Head of Internal Communications, Employee Experience and Change Management

Job description

This is a pivotal role at the heart of the firm's people function. It will be the central point of coordination for how we communicate with our people, how we design and deliver their experience of working at Orwins, and how we land and embed every people-related project across the firm - whether led by HR or by any other department.
Working directly with and reporting to the Chief People Officer, this role bridges strategy and delivery. It translates the firm's business plan, vision, direction and people strategy into clear communications, meaningful experiences and well-managed change - ensuring that every initiative we launch is felt by people, understood by managers, and embedded in how we work.
The role requires a combination of new thinking and established best practice, operating at pace in a commercially driven environment where budget efficiency and return on investment are always in view.
Critically, this role gives the C-Suite a direct line to the employee voice. The insights gathered through engagement surveys, employee experience activity and internal listening will shape and sharpen the firm's people strategy — making this a function that drives the agenda, not just supports it.
Key Responsibilities and Performance Measures:
HR Project Management
Internal Communications
Employee Experience (EEx)
Strategic People Insight
HR Project Management
Act as the central project management function for all people-related projects across the firm - whether originated within HR or driven by Finance, Operations, IT or any other department.
Build and maintain a firm-wide people project plan - tracking all active HR workstreams, dependencies, milestones and owners, and reporting on progress to the CPO.
Lead on or provide oversight for the launch and embedding of people initiatives — including new systems (HiBob, LEAP etc), policy rollouts, frameworks (Cultural Foundations, appraisal, bonus) and structural changes.
Develop and manage change management plans for all major people-related changes - ensuring that communications, training, manager support and embedding activity are joined up and delivered to a consistent standard.
Partner with department heads and project leads across the firm to ensure people considerations are built into project planning from the outset — not bolted on at the end.
Maintain an HR project governance framework - including project templates, RAG logs, stakeholder maps and post-implementation reviews.
Internal Communications
Own and manage the firm's internal communications strategy and calendar - ensuring the right information reaches the right people in the right way and at the right time.
Write, design and distribute all firm-wide people communications - including announcements, policy changes, HR updates, leadership messages and the monthly People newsletter.
Develop and maintain a consistent internal communications framework - tone of voice, channel strategy, message hierarchy and manager briefing approach.
Support senior leaders and the CPO in drafting communications for major milestones — acquisitions, restructures, culture related launches, new system go-lives and other significant change moments.
Act as the editorial owner of the Firms intranet / internal comms platform - ensuring firm information, policies and updates are current, well-written and easy to find.
Embrace a multi-channel communications approach — combining digital, in-person, written and visual formats to reach all people across all offices in the most effective way for each message.
Develop and own the firm's internal Tone of Voice (TOV) guidelines, and design and deliver TOV awareness for managers and teams to ensure consistency across all internal communications.
Proactively maintain a network of internal communications and employee engagement professionals outside the firm — attending relevant forums and events, and bringing best practice back to the Orwins people agenda.
Employee Experience
Design, own and continuously improve the employee experience across the full lifecycle — from offer and onboarding through to development, recognition and offboarding.
Lead on the design and delivery of engagement surveys — including the firm's eNPS programme, pulse surveys and any ad hoc listening exercises. Own the analysis, reporting and action planning that follows.
Build a rich, ongoing picture of the employee voice - gathering insight from survey data, exit interviews, stay conversations and informal feedback - and translate this into clear recommendations for the CPO.
Create a direct link between employee experience and client/customer experience — identifying where the two intersect and helping the firm understand how the way people feel at work shapes the service clients receive.
Champion psychological safety and wellbeing as cornerstones of the employee experience - working with the CPO and leadership team to create an environment where people feel seen, heard and able to do their best work.
Lead the coordination of firm-wide engagement initiatives - Cultural Foundations sessions, all-firm events, recognition programmes and team-level activities.
Use engagement data and survey analytics to produce heat mapping and trend analysis across functions, offices and demographics — giving the CPO and leadership team a data-driven view of where engagement is strong and where it needs attention.
Ensure all employee experience activity is aligned to and supports the firm's L&D strategy, client experience strategy, Cultural Foundations and wider people strategy — creating a genuinely joined-up approach.
Develop and maintain a measurable return on investment framework for employee experience activity — providing evidence of what works, what doesn't and where resource is best deployed.
Strategic People Insight
Collate and synthesise people data from multiple sources - engagement surveys, exit interviews, eNPS, absence data, attrition, manager feedback - to build a clear picture of the health of the firm's culture and employee experience.
Present insight and recommendations to the CPO on a regular basis, with a focus on what the data tells us and what action it suggests.
Support the CPO in shaping and refining the firm's people strategy — ensuring it is grounded in what employees actually experience, not just what leadership intends.
Track the impact of people initiatives over time — measuring whether change is landing and whether the investment in people is generating a return
What you'll get
At Orwins, we invest in our people just as much as our future. Our future is our people. This is a firm where your voice is heard, your contribution is recognised, and your development is taken seriously — not just talked about.
You will get genuine access to our C-Suite, senior partners, leaders, experts and clients from day one, working closely with a team that values expertise, supports each other and takes pride in doing things well. We are growing fast, and the people who join us will grow with us too.
A competitive remuneration package, commensurate with your experience and the firm's growth plans
25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and your birthday off — increasing with service
Private Medical Insurance through Vitality
Cash plan through Medicash
EAP scheme (open to family members)
Enhanced wellbeing and family-friendly policies
Salary sacrifice pension through NEST
Hybrid working — we trust you to know where you do your best work
Fresh, open plan offices across Manchester, Finchley (London) and Reading
CSR events and summer and winter colleague celebrations
A people-focused, collaborative culture that makes coming to work genuinely worth it

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Extra information

Status

Open

Education Level

Secondary School

Location

Manchester

Type of Contract

Full-time jobs

Published at

01-08-2026

Profession type

Management

Full UK/EU driving license preferred

No

Car Preferred

No

Must be eligible to work in the EU

No

Cover Letter Required

No

Languages

English