People Advisor

JOB TITLE: People Advisor

DEPARTMENT: People Team

LOCATION: Stamford Bridge

REPORTING TO: Head of People Partnering

CONTRACT: Permanent, Full Time, 35 hours a week

Closing date: 3rd July

We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the position may be filled before the listed closing date. To avoid missing out, please submit your application at your earliest convenience.

ABOUT THE ROLE:

We are looking for a proactive and adaptable People Advisor to support the People Partnering team in a fast-paced, high-volume environment. This role plays a key part in delivering effective people practices, with a good emphasis on Employee Relations (ER), alongside developing manager capability and supporting core people processes.

Working closely with People Partners, you will act as a first point of contact for managers on day-to-day people matters, providing practical support and guidance while building your own experience and capability. You will primarily support commercial, revenue-generating functions, partnering with these teams to understand business priorities, support effective people management, and enable strong performance outcomes.

This is not a field-based role; however, you will be expected to spend regular time in the workplace, building relationships with managers and employees, understanding challenges, and identifying opportunities for improvement.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Employee Relations

• Act as a first point of contact for managers on a wide range of ER matters, providing timely and practical advice

Support the end-to-end management of formal ER processes, including:

• Sending invitations and arranging formal meetings
• Preparing documentation
• Taking accurate and detailed notes in formal meetings
• Ensuring appropriate follow-up and record keeping

Provide support across ER cases including:

• Investigations, disciplinary and grievance processes
• Probation reviews
• Flexible working requests
• Performance management and Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs)
• Support sickness absence management, including short-term and long-term cases
• Assist with AWOL (absence without leave) processes
• Assist in arranging and supporting welfare meetings
• Support with Occupational Health referrals, including coordination and follow-up
• Work with the Wellbeing Lead and Safeguarding team to support wellbeing cases

Support People Partners on complex and high level ER cases where relevant

• Log and maintain accurate records of ER casework, ensuring systems are up to date
• Identify trends in ER activity and escalate insights where appropriate
• Champion equity, diversity and inclusion by embedding inclusive behaviours and decision-making across teams.

Manager Capability & People Development

• Work alongside People Partners and the Learning and Development team to design and deliver relevant people management training to managers and employees
• Coach and support managers to build confidence in handling people matters
• Provide guidance on day-to-day people management practices
• Develop and share tools, templates, and resources to support effective people management
• Support People Partners with Quarterly Team Review (QTR) processes and ensure managers are provided with tools and guidance on how to deliver performance ratings and constructive feedback
• Actively support People Partners, People Ops and the Payroll team during pay review process

Support to People Partners

• Assist with role requisitions and recruitment processes where required
• Support People Partners in overseeing the resourcing process, ensuring that any new or replacement roles are appropriately benchmarked and authorised
• Provide insights and analysis on key people metrics (e.g. ER trends, absence, turnover)
• Focus on key business functions to strengthen and improve them by addressing challenges
• Support People Partners in delivering engagement survey outcomes and setting departmental objectives
• Deliver high-quality administrative support to enable effective delivery of partnering priorities
• Support People Partners and People Ops team in conducting exit interviews.
• Contribute to the development and delivery of People initiatives and projects that underpin Chelsea’s business priorities, values and culture.
• Represent the People team in cross-department groups, ensuring people considerations are integrated.
• Actively build knowledge of organisational, sector and people industry developments, keeping up to date with best practice.
• Reinforce consistent and fair application of policies across the business

MEASURES OF PERFORMANCE:

• Builds and maintains positive, credible relationships with managers, employees, and the People team, supporting effective partnership
• Manages ER cases in a timely, organised, and compliant manner, with accurate documentation and minimal risk to the business
• Delivers consistent, high-quality support across end-to-end ER processes, ensuring a professional experience for managers and employees
• Supports and upskills managers, leading to increased confidence and consistent application of people practices

PERSON SPECIFICATION:

Skills & Experience

• Experience in a People/HR environment at HR Advisor level
• Good understanding of Employee Relations processes and employment law
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail, particularly in managing case documentation
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously
• Good communication skills with the ability to build relationships and provide clear guidance
• Comfortable handling sensitive and confidential information
• CIPD qualified or working towards a CIPD qualification (desirable)
• Experience in fast pace commercial, retail and / or hospitality industries (desirable)

Personal Attributes

• Willingness to learn and develop within an ER-focused role
• Flexible and adaptable, with the ability to respond to changing business needs
• Resilient and able to work in a fast-paced, high-volume environment
• Proactive and solution-focused approach
• Strong team player with a collaborative mindset

OUR EXPECTATIONS:

• To embody the club’s BLUE behaviours (Brave, Lead, Unity, Edge) in the approach to work and interaction with others
• To adhere to the club’s policies and procedures, including Health & Safety, Financial Authorisation, Confidentiality and GDPR.
• To act as an ambassador for diversity, equality, and inclusion, and demonstrate a positive commitment by treating others fairly in line with our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy and reporting any acts of discrimination through appropriate channels
• To create a safe environment and act to protect all young people and vulnerable adults that are either in your care or attending club premises, and report any concerns to the Safeguarding Lead

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

At Chelsea we recognise that the diversity of our people is one of our greatest strengths and we are taking positive action to ensure our existing colleagues and job applicants can fully be themselves and bring their own unique experiences and perspectives to Chelsea FC. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. If you need reasonable adjustments made to the recruitment process, please reach out to your recruiter, who will be able to advise and support you.

Chelsea FC is fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all children, young people and adults at risk (vulnerable groups). We therefore require all successful applicants to complete a DBS Check prior to starting employment. Depending on the role, successful applicants may also be required to undergo other child protection screening where appropriate.

This Job Description is not intended to be exhaustive; the duties and responsibilities may therefore vary over time according to the changing needs of the Club.