Fixed-term contract

This is a fixed-term role, running from early September 2026 until the second week of May 2027. The role exists solely to provide cover during the current post-holder's maternity leave, with a deliberate overlap at each end to allow a thorough handover in and out.

Applied Blockchain | Applied Edge

Applied Blockchain | Applied Edge helps regulated enterprises navigate AI and digital assets. We build and advise on AI systems, digital asset applications and privacy-preserving infrastructure.

About the role

We are looking for an experienced People leader to cover our HR and recruitment function during a period of maternity leave. Reporting directly to the CEO, you will own the people strategy, lead the function, and manage and oversee in-house recruitment.

You will line-manage two team members — one who run day-to-day HR and one who handles recruitment — so this is primarily a leadership and oversight role, directing how the function operates rather than delivering every task yourself. That said, the role stays close to the detail: you'll shape how onboarding, performance, wellbeing and 1-1s are run, and step in hands-on where needed, such as HR interviews at peak hiring periods. It suits someone comfortable both leading and, when required, rolling up their sleeves.

What you’ll be doing

People & HR. Own and oversee the employee lifecycle and people experience across the company, including:

The performance review cycle.
Turnover risk assessment and retention.
Employee relations — grievances, disciplinaries and conflict resolution.
Compensation and benefits administration, and supporting the salary review cycle.
HR policies, the employee handbook and general employment-law compliance across the markets we hire in.
Training, development and coaching.
Team wellbeing resources and support.
People metrics and reporting to leadership.
Oversight of regular 1-1s across the team.
Employee surveys and acting on the findings.
Onboarding and offboarding.
Employment contracts, references and work-eligibility checks.
Absence, leave and family-leave management.
Exit interviews.
Maintaining HR records.

Recruitment. Manage and oversee in-house recruitment end to end:

Coordinate with hiring managers on roles and requirements.
Own candidate experience and offer management.
Liaise with external recruiters and manage agency relationships.
Manage the applicant tracking system and candidate pipeline.
Track recruitment metrics (e.g. time-to-hire).
Write and refine job descriptions and role scopes.
Shape and drive recruitment marketing and employer-brand strategy.
Hands-on CV review, interview scheduling and HR interviews at peak times.

Team leadership. Line-manage and develop two direct reports — the HR team member and the recruitment team member — and act as the point of escalation for people matters across the business.

Proven experience leading an HR / People function (Head of People, HR Manager or similar).
Strong grasp of the full employee lifecycle and HR best practice.
Comfortable with employment law across multiple jurisdictions — we hire internationally (single-country expertise not required).
Familiar with how Employer of Record (EoR) hiring works.
A confident leader who's still happy to be hands-on at busy times.
Solid recruitment experience across hiring managers, external recruiters and interviews.
Experience line-managing others — this role has two direct reports.
Strong interpersonal skills, with the discretion to work directly with the CEO.
A self-starter who gets up to speed fast and works autonomously.
Comfortable adopting new tools, including AI-based ones.
Right to work in the UK (no visa sponsorship).
The role involves handling situations under stress, and requires ability to deal with stressful situations.
Available for the full term, early September 2026 to mid-May 2027.

Nice to have

Experience managing international / distributed teams and working with Employers of Record.
Experience owning recruitment marketing / employer branding.
Experience in a fast-moving tech, software or startup/scale-up environment.
Experience or interest in the blockchain and/or AI sectors.

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