GLOBAL PEOPLE OPERATIONS, SYSTEMS & DATA DIRECTOR Full Time

At OakNorth, we’re on a mission to empower ambitious businesses and the communities they serve. Since 2015, we’ve lent over $21 billion across the UK and US, helped create more than 58,000 new homes and 36,000 new jobs, and supported hundreds of thousands of personal savers — all while driving economic growth in the markets we serve.

We are looking for a technically strong , operationally excellent global People Operations, Systems & Data Lead to own and evolve the infrastructure that powers our global People function. Based in India, you will be the engine behind how People Operations runs at OakNorth, driving consistency, efficiency, and scalability across all people processes. .

This is not a traditional HR role. You will be equal parts systems architect, data analyst, AI champion, and People Ops operator — building scalable processes, owning the end-to-end HRIS and People tech stack, deploying AI to automate and augment how we work, and generating the data and insights that inform strategic decisions at the highest level of the business.

OakNorth is building a People function that is genuinely AI-native. That means we expect this person to be actively curious about, and hands-on in applying, AI tools across everything from talent intelligence and predictive attrition modelling to AI-assisted policy drafting and automated employee query resolution. If you still think AI in HR means a chatbot on a careers page, this role is not for you.

What You’ll Own

AI-Powered People Innovation

• Lead OakNorth’s AI strategy within the People function, identifying, piloting, and scaling AI tools that meaningfully improve how we attract, develop, and retain talent.
• Deploy and manage AI-powered tooling across the People lifecycle: intelligent CV screening and talent matching, AI-assisted interview scoring, predictive attrition and flight risk modelling, sentiment analysis from engagement surveys, and AI-generated workforce planning scenarios and performance review planning.
• Build and maintain AI-enhanced employee-facing experiences — including LLM-powered HR helpdesks and self-service tools that resolve common employee queries instantly, reducing People Ops ticket volume.
• Partner with the CPO and senior leadership to develop a responsible AI in HR framework — covering bias mitigation, model explainability, data ethics, and employee transparency obligations.
• Act as the internal evangelist for AI adoption across the People function, upskilling the broader People team on AI tools and workflows and embedding AI into day-to-day ways of working.
• Stay at the forefront of emerging AI applications in HR tech — evaluating new tools and bringing forward-thinking recommendations to leadership.
• Work with Legal and Compliance to ensure AI usage in People processes meets applicable regulatory and ethical standards across India, the UK, and the US.

People Systems & Technology

• Own, administer, and continuously optimise the full People technology stack — including HRIS, ATS, payroll integrations, performance management platforms, and employee engagement tools.
• Lead evaluation, selection, and implementation of new People systems and tooling across all three geographies (India, UK, US), ensuring seamless integration and data consistency.
• Serve as the primary system administrator and internal subject matter expert for all People platforms; manage vendor relationships, renewals, and escalations.
• Build and maintain automated workflows to reduce manual processes across onboarding, offboarding, contract generation, compliance tracking, and benefits administration.
• Define and govern data architecture standards across People systems — including master data management, system hierarchies, and role-based access controls.
• Partner with IT and Security to ensure People systems meet data privacy and information security requirements across all applicable jurisdictions.

Data Ownership & Architecture

• Serve as the global owner of all People data — accountable for the data integrity, consistency, and governance of all people-related data assets across India, UK, and US.
• Define and maintain the People data architecture: establishing how data flows between HRIS, ATS, payroll, performance, and data systems, ensuring clean integration points and minimal duplication.
• Build and enforce a master data management (MDM) framework for People data — covering employee records, organisational charts , cost centre structures, job architecture, and compensation data.
• Own data quality standards and audit processes across all People platforms; proactively identify and resolve data integrity issues before they surface in reporting or downstream systems.
• Define role-based access control (RBAC) policies for People data, ensuring appropriate data access across functions while maintaining compliance with GDPR (UK/EU), India DPDPA, and applicable US data privacy laws.
• Evaluate and implement People data infrastructure improvements — including data lake/warehouse integrations, API connections, and real-time data pipelines where appropriate.
• Champion responsible data practices across the People function, embedding privacy-by-design principles into all new system implementations and process changes.

People & Insights

• Design and own OakNorth’s People Data framework — from data collection and integrity to reporting cadence and executive dashboards.
• Build and maintain real-time dashboards and reports covering core people metrics including headcount, attrition, hiring velocity, time-to-hire, diversity metrics, compensation benchmarking, and workforce planning.
• Translate raw People data into clear, commercially relevant insights for the CPO, CEO, People Partners and functional leaders — enabling evidence-based decisions on hiring, retention, organisational design, and investment.
• Conduct deep-dive analyses on key workforce trends — attrition drivers, employee lifecycle patterns, engagement correlations, and performance distributions.
• Champion data quality and governance across all People systems; establish and enforce data standards, audit processes, and reporting protocols.
• Stay ahead of People Data trends and tooling (e.g. Visier, Tableau, Power BI, or equivalent), bringing new capabilities into OakNorth’s data practice over time.

Global People Operations

• Own global payroll operations across India, the UK, and the US, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with all statutory requirements; manage payroll vendors and partner closely with Finance on reconciliations and reporting.
• Oversee benefits administration and strategy across all geographies, including vendor management, renewals, benchmarking, and continuous improvement of the employee value proposition.
• Oversee day-to-day People Operations across India, UK, and US — ensuring consistent, high-quality employee experiences at every touchpoint of the employee lifecycle.
• Run core compensation operations, including salary review cycles, bonus processes, and pay data integrity, ensuring alignment with reward strategy.
• Establish and manage employee services and case management frameworks, including SLAs, escalation pathways, and continuous improvement of service quality (augmented by AI where appropriate).Own and continuously improve core People Ops processes including: onboarding, offboarding, contract and offer management, job changes, probation, leave management, and employee records.
• Ensure global compliance across employment law obligations, statutory reporting, right-to-work requirements, and People-related regulatory frameworks in each geography.
• Develop, maintain, and communicate People policies that are globally consistent where appropriate and locally compliant where required.
• Build and run a global People Ops team, providing day-to-day oversight, task prioritisation, and quality assurance.
• Act as the primary escalation point for complex operational People matters across all three markets.

Process Excellence & Scalability

• Audit existing People processes and identify opportunities for automation, simplification, and improved employee experience.
• Build out Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and playbooks for all core People Ops activities to enable consistency and scale.
• Lead cross-functional projects that sit at the intersection of People, Finance, IT, and Legal — including system implementations, policy rollouts, and M&A people integration work.
• Drive a continuous improvement mindset across the People function, using data and feedback to iterate on processes and tools regularly.

Experience

What We’re Looking For

• 7–10+ years of progressive experience in People Operations, HR Systems, or People Data — ideally within a high-growth tech, fintech, or financial services environment.
• Demonstrated experience owning and administering a People tech stack (e.g. HiBob, Personio, Humaans, Rippling, Ashby, Greenhouse, Lever, or equivalent platforms).
• Proven track record of building and delivering People Data capabilities — including dashboards, reporting frameworks, and executive-level insights.
• Experience managing People Operations across multiple geographies, with at least two of India, UK, and US.
• Prior experience leading a small People Ops team.

Technical Skills

• Strong proficiency in HRIS administration and People systems configuration.
• Advanced data skills — comfortable with Excel/Google Sheets at minimum; experience with SQL, Power BI, Tableau, Visier, or similar BI tools strongly preferred.
• Hands-on experience using AI tools in a People/HR context — whether predictive data platforms, AI-powered ATS/sourcing tools, LLM-based HR helpdesks, or generative AI for policy and communications drafting.
• Familiarity with prompt engineering and working with LLM-based tools (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or equivalent) to automate People workflows and generate actionable outputs.
• Ability to build automated workflows and integrations between People systems (Zapier, Make, native APIs, or working with engineering teams).
• Working knowledge of data privacy and AI ethics regulations applicable to People data: GDPR (UK/EU), India DPDPA, applicable US state laws, and emerging AI-specific regulatory frameworks (EU AI Act).

Mindset & Behaviours

• AI-native — you don’t wait for AI to be handed to you; you experiment, evaluate, and deploy it proactively to make your team faster and smarter.
• Systems thinker — you see processes end-to-end and design for scale, not just today’s problem.
• Data-first — you back every recommendation with evidence and can tell a clear story through data.
• Commercially aware — you understand how People decisions connect to business outcomes and speak the language of the business.
• Operational excellence — you set a high bar for quality, consistency, and follow-through.
• Collaborative — you build strong relationships with stakeholders across geographies, functions, and seniority levels.
• Pragmatic — you balance the ideal with the practical in a fast-moving, resource-conscious environment.