Burberry HR Business Partner Director

About Burberry

Burberry Limited, a quintessentially British luxury fashion house, is renowned for its innovative designs and commitment to quality. As part of the global luxury conglomerate, Burberry offers a dynamic and inclusive work environment where creativity and excellence are at the forefront. The company is dedicated to fostering a culture that encourages diversity and sustainability, making it a leader in the luxury industry.

Role & Responsibilities

• Partner with the Chief Operations Officer and leadership team, as well as the Chief Merchandising Officer and Chief Creative Officer, to shape and deliver a cohesive people strategy across Corporate Strategy, Data & Analytics, Design, Merchandising and the end-to-end Supply Chain.
• Consult with the Chiefs and their leadership teams to build a high-performance culture, embed inclusive leadership, position Burberry as a destination for world-class talent, and promote leader engagement and visibility.
• Understand Burberry Forward and challenges across Operations, Design and Merchandising, translating business needs into actionable HR plans and projects.
• Advise, coach and challenge senior leaders to model Burberry’s values, strengthen leadership effectiveness, and build high-performing, accountable and inclusive teams.
• Execute talent strategies to attract, retain and develop exceptional global talent, with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion.
• Partner with Centres of Excellence to embed Burberry’s talent philosophy; lead talent and succession reviews; and ensure leaders develop and retain critical talent, address capability gaps and build diverse succession pipelines.
• Drive performance and talent management excellence, holding leaders accountable for goal setting, performance differentiation, calibration, development planning and timely interventions to improve performance and capability.
• Lead organisational design, restructures, workforce planning, change management and culture development, refining structures to remain fit for purpose as the external environment changes.
• Partner with leaders to deliver organisational change through clear communication, meaningful engagement and visible leadership; hold leaders accountable for change outcomes while maintaining employee engagement, wellbeing and performance.
• Use Burberry Forward as a guiding principle to connect individual purpose with strategic goals and foster belonging and alignment with Burberry’s values.
• Ensure leaders use and adhere to the HR operating model, clarify accountability across the employee lifecycle, and maximise the value of HR services, processes and technology.
• Contribute to the development of the HR operating model, using business feedback, service metrics and organisational insight to identify improvement opportunities and shape future enhancements.
• Provide senior oversight and judgement on complex, high-risk or sensitive employee relations matters, partnering with Employee Relations, Legal and HR colleagues to ensure fair, consistent and legally compliant outcomes.
• Maintain strong knowledge of UK employment law and awareness of global employment considerations to identify risk and engage appropriate local expertise.
• Partner with Centres of Excellence to ensure commercially relevant, scalable solutions, identifying opportunities to improve processes, policies, employee experience and ways of working.
• Use HRIS systems to champion data-led decision-making and ensure insights inform strategic planning and execution.
• Lead, coach and develop three Senior Managers across Operations, Merchandising and Design; set direction, build organisational and HR capability, and ensure high standards of strategic partnering and delivery.
• Contribute as a member of the extended global HR Leadership Team, keeping the Chief People Officer and HR Leadership Team connected to business priorities, organisational risks and emerging talent opportunities.
• Champion the Operations, Merchandising and Design functions within HR.

Qualifications

• Proven track record in a senior HR leadership role, with the ability to influence and partner with multiple C-suite executives.
• Agility and resilience to navigate ambiguity, organisational change and competing executive priorities while maintaining focus and delivering results.
• Comfort operating in complex, matrixed and global organisations; experience supporting global supply chains or working in Product environments is preferred.
• Leadership experience managing high-performing teams across multiple locations.
• Strong business and commercial acumen, a strategic mindset and pragmatic execution.
• Deep understanding of large-scale change and transformation, including execution through others.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Passion for innovation, creativity and the luxury fashion industry.

Skills

Experience

Proven senior HR leadership experience, including influencing and partnering with multiple C-suite executives, managing high-performing teams across multiple locations, and supporting complex, matrixed global organisations. Experience supporting global supply chains or Product environments is preferred.

Culture

Burberry fosters a creative and inclusive workplace culture that values diversity and sustainability. The company is committed to being a force for good, driving industry change and championing community engagement.

About Cerulean

Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.