The role
of an Employee Relations (ER) Specialist is challenging, varied and fascinating area of HR working within our Employee Services team.
The Employee Relations Specialist is responsible for providing expert guidance and support on complex employee relations matters to ensure fair, consistent, and legally compliant outcomes. They will support functional managers across our UK sites by providing manager advice and guidance on complex ER cases. This role acts as a trusted advisor to managers and HR colleagues, delivering solutions that balance business objectives with employee well-being.
The ER Specialist will manage cases end-to-end, including investigations, disciplinary processes, grievances, and performance management issues, while promoting a positive workplace culture and minimising risk to the organisation. Additionally, the role contributes to continuous improvement by identifying trends, recommending policy updates, and supporting training initiatives to build ER capability across the business.
Whilst skill and experience would be advantageous, the No1 requirement is to have high agency (can-do mindset) and bring a positive energy to the work and team. You will want to make a real difference by inspiring and empowering managers to make positive improvements in culture and behaviour of their teams.
It would be expected you would be on-site at least 3 days per week and occasional travel to other UK sites may be required.
Key Accountabilities
1. The delivery of timely ER advice and guidance to empower functional managers to proactively manage their ER cases, within an acceptable level of business risk
2. Coach, support and upskill functional managers in order to develop ER capability within the company
3. Work collaboratively with People Partners and Advisors and in-house Legal team to resolve complex ER cases.
4. Identify trends in cases in order to design, deliver and implement upskilling sessions for functional managers.
5. Continually reviewing of our People Instructions, Toolkits and Knowledge Guides and put forward amendments/suggestions to ensure we remain up to date with legislative changes and good practice
6. Maintain accurate and up to date records of all actions and documentation relating to cases being managed through to conclusion.
7. Ensuring the casework team mailbox is regularly reviewed and enquiries responded to in a timely manner, usually within 24hrs.
Key Capabilities/Knowledge
8. Ability to draw together and analyse different points of view
9. Problem solving and conflict management coupled with the confidence to coherently and succinctly advise
Good negotiating, persuading and influencing skills
10. Ability to quickly build positive relations with managers and Global Employee Voice Reps and, where appropriate, Trade Unions
11. Ability to assess employee relations risks and take appropriate steps, following our HR delegations process, to achieve resolution of cases within the legal framework
12. Excellent coaching and advisory skills balanced with influencing and questioning techniques
13. Verbal and written communication skills are essential coupled with a high level of attention to detail
14. Ability to prioritise and work well under pressure
15. Proven ability to contribute and work collaboratively as part of a team
16. A drive to find ways to continuously improve and bring ideas to fruition
Experience & Qualifications
17. Minimum of CIPD Level 5 qualified or equivalent experience
18. Significant experience of managing high volumes of complex ER cases at pace
19. Demonstrable experience of upskilling functional managers to improve knowledge, competence and confidence and mentoring of junior team members
20. Experience of working in complex organisations or with complex technologies.
Why Join QinetiQ?
As we continue to grow into new markets around the world, there’s never been a more exciting time to join QinetiQ. The formula for success is our appetite for innovation and having the courage to take on a wide variety of complex challenges.
As a QinetiQ employee, you’ll experience a unique working environment where teams from different backgrounds, disciplines and experiences enjoy collaborating widely and openly as we undertake this exciting and rewarding journey. Through effective teamwork, and pulling together, you’ll get to experience what happens when we all share different perspectives, blend disciplines, and link technologies; constantly discovering new ways of solving complex problems in a diverse and inclusive environment where you can be authentic, feel valued and realise your full potential. Visit our website to read more about our diverse and inclusive workplace culture.
Our Benefits:
21. Matched contribution pension scheme, with life assurance
22. Competitive holiday allowance, with the option to purchase additional days
23. Options to join Health Cash Plan, Private Medical Insurance and Dental Insurance
24. Employee discount portal: Personal Accident Insurance, Travel Insurance, Restaurants, Cinema Tickets and much more
25. We are proud to support the Armed Forces community by honouring the Armed Forces Covenant and maintaining our Gold Award standard in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme
26. Volunteering Opportunities - helping charities and local community
Our Recruitment Process:
We want to make sure that our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible and we aspire to bring out the best in our candidates by creating an environment where everyone feels valued, heard and supported. If you have a disability or health condition that may affect your performance in certain assessment types, please speak to your Recruiter about potential reasonable adjustments.
Many roles in QinetiQ are subject to national security vetting being completed, applicants who already hold the appropriate level of vetting may be able to transfer it upon appointment. A number of roles are also subject to additional restrictions, which means factors such as nationality or previous nationalities may affect the roles that you can be employed in.
For further information on National Security Vetting, please see the link below.
UKSV National Security Vetting Solution: guidance for applicants - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)