Music is Universal
It’s the passionate and dedicated team at Universal Music who help make us the world’s leading music company. From A&R to finance, legal to digital, sales to marketing, Universal Music is the place to grow and develop your career within a truly commercial and innovative business that leads in everything it does.
Everyone is welcome to apply for our roles, and we are determined to ensure that no applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment because of gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief, age, marital status, background, pregnancy, or caring responsibilities. We also recognise the importance of diversity of thought within our teams and are fully committed to embracing the talents of people with autism, dyslexia, ADHD, and other forms of neurocognitive variation.
We will always seek to make appropriate adjustments to recruitment, workplaces, and work processes to be fully inclusive to people with different needs and working styles. If you need us to make any reasonable adjustments for you from application onwards, including alternatives to the online form or to disclose a neurocognitive condition, please email UniversalMusicCareers@umusic.com.
Location: Abbey Road, St John’s Wood & 4 Pancras Square, London (Hybrid: 1–2 days WFH)
Hours: 37 per week
Reports to: People Director
Department: People, Inclusion & Culture (PIC)
People, Inclusion and Culture Team Vision
We put people first with our words and actions. Together, we discover and nurture the best talent - we create opportunities for careers and teams to thrive. We move in tempo with our business and set the tone for a dynamic and progressive environment that empowers our people to perform, create and innovate at the highest level.
About The Role
We’re looking for a People Business Partner to play a key role in delivering our People plans and driving a positive, inclusive culture across our creative and commercial teams — including Abbey Road, Finance, Legal & Business Affairs, Royalties and Supply Chain.
As a trusted partner, you’ll provide expert advice and hands-on support across all aspects of the employee experience — from employee relations and performance management to talent development and inclusion initiatives. You’ll collaborate closely with our Talent Acquisition and Learning & Organisational Development teams to create an environment where our people can thrive and perform at their best.
What You’ll Do
- Partner with leaders to understand their teams, provide tailored HR solutions, and foster a positive, high-performing culture.
- Lead employee relations matters, including performance, conduct, and wellbeing, ensuring fair, consistent and legally compliant outcomes.
- Champion diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, supporting managers to build diverse teams and inclusive ways of working.
- Drive engagement by using people data and feedback to identify trends and shape actions that improve motivation and belonging.
- Support flexibility and wellbeing, advising on hybrid working, absence management and occupational health.
- Collaborate cross-functionally with Talent Acquisition and Learning & Organisational Development to attract, develop and retain top talent.
- Provide people insights through HR data and reporting, helping leaders make informed decisions and plan for the future.
- Guide change by supporting teams through organisational transitions, ensuring a smooth and positive experience.
About You
You’re an experienced HR professional who thrives in fast-paced, creative environments. You build trusted relationships, balance strategy with hands-on delivery, and bring empathy and sound judgment to every conversation.
You’ll Bring
- Experience in HR or as a People Partner/Senior Advisor, ideally in a creative or innovative organisation.
- CIPD Level 5 or equivalent experience.
- Strong knowledge of UK employment law and employee relations.
- Proven ability to coach and influence managers and leaders.
- Experience supporting DEIB and employee engagement initiatives.
- Skilled in using HR data and systems to identify trends and inform action.
- High integrity, discretion and a people-first approach.
Why Join Us
You’ll be part of a passionate, forward-thinking People team that puts people at the heart of everything we do.
This is an opportunity to shape a culture that celebrates creativity, inclusion and collaboration and to make a real impact in an environment where our people can perform, create and innovate at the highest level.
Just So You Know…
The company presents this job description as a guide to the major areas and duties for which the jobholder is accountable. However, the business operates in an environment that demands change and the jobholder's specific responsibilities and activities will vary and develop. Therefore, the job description should be seen as indicative and not as a permanent, definitive, and exhaustive statement.
Job Category
People, Inclusion & Culture
