Company Description

We’re Checkout.com – you might not know our name, but companies like eBay, ASOS, Klarna, Uber Eats, and Sony do. That moment when you check out online? We make it happen.

Checkout.com is where the world checks out. Our global network powers billions of transactions every year, making money move without making a fuss. We spent years perfecting a service most people will never notice. Because when digital payments just work, businesses grow, customers stay, and no one stops to think about why.

With 19 offices spanning six continents, we feel at home everywhere – but London is our HQ. Wherever our people work their magic, they’re fast-moving, performance-obsessed, and driven by being better every day. Ideal. Because a role here isn’t just another job; it’s a career-defining opportunity to build the future of fintech.

Job Description

Role overview | Context

We’re looking for an experienced Employee Relations Manager to design and elevate our global ER approach. This role is ideal for someone who thrives in building frameworks from the ground up—someone who can take existing ER foundations, strengthen them, and enable our People team to confidently handle ER matters at scale. This is not a full-time case-handling role. Instead, you will focus on building the systems, tools, policies, and capabilities that enable our HR teams and managers to manage ER situations effectively. You will also act as a backup subject-matter expert for complex or sensitive cases when needed.

We are looking for someone who combines deep ER expertise with strong commercial judgment, an ability to simplify complex situations, and a mindset oriented toward scalable design. They will modernise how we approach ER globally—leveraging process redesign, technology, and AI—while striking the right balance between legal compliance and pragmatic business outcomes.

Role overview | Remit and Responsibilities

Build & Enhance Employee Relations Capability

• Develop a clear ER strategy and operating model that aligns with our business structure, risk appetite, and future scale.
  

• Create modern, user-friendly frameworks, playbooks, and toolkits that equip People Partners and managers to independently navigate ER issues (grievances, disciplinaries, performance management, redundancies, sickness absence management, etc.).
  

• Design decision trees, case categorisation models, escalation pathways, and quality standards that reinforce consistency, speed, and commercial decision-making.
  

• Introduce mechanisms that reduce dependency on ER specialists while improving capability across the People Partner and leadership populations.

Training & Capability Uplift

• Develop and deliver structured training for People Partners, managers, and leaders on ER best practices, investigations, performance management, and policy application.
  

• Provide live, on-the-job coaching and case mentorship to build capability and reduce escalations.
  

• Build digital self-service content and learning modules that empower employees and decrease reliance on ER experts.
  

• Facilitate quarterly ER simulation training using real Checkout case patterns to build confidence and decision-making ability.

Policy Ownership & Expansion

• Audit and benchmark existing ER policies, identifying opportunities for simplification, clarity, and alignment to our culture, legal standards, and commercial needs.
  

• Draft and implement updated and new ER-related policies (conduct, grievances, investigations, performance management, etc.) that are globally consistent but locally adaptable.
  

• Build a global ER policy architecture that supports scale, transparency, and ease of application by non-experts.

Process Redesign (Including AI Integration)

• Redesign ER processes end-to-end to make them scalable, efficient, data-driven, and globally consistent.
  

• Identify opportunities to embed AI in workflows (case intake, document drafting, triage tools, early-risk detection, theme identification, etc.) to improve speed, accuracy, and decision consistency.
  

• Define governance, controls, and safe-use practices for AI-supported ER tools in partnership with Legal, Tech, and Compliance.
  

• Lead implementation of new systems, workflows, and tooling that modernise the ER experience for People Partners, managers, and employees.
  

• Constantly identify friction points and redesign processes that balance compliance with pragmatic, commercially-sound outcomes.
  

Advisory & Escalation Support

• Act as a strategic advisor for complex and sensitive cases, balancing legal risk, culture, commercial impacts, and reputational considerations.
  

• Provide high-quality support for high-risk or high-complexity cases, including sensitive conduct issues.
  

• Drive consistency and fairness across decisions by supporting calibration, case reviews, and cross-team alignment discussions.
  

• Serve as the primary escalation point for ER appeals and critical decision reviews.

Risk Management & Culture

• Use ER data, insights, and trends to identify behavioural themes, systemic risks, and opportunities for proactive intervention.
  

• Partner with People, Legal, and business leaders to design interventions that strengthen trust, fairness, accountability, and performance discipline.
  

• Ensure the ER approach reinforces positive employee experience, organisational values, and an environment where good performance and good conduct are expected and managed consistently.
  

• Continuously scan for external developments in ER, AI, legal changes, and people risk—and translate them into actionable improvements at Checkout.

About You

• 6–10+ years of Employee Relations experience, including designing and implementing ER frameworks.
  

• Proven track record operating in a global business with employees across multiple regions.
  

• Proven ability to build policy, processes, and training from scratch or in a rapidly evolving environment.
  

• Strong investigative skills and a deep understanding of employment law across multiple regions.
  

• Experience integrating AI tools or technology into HR/ER processes (or strong appetite to develop this skill).
  

• Excellent communication, coaching, and influencing skills.
  

• High integrity, sound judgment, discretion, and a balanced, pragmatic approach.

Bring all of you to work

We create the conditions for high performers to thrive – through real ownership, fewer blockers, and work that makes a difference from day one.

Here, you’ll move fast, take on meaningful challenges, and be recognized for the impact you deliver. It’s a place where ambition gets met with opportunity – and where your growth is in your hands.

We work as one team, and we back each other to succeed. So whatever your background or identity, if you’re ready to grow and make a difference, you’ll be right at home here.

It’s important we set you up for success and make our process as accessible as possible. So let us know in your application, or tell your recruiter directly, if you need anything to make your experience or working environment more comfortable.

Life at Checkout.com

We understand that work is just one part of your life. Our hybrid working model offers flexibility, with three days per week in the office to support collaboration and connection.

Curious about what it’s like to be part of our team? Visit our Careers Page to learn more about our culture, open roles, and what drives us.

For a closer look at daily life at Checkout.com, follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram