People Partner – Operations (The North)
Location: Field-based (4 days/week on site) | UK Travel Required
Salary & Package: £70,000 - £75,000 + dependant on skills & experiences + car allowance + up to 30% bonus + healthcare + bens
Function: People Team
Driving License: Full UK Driving license required
Are you ready to shape the future of people strategy in one of the UK's most recognised hospitality brands?
We're looking for a dynamic and commercially minded People Partner to join our high-impact People Team at Premier Inn. This is a strategic, field-based role where you'll work closely with our Operations Directors and Managing Directors to deliver the People Plan across a division of up to 14,000 team members. The area that you will be looking after will be the North/North West of England up to the North of Scotland.
Why this role matters
At Premier Inn, our people are our greatest asset. As a People Partner, you'll be at the heart of driving performance through people—coaching senior leaders, influencing decision-making, and ensuring our teams are engaged, supported, and set up for success.
We're on a journey to become more effective at developing talent, improving workforce and labour planning, and embedding a culture where every team member feels heard and valued. You'll play a key role in bringing our people data to life, driving commercial thought leadership, and partnering closely with Operations Directors to shape the future of our workforce.
What you'll be doing
* Lead the delivery of the People Plan across Premier Inn, with a focus on labour planning, talent development, forecasting, and engagement.
* Partner with senior leaders to drive succession planning, D&I, and employee development strategies.
* Influence and coach Operations Directors and Regional Managers to embed a high-performance and inclusive culture.
* Deliver strategic HR initiatives and change programmes aligned to our business goals.
* Champion our Employee Value Proposition and ensure our teams have the tools and environment to thrive.
* Collaborate with Centres of Excellence and cross-functional teams to deliver impactful people solutions.
* Support absence management and compliance, including new policies such as day-one sick pay eligibility and the evolving employee rights agenda.
* Drive line manager capability through coaching and managing the core people cycle.
What we're looking for
* Proven experience as a People Partner in a customer-facing, service-led industry such as supermarkets, retail, hospitality, leisure, food & beverage, or travel.
* Strong background in talent management, workforce planning, employee relations, and performance coaching.
* Experience working in a change environment and driving transformation.
* Excellent stakeholder engagement and influencing skills across all levels.
* Commercially astute with strong analytical skills and the ability to translate data into actionable insights.
* Strategic thinker with a passion for developing people and driving business outcomes.
* Comfortable working in a fast-paced, field-based environment with regular UK travel including approximately 3 nights per week away from home.
What's in it for you?
* A seat at the table with senior leaders, influencing real change.
* The opportunity to shape the people agenda across a large, diverse workforce.
* A role that blends strategic thinking with hands-on delivery.
* A culture that values innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
This is more than a job—it's a chance to shape the future of one of the UK's most loved hospitality brands. You'll have the freedom to innovate, the support to succeed, and the opportunity to make a real difference.
We are proud to have been recognised as a Top Employer for 14 consecutive years, voted a top apprenticeship employer by the Department of Education and Rate My Apprenticeship. This year we placed #10 in the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index for our commitment to LGBTQIA+ inclusion at Whitbread and have been awarded as a Top 25 Exemplary Employer in the Investing in Ethnicity Parliamentary Matrix as the only hospitality company leading the way in terms of Inclusion.