Assistant Director (Policy, Strategy & Employee Relations)

At ARU, we celebrate individuality, champion new ideas and work together to make a meaningful impact. We are seeking an exceptional senior HR leader to steer employment policy, strategic employee relations and workforce governance across a diverse, ambitious university community.

Reporting to the Chief People Officer, you will be a key member of the HR leadership team, working with the University Executive, Board of Governors, senior leaders, trade unions and external partners. Based in Chelmsford, Cambridge or Peterborough, with travel across our campuses, this is a full-time role with significant institutional influence.

You will lead the development of modern, legally robust and inclusive employment frameworks that enable ARU's strategic ambitions across higher education, further education and subsidiary organisations.

What you'll be doing:

Employment policy and governance: Shape, implement and continuously improve employment policies, contracts, terms and conditions, promotion arrangements and workforce frameworks.

Strategic employee relations: Build constructive relationships with recognised trade unions, oversee collective agreements and consultation processes, and provide authoritative advice on complex and high-risk matters.

Change and transformation: Partner with senior colleagues to deliver major organisational change, translating employment law, workforce intelligence and sector developments into practical solutions.

Executive advice: Produce high-quality papers and recommendations for senior committees and governing bodies, ensuring robust compliance with remuneration and wider governance requirements.

Specialist oversight: Oversee pay and pensions policy and governance, job evaluation, grading arrangements, and the effective use of external legal expertise.

Capability and insight: Coach leaders and HR colleagues, and use data, benchmarking and legal intelligence to identify risks, opportunities and priorities.

What you'll bring:

You will bring substantial experience of leading employment policy and employee relations strategy in a complex organisation. You will be a trusted employment-law expert, confident advising executive leaders, navigating collective bargaining, resolving sensitive issues and influencing stakeholders with credibility and judgement.

You will also offer:

- Strong knowledge of employment law, employee relations, contracts, collective agreements and workforce governance.
- Experience of organisational change, job evaluation, contractual frameworks and board-level reporting.
- Excellent negotiation, consultation, analytical and communication skills.
- A strategic, commercially aware and solutions-focused approach, combined with integrity, resilience and discretion.
- A higher degree or relevant professional qualification with significant demonstrable experience; HR, employment law or related postgraduate study is advantageous.

Experience in higher education, or similarly regulated public sector and knowledge-intensive settings would be welcomed.

Benefits include generous holiday entitlement, occupational pension schemes, training and development opportunities, travel to work scheme and a competitive relocation package. ARU has an agile working culture and is committed to being inclusive and open to discuss flexible working.

Interviews are expected to take place on 2 December at the Cambridge campus. An online stakeholder discussion will be arranged separately.

Informal enquiries can be made to Richard Mills, Recruitment Partner, at [email protected], or Iole De Leo, Senior Recruitment Advisor, at [email protected].