Temporary People Business Partner

Who we are
We are an award-winning independent creative solutions company that aspires to be the most culturally-influential company in the world. We help ambitious brands harness the power of culture to solve their biggest challenges. As a unique mix of experts in culture, technology, and storytelling, we are united by a passion to grow brands in ways that advertising alone can never do.

We are an entrepreneurial business – not a traditional “ad agency.” That means we value resourcefulness and tenacity just as much as we value creativity and intelligence. We’re unapologetically ambitious!

We are looking for a Temporary People Business Partner to join Translation!

About the role
You will step into a senior, embedded PBP seat as the day-to-day people advisor to our agency leadership team while our PBP is on leave. This is not a placeholder role: you will be in the room for leadership decisions, bring a clear point of view on talent, performance and organizational questions, and handle difficult conversations with confidence. You will also own a live performance review cycle from calibration through delivery.

You will start in early January with three weeks of full-time onboarding alongside the current PBP, then take full ownership before the leave begins in February. You will keep a weekly update log so the transition back is seamless.

What you'll do
Senior leader partnership

Serve as the day-to-day people advisor to the agency leadership team and their departments
Contribute to the Senior Leadership Team agenda, which meets twice a week, in partnership with our VP of Agency Operations
Drive progress on the agency leadership OKRs (our “big rocks”) as part of an agency-wide push, owning the people priorities and partnering closely with Finance and Operations where people, headcount and financial goals are tightly linked

Employee relations

Proactively manage and resolve employee relations issues, from coaching conversations through performance plans and exits
Guide managers through hard conversations and deliver difficult messages directly when needed
Ensure compliance with company policies, and escalate to leadership and counsel appropriately

Talent and planning

Stay close to the business to spot talent and skills gaps early, and plan full-time, temp and freelance needs hand in hand with Operations and Finance
Advise on org design, workforce planning and headcount, and surface internal mobility and succession opportunities in critical roles
Partner with Talent Acquisition, and external search partners for priority roles, to keep a steady pipeline and fill roles fast with the right talent
Keep leaders informed on pipeline and hiring progress, so teams know when help is on the way
Lead onboarding for incoming agency leadership hires, setting them up to build relationships and get up to speed quickly

Core people programs

Help lead the Q1 performance review cycle across the agency, advising leaders on ratings, talent decisions and how to deliver feedback
Facilitate calibration sessions with leaders, partnering with our VP of People Operations to challenge ratings and hold the bar
Support compensation decisions tied to the review cycle, ensuring internal equity and clear rationale
Support planning for the annual engagement survey, including question review and rollout timing

Continuity

Keep a weekly update log covering decisions, open issues and next steps
Partner closely with People Operations on processing people changes and with our UnitedMasters PBP on cross-company matters
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
Strong coaching/ consulting capabilities.
Demonstrated business acumen, organization savvy, judgment and decision making
Collaborative style; positive can-do attitude. A team player with a strong drive to create a
positive work environment.
Excellent stakeholder management skills including ability to engage, influence and keep
informed.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills. Ability to analyze data, understand trends
and develop recommendations for action based on the analysis.
Excellent communication skills – a strong verbal communicator and writer; ability to
frame a message.
Demonstrated change management capability.

Required

5+ years as an HR or People Business Partner supporting senior leaders
Experience working across multiple business functions with first line and senior
leadership
Proven ability to handle employee relations matters across the spectrum, including performance plans and exits
Confidence leading hard conversations with managers, employees and executives
Ability to ramp quickly, work from existing plans, and make sound calls with limited history
Strong judgment, discretion and written communication

Preferred

Advertising agency experience, strongly preferred, ideally partnering with agency leadership
Experience supporting creative talent and creative leadership
Prior interim, leave coverage or consulting engagements
Familiarity with compensation planning, career ladders and talent differentiation tools such as a 9-box
Experience supporting executive onboarding or leadership transitions
Experience executing strategic initiatives and operational plans