFactors, or Enova.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build effective relationships across multiple business functions.
• Excellent leadership, coaching, and people development capabilities.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a data-driven approach to decision-making.
• Experience supporting HR Operations across multiple countries, ideally including Poland, the UK and/or Ireland.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and HR reporting tools.
• Advanced level of English.

What we offer:

• An exciting working environment and challenging tasks
• Extensive insight into the European fund industry
• Friendly, international and goal-oriented working environment
• High degree of independent work
• Bonus
• Attractive home office arrangements and working time flexibility