Manager, HR Operations (m/f/d)

Your Tasks:

Team Management

• Lead, mentor, and develop a small HR operations team, ensuring high performance and engagement.
• Set clear objectives, track progress, and provide regular feedback.
• Constant focus and required reviews on team deliveries as well as individual deliveries
• Identify lack of and implement market best-practices in HR Ops deliverables via self and team

HRIS & Data Management

• Responsible for the organizational HRIS and is the first point of contact for the vendor
• Ensures regular connect with the HRIS vendor and brings in updates to the system as & when such updates are available, sometimes driving for change where required by the organization (where possible)
• Oversee the maintenance and accuracy of the HR Information System, ensuring data integrity and security.
• Manage employee records, process updates, and generate regular as well as ad-hoc reports.
• Use HR data and analytics to support decision-making and provide actionable insights to management.

Payroll & Benefits

• Direct Responsible for German payroll and related compliances, including topics around labour and related legislations
• Supervise payroll processing, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with local regulations for all hubs (apart from Germany, which is under their direct responsibility)
• Coordinate with finance for budget, headcount, other reporting responsibilities
• Coordinate with external vendors such as Payroll, Insurance, Taxation/ Social Security-related, Government entities (in location as well as other Hubs) as necessary in ensuring compliances

Compliance & Audits

• Ensure HR processes comply with German employment/ labour law.
• Ensure HR processes comply with international labor laws for the other Hubs relating to employment/ labour law.
• Audit existing policies, processes & guidelines and implement change where required
• Conduct regular internal HR audits to identify risks, gaps, and opportunities for improvement.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of relevant legislation and implement necessary changes throughout the organization, ensuring organization remains risk-free and compliant across all Hubs

HR Project Management

• Lead and coordinate HR projects (e.g., evaluation of new tools/ systems, system upgrades, migration, process improvements, policy rollouts).
• Collaborate with stakeholders to design, implement, and monitor HR initiatives.

Local HR Management (Germany or Portugal)

• Serve as the primary HR point of contact for German/Portugese employees, addressing queries and supporting local HR topics, following legal mandates and organizational policies, guidelines, etc
• Communicate HR policies and procedures, adapting global practices to fit German legal and cultural requirements - maintaining balance while retaining the required local legislative focus

Continuous Improvement

• Identify and implement process improvements, automation and market best practices to enhance HR operations efficiency
• Monitor HR metrics and KPIs, preparing regular reports for Management, Senior Leadership, etc.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s degree ideally in Human Resources Management, Business Administration, or related field.
• Experience: 5+ years in HR operations in a global environment, with at least 1–3 years in team supervision/ management
• Technical Skills: Thorough technical knowledge and experience with maintaining and managing HRIS (Personio/ Workday/ SAP/ Peoplesoft, etc), payroll systems and data analytics tools.
• Knowledge: Strong understanding of HR compliance, audits (e.g. TISAX, ISO, SOX), etc. at an international level and specifically on German labor law.
• Experience supporting HR operations, including Payroll, understanding of Labour Laws from a European context and related topics
• Demonstrated ability to manage HR projects and drive continuous improvement.
• Soft Skills: Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving abilities; strong organizational and time management skills.
• Language: Fluency in English and German or Portugese

Benefits

• Development budget for every employee
• Job-related language courses (English, German, Czech, Spanish, etc.)
• Hybrid working policy with the option to take a workcation (up to 60 days per year)
• Events: team buildings, happy hours, parties/get-togethers, and occasional company-covered breakfasts or lunches (in-office, across offices, online, and in person)
• Gifts: we celebrate life and work milestones at UC (work anniversaries, new baby arrivals, and similar occasions)
• Snacks, fruit, coffee, and drinks in the office