Senior HR Advisor

Overview

Strategic HR Advisor driving people solutions for Thames Water contract operations.

Key Responsibilities

• hr reporting
• people analytics
• employee relations
• change management
• workforce planning
• talent acquisition

Tasks

-Support or lead HR workstreams during organisational change projects, including TUPE transfers, restructures, and redundancy processes. -Work closely with wider support functions (Payroll, L&D, Recruitment, Occupational Health, Legal) to ensure cohesive HR delivery. -Promote internal progression and coordinate development pathways for operational and supervisory staff. -Ensure consistent and legally compliant application of HR policies across all contract locations. -Ensure compliance with equality legislation and support managers in ensuring a respectful and inclusive workplace. -Design and deliver engagement initiatives aligned with the operational reality of the Thames Water contract. -Represent HR at contract governance meetings, audits, and reviews with Thames Water stakeholders where required. -Conduct pulse surveys, focus groups, and exit interviews to identify areas for improvement and action planning. -Ensure that any ideas that may enhance the productivity or systems of the company are brought to the attention of Senior Management, or your colleagues -Promote inclusive hiring, development, and progression practices across field and office-based staff. -Lead complex and high-risk employee relations cases, including investigations, disciplinary actions, grievances, capability, and absence management. -Adhere to all company policies -Act as the first point of contact for operational teams on HR policy interpretation, offering pragmatic and commercially sensitive advice. -Be aware of all Lanes Group policies and your responsibilities towards them -Identify training needs and partner with L&D teams to build capability in leadership, compliance, and technical excellence. -Act as a culture champion, ensuring contract-wide values and behaviours are upheld and integrated into HR processes. -Partner with recruitment teams to attract and retain skilled talent, supporting hard-to-fill roles and local employment priorities. -Coach managers on team development, difficult conversations, and day-to-day people management. -Prepare regular and ad-hoc HR reports for internal stakeholders and client reviews as required. -Champion change management best practices and cultural alignment during contract mobilisation or evolution. -Leverage people data, dashboards, and workforce metrics to drive evidence-based decisions. -Ensure all change initiatives are supported by clear communication, documentation, and support frameworks. -Collaborate with central HR to drive wider DEI goals across the business and contract. -Partner with employee representatives or unions (if applicable) to maintain productive working relationships. -Partner with operational managers and senior leaders to design and execute people strategies aligned with the contract’s service delivery goals. -Monitor trends in absenteeism, attrition, performance, and engagement; make proactive recommendations to leaders. -Drive the performance review and appraisal processes across the contract, ensuring alignment with KPIs and service targets. -Serve as a trusted advisor to contract leadership, contributing to strategic planning, workforce optimisation, and risk mitigation. -Collaborate with managers on workforce planning, forecasting, and succession planning to ensure critical roles are covered.

Requirements

• microsoft 365
• cipd
• hr experience
• hr projects
• influencing
• communication

What You Bring

-Understand the contractual, commercial, and regulatory context to ensure HR interventions drive operational success. -Preferably have strong influencing skills and a passion for embedding our core values -Have excellent knowledge of both Microsoft 365 -Have a minimum of 2 years HR Advisor experience -Have solid communication skills (both written and verbal) -Be able to multi-task, prioritise, work under pressure and on own initiative -Have experience in delivering on HR Projects and working to tight deadlines -Have great interpersonal skills to create relationships within the People team, with all People Managers across the contract and the wider Lanes Group network -Ideally be experienced working in a fast paced environment -Have the ability to deal with people at different levels -Be CIPD accredited (not essential but advantageous) -Be able to explore, and effectively mitigate risks with the confidence to identify when escalation to the Lead HRBP & Group HR Director may be required

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About Lanes Group

-It grew through strategic acquisitions and expansion into new service areas. -It secured major contracts with Thames Water and Southern Water, handling citywide sewer maintenance. -Its work spans large‑scale infrastructure including railway drainage on Crossrail and UV trenchless sewer relining on UK motorways. -Today, it operates a national network of depots, utility hubs and specialist divisions like Lanes‑i, Sapphire and AQS.

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