Vice President HR

Our client is a globally distributed financial technology organization operating at the intersection of trading, data, and advanced engineering. With a strong international footprint, the business is built on a technology-first foundation where speed, scalability, and precision drive outcomes.

A defining feature of the organization is how deeply artificial intelligence is embedded into everyday operations. It is not treated as a future initiative but is integrated across core workflows, from talent acquisition and performance management to decision-making and execution. Internal systems enable real-time insights, automate high-volume processes, and bring consistency at scale, reducing reliance on manual intervention.

Teams operate in a high-performance environment driven by continuous feedback, experimentation, and data-led decision-making. Functions such as HR are expected to move beyond traditional models and deliver faster, more predictive, and scalable solutions aligned with the pace of the business.

The culture suits individuals who are comfortable in fast-evolving, technology-led environments and can adapt to systems and processes that are continuously being redefined.

The Role

Our client has restructured HR around a clear principle: every function should have HR that is embedded in the business, accountable for outcomes, and empowered to make people decisions without constant escalation. 5 Senior HR Leads sit within the business, each operating as a mini-CHRO for their function and supported by a Talent Partner who drives execution. The VP, Human Resources leads this group.

This is not a coordination or policy-driven role. It is accountable for whether HR for Business delivers in practice across hiring quality, performance outcomes, retention, and the overall career progression of a 1,000+ employee base across functions.

The VP, Human Resources operates alongside two key pillars. The Centre of Excellence defines frameworks, compensation structures, performance systems, and operating standards. The Global HR & Admin Operations Hub ensures consistency, compliance, and strong local execution across offices. This role sits at the intersection, leveraging what the CoE builds, feeding back business needs, and ensuring the embedded HR team translates strategy into execution at the function level.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Lead the HR for Business team, managing, coaching, and developing Senior HR Leads while holding accountability for the performance of their Talent Partners. Set the standard for what strong, embedded HR looks like and build a pipeline for future HR leadership.
• Set the people agenda across business functions. Partner with Heads of Department and HR Leads to translate growth plans into clear workforce strategies covering headcount, structure, capability, and key talent moves. Work closely with central teams on manpower planning and budgeting.
• Own organisation design as a continuous process. Work with business leaders to ensure teams are structured for execution with the right spans, layers, and role clarity, regularly assessing whether structure is enabling or constraining performance.
• Drive hiring quality across functions. Ensure consistency, speed, and strong decision-making standards across all hiring, with HR Leads maintaining a high bar on talent and building a compelling employer proposition at the function level.
• Ensure performance management works in practice. Oversee the full performance cycle including calibrations, differentiation, performance improvement plans, promotions, and succession planning. Act early on signals related to performance, engagement, and high-potential talent.
• Maintain internal equity and career visibility. Ensure compensation decisions are consistent and defensible across functions, while creating clear and actionable career pathways through structured development and progression planning.
• Oversee employee relations at scale. Ensure consistency and quality in handling investigations, grievances, disciplinary actions, and exits, with HR Leads managing execution and this role setting standards and escalation thresholds.
• Strengthen employer brand and retention from within. Partner with business leaders to shape function-level narratives that attract the right talent, and use data-driven insights to proactively manage engagement and retention.

Qualifications

• 18+ years of HR experience, with at least 5 years leading HR business partnering at scale across complex environments (500+ employees, multiple functions and/or geographies).
• Proven track record on the execution side of HR, running calibrations, managing PIPs, making exit decisions, and building team capability to handle the same without constant escalation.
• Experience leading HR professionals, with the ability to raise standards, build capability, and address underperformance within the HR team itself.
• Strong business acumen, with the ability to engage credibly with senior leaders, understand commercial drivers, and translate them into clear, actionable people strategies.
• Comfortable working in technology-led environments, with a practical understanding of AI in workflows, able to leverage outputs, apply judgment, and guide teams in doing the same.
• Background in fintech, technology, or other high-growth environments preferred. Experience in organisations undergoing transformation, with a clear role in shaping outcomes.

Work Structure:

• This is a full-time, office-based role.
• The role will require occasional travel across locations, depending on business needs.

This role may not be the right fit if:

• You rely on central teams to define direction, rather than independently understanding business needs and acting on them.
• You see success as managing upwards, rather than delivering tangible outcomes within the business.
• Your experience has been limited to building HR processes, without owning the difficult people decisions behind them.
• You are more comfortable in stable, process-driven environments than in settings that are evolving and still being built.