People & Culture Business Partner (Northern Ireland)

KFC Corporation, Pizza Hut, LLC; Belfast; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - GBP 65,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading fast-food chain is seeking a People & Culture Business Partner in Northern Ireland. This role supports the operations team and drives results through talent management and culture. The successful candidate will lead initiatives to enhance employee engagement and coach managers across around 50 restaurants. The ideal individual values people and thrives in dynamic environments while supporting the overall People & Culture strategy, making KFC an exceptional place to work.

Benefits

Remote/Hybrid working

Up to 11% pension contributions

Fri-Yay finishes at 1pm

5 Live Well Days

Bonus scheme

Private healthcare

Enhanced parental leave

25% off food

Qualifications

• Self-starter with ability to multi-task and manage workload.
• Strong relationship management, influencing and negotiation skills.
• Excellent communication skills across various stakeholder groups.
• Experience in a fast-paced changing environment.

Responsibilities

• Support operations team aligning strategies with company vision.
• Manage People Capability Coaches and advise on employee lifecycle.
• Drive employee engagement and recognition strategies.
• Act as a change agent for evolving people strategy.

Skills

Relationship management

Coaching skills

Communication skills

Organizational design

Talent management

Job description

We sell the world’s best chicken. Seriously. And we’ve done it since 1939, when the idea of crispy, original recipe chicken took Kentucky by storm. Now, we’re proud to serve 1000+ communities across the UK and Ireland, bringing the grit, pride and iconic reputation that we started with, all those years ago.

Across the Restaurant Support Centre (RSC), we come to work to be ourselves, and to make something of ourselves. We want to see our potential go that little bit further, as part of one of the world’s most iconic brands.

What’s the gig? Well, you support our restaurants — and we’ll support you every step of the way. Simple. Our doors are open — and they can take you anywhere.

All we ask is that you be you. Because that makes us, us. Sound good? Great. Let’s find out about that job.

The TEAM

Our People and Culture team creates a place where people don’t just work - they thrive and feel genuinely proud to be part of something real. We’re here for all 36,000 members of Team KFC – shaping a bold, inclusive culture where everyone feels supported, included, and empowered to grow.

We lead with smart, heart, and courage and are people first, always. From finding and nurturing top talent to unlocking growth opportunities, we’re ambitious about our people’s potential. We ask questions, push boundaries, and challenge the usual way of doing things - if it means building a better experience for our teams, we’re all in.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are looking for a People & Culture Business Partner in Northern Ireland to join us at Team KFC to support our operations team in the field. So, if you put people at the heart of what you do and are motivated to drive results through talent management, organizational effectiveness and culture, we want to hear from you!

You will report directly into the People Operations Director and will have a direct team of two People Capability Coaches. Your region will include circa 50 restaurants and an average of 2,000 employees.

The People & Culture Business Partner plays a crucial role in the execution of our People & Culture Strategy. In this position, you’ll partner with our operations team on the ground to align organisational and functional strategies, goals and priorities with our vision and values. You’ll advise and coach managers and employees in all aspects of the employee life cycle. Not only will you have the chance to support as a broad P&C generalist, you will also drive key organisational development priorities in relation to Talent Development, Reward and Employee Engagement making KFC an even better place to work.

You are a people person in the truest sense of the meaning, so you understand that when supporting people, it is essential you treat people as people, not just a resource. You rebel against boring ‘HR’ norms, you are obsessive about the experience we provide.

Most of all, you have fun while you do it, because it’s more than just a job. This is a regional role and will be field based within your region, with requirements for occasional travel to our RSC in Woking.

WHAT YOU WILL SPEND YOUR TIME DOING:

Operate as a Strategic Partner to leaders & coaches including:

• Leading your region ensuring you maximise the effectiveness of the restaurant teams through organisational design, high impact coaching, L&D and Reward initiatives
• Leading the design and execution of talent, capability and engagement strategies within the field operations team
• Acting as a “thought partner” as you lead talent management with purpose – everything from injecting the best of the best talent into teams, nurturing existing talent as they grow personally & professionally, building a strong pipeline of leaders of the future and in establishing a strong culture of performance growth and management
• Lead the way on employee engagement and recognition strategy to nurture high performing teams and share best practice to the wider business
• Developing and providing support and guidance on a broad range of P&C programs, policies and practices (although we like to think we have very few HR rule books!)
• Provide guidance, counselling, and training on employee relations issues, to minimise both ER and PR risk
• Line managing our People Capability Coaches

Become an Employee Champion acting as a single point of contact for our teams through:

• Building strong relationships with leaders across your region and the wider Equity business advising on all elements of the employee lifecycle
• Bringing the outside in and listening to our people to design and embed new ways of working, policies and practices both within our wider RSC team and external industry trends that maximise team and individual productivity
• Coaching our people to continually deliver exceptional performance that they feel proud of and supporting talent mobility

Act as a Change Agent working to:

• Provide thought partnership and leadership on our evolution of our people strategy
• Work cross functionally to develop innovative solutions and design industry leading people practices
• Ensure we have exceptional foundations in place for all People & Culture related processes ensuring we are one step ahead of any external legislative compliance requirements

WHAT WE'D LOVE FROM YOU

ABOUT YOU

• Self-starter with ability to multi-task and manage own workload
• Strong relationship management, influencing and negotiation skills
• Excellent coach of people including managing upwards
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to work across a variety of stakeholder groups
• Comfortable dealing with ambiguity and working with a high degree of autonomy and initiative to deliver results
• Strong interpersonal /teamwork skills with high levels of empathy
• High energy and embrace recognition
• Collaborative nature: willing to work constructively with input from coaches and peers
• Intellectual curiosity and great judgement skills
• Proven ability to work in a fast-paced changing environment, with the ability to pivot in line with business priorities
• Identification of relevant data sources and a thirst for working with external and internal data for insight driven activity

EXPERIENCE

• Robust Business Partnering experience, ideally in a Generalist People Operations role
• Strong ER and immigration law understanding and experience

WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU:

We offer benefits that make your life that little bit easier, because we know the juggle is real.

From flexible, hybrid working to Fri-Yay early finishes and Live Well Days, we’ve created a package that supports the real you, in and out of work.

You’ll get:

• Remote/ Hybrid working (This role is field based and we are looking for someone that has flexibility to travel to all of our Restaurants across NI & ROI, with occasional travel to our RSC in Woking, England)
• Up to 11% company pension contributions
• Fri-Yay finishes at 1pm every Friday
• 5 Live Well Days a year, just for you
• Bonus scheme linked to company & personal performance
• Private healthcare, Digital GP access & mental health coaching
• Enhanced parental leave and flexible return options
• Study support, income protection, life cover & more
• And yes—25% off the chicken

THE ROAD TO BECOMING A REAL ONE...

• Apply (Go on... do it) – send us your CV and answer a couple of app questions.
• Intro call with our Talent Team
• Virtual call with Ireland Operations Manager and current HRBP in the team
• F2F interview & Task at our HQ, Home of The Real Ones in Woking

KFC FOR EVERYONE:

Whoever you are and wherever you’re from, KFC is a place where you can bring the real you to work.

Our promise is this: every person who applies to a role at KFC, regardless of age, background, ethnicity, gender, ability, religion or sexual orientation, will have an equal opportunity to work here. We don’t just welcome, we encourage applications from underrepresented groups from all industries.

If you’d like any additional support with your application, have a disability or condition that may affect your performance during the recruitment process, or have any other requirements — just let us know. We’ll be there to help you be the real you.

Ready?

We hope so, if you’re ready to be part of our community, now’s the time to apply.

Worried you aren’t ticking all the boxes? Don’t - we’d still love to hear from you.

Beware of fake job postings using Yum! and/or our brand logos -- KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Habit Burger & Grill -- on fraudulent sites. Yum! Brands only posts jobs on official careers pages and never asks for money during onboarding. Avoid unsolicited contacts via Telegram, WhatsApp or similar social apps.