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Military & Elite Athlete 2026 Talent Placement – People Operations Lead
September 2026 Intake
Location: UK wide. Hybrid with occasional office travel for collaboration and team meetings. For example: Leicester, Stockport, London, Windsor, Reading
Length of Placement: 12-month Fixed Term Contract with significant potential to roll off into a Permanent role. A programme designed to help you thrive during career transition.
We’re delighted to open applications for our Military & Elite Athlete Talent Placement Programme – September 2026 Intake. This programme is designed to support you as you transition into a new career. Whether you’re leaving the Armed Forces or finishing an elite sporting career, we welcome the experience, discipline and resilience you bring. You’ll gain hands on experience in a FTSE100 organisation, receive tailored support, and join a community that values who you are and what you can offer. We have five placement roles available, and People Operations Lead role is one of them
What you’ll do:
As a People Operations Lead, you’ll lead and deliver critical People Operations transformation activity whilst providing high-quality operational leadership across core HR services, ensuring a consistent, efficient and colleague-centric experience. It’s an exciting role and no two days will be the same.
This role combines:
1. Transformation delivery: aligned to the Future Operating Model and technology roadmap
2. Operational leadership: across Employee Relations (ER) processes and case management
3. Capability build: including establishing a dedicated Investigations Team
The role directly supports Centrica’s shift to:
4. A tech-enabled, data-driven People Operations function
5. A consistent, scalable ER and case management model
6. A proactive approach to colleague relations and experience
During your placement, you will:
Take on a high-impact, hands-on role and operate across three interconnected domains. These are:
1. Operating Model Transformation:
· Support design and implementation of the Future People Operations model
· Translate strategic design into practical, workable processes and structures
· Drive standardisation, governance, and clear ownership across services
2. Technology & Process Transformation:
· Lead delivery of People Operations technology changes
· Simplify and digitise colleague and manager journeys
· Embed automation, workflow consistency, and data insight
3. Operational Delivery & ER Capability Build:
· Provide leadership across day-to-day People Operations activities
· Establish and operationalise a central Investigations Team
· Strengthen ER case handling, governance, and consistency
You’ll also live our values: Courage, Care, Delivery, Agility and Collaboration
What we’re looking for:
We’re looking for potential, not perfection. You don’t need to meet every requirement to apply:
We’d love to see:
7. Experience of HR / People Operations / ER environments
8. Operational delivery in complex organisations
9. Strong process design and improvement capability
10. Ability to translate strategy into practical delivery and lead change in ambiguous environments
11. Strong stakeholder engagement and communication skills
12. High levels of ownership, accountability and resilience
13. Experience operating in structured, high-accountability environments
14. Leading teams through change or transformation
15. Problem solving and decision-making capability
16. Ability to work across multiple priorities and stakeholders
17. An interest in People transformation and Technology & operational improvement
This role offers:
18. Exposure to enterprise-level transformation
19. Experience in building and scaling operational capabilities
20. Opportunity to lead real organisational change
21. Development of strategic, operational, and people leadership capability
On placement you’ll also have a dedicated business mentor, opportunities to meet senior leaders, and plenty of support to settle into your role.
Who the programme is for. This placement is open to:
· Military Service Leavers: leaving the Forces or within the 2-year CTP window at application
· Elite Athletes: international competition experience and/or professional UK sports experience within the last three years
We recognise excellence: We want you to feel included, supported and able to succeed. On placement you’ll receive:
22. Real project & transformation experience in a FTSE100 organisation
23. £50,000 salary for the 12month placement
24. A dedicated mentor to help you build commercial skills
25. Flexible working and travel to office locations only when collaboration is needed
26. Access to our Employee Networks
27. A Buddy from our Ex-Military or Athlete communities
28. For Service Leavers: the chance to begin placement during your final four resettlement weeks
How to apply: Please upload one document (Word or PDF) that includes:
1. Personal Statement (max 750 words). Tell us:
· Which placement role you’re applying for
· How your skills, experience, capabilities and personal qualities align to the role
2. CV (max 2 pages). Highlight your:
· Transferable skills related to the role & your key achievements
· Qualifications
· Military or athletic experience
Key dates:
· Application deadline: midnight Friday 26th June
· Screening Interviews - online: Will take place in June – mid July
· Business Area Interviews – face to face: July and August at one of our office locations
· Placement Start Date: You must be able to start on Wednesday 30th September
If you need any reasonable adjustments during the process, please let us know — we’re happy to support you.
Not available in September 2026? We’ll also be offering placements in March 2027, June 2027 and September 2027. The application process for March will likely open in November. If this placement isn’t the right fit, you can explore more opportunities at www.lifeatcentrica.com
Why should you apply?
We’re not a perfect place – but we’re a people place. Our priority is supporting all of the different realities our people face. Life is about so much more than work. We get it. That’s why we’ve designed our total rewards to give you the flexibility to choose what you need, when you need it, making sure that you and your family are supported not only financially, but physically and emotionally too. Visit the link below to discover why we’re a great place to work and what being part of more means for you.
If you're full of energy, fired up about sustainability, and ready to craft not only a better tomorrow, but a better you, then come and find your purpose in a team where your voice matters, your growth is non-negotiable, and your ambitions are our priority.
Help us, help you. We would love for you to share any information about yourself throughout our recruitment process so that we can better understand you and help shape your journey.