Ideal locations: London, Surrey, East Sussex
An exceptional opportunity has arisen for a strategic and people-centric People Director to join a high-growth, private equity-backed organisation operating within a purpose-led, service-driven sector.
This is a newly created, board-level role, reporting directly to the CEO, with full accountability for shaping and delivering the people strategy during a critical phase of growth .
The Opportunity
This is not a traditional HR leadership role. It is a transformational position, responsible for building a high-performing, values-led culture across a large, distributed workforce, while supporting the organisation through a clearly defined growth and investment journey.
The successful individual will play a central role in:
- Driving employee engagement and retention
- Scaling the organisation while maintaining a strong, people-first culture
- Building leadership capability and succession pipelines
- Aligning the people agenda to a private equity-backed value creation plan
Key Responsibilities
- Develop and deliver a People Strategy aligned to the business and investment objectives
- Act as a trusted partner to the CEO and leadership team, contributing at board level
- Lead initiatives to improve retention, engagement, and overall employee experience
- Build scalable recruitment and workforce planning strategies
- Embed a strong learning, development, and leadership culture
- Implement robust people analytics and reporting frameworks
- Drive a values-led, high-performance culture across all areas of the business
- Ensure effective governance across employee relations, compliance, and risk
The Candidate
We are seeking an individual who combines strategic thinking with operational credibility, and who thrives in fast-paced, evolving environments.
You will bring:
- Proven experience in a senior people leadership role, ideally within a scaling or multi-site organisation
- A strong track record of improving retention, engagement, and culture
- Experience operating in a private equity-backed or high-growth environment (highly desirable)
- The ability to influence at board and executive level, while remaining close to frontline teams
- A commercial mindset, with the ability to link people strategy to business performance
- A collaborative, engaging style with a genuine passion for people
Why Apply
- A rare opportunity to shape the people agenda within a high-growth, purpose-led organisation
- Direct partnership with an ambitious and experienced CEO
- A key role in delivering a long-term value creation
- The chance to build and embed a culture that truly differentiates the business
We are keen to speak to people with
- Proven experience operating at People Director / Head of People level within a large, complex, multi-site business (1,000+ employees)
- A track record of building or transforming a People function in a high-growth environment
- Strong experience driving culture, engagement and retention across frontline workforces
- Experience working in, or closely with, private equity-backed or fast-growth businesses (highly desirable)
- Strong executive presence, with the ability to influence at board and investor level
Apply Now
Your recruiter for this role is Helen Horton, Account Director at Love Recruitment. To express your interest in this exciting opportunity, please apply directly through the link provided. Helen and Love Recruitment specialise in roles across the fitness and leisure sectors.
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