Talent Acquisition Lead

Job Title: Talent Acquisition Lead

Salary: The starting salary is £59,839 which includes allowances totalling £2,928.

The salary is broken down as £56,911 basic salary, which will increase annually until you reach the top of the scale £69,342 Plus, a location allowance of £1,841 and a non-pensionable allowance of £1,000.

Location: Kennington, Kilburn and some travel to New Scotland Yard. (Hybrid Working 3-4 days in the office)

JOB PURPOSE

As the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) delivers its strategic plans (e.g. New Met for London), Met Business Services (MBS) will be a key enabler in ensuring services delivered are streamlined, innovative, frontline-focused and inclusive. The Talent Acquisition Lead will report into the Senior Talent Acquisition Lead who is responsible for providing the in-house resourcing components of the end-to-end joiner process.

This role is designed to oversee and deliver officer and staff recruitment, with our partner, for the Metropolitan Police Service. Particular areas of focus include:

Ensuring MPS recruitment services are modern, streamlined and customer centric, to attract and secure talent in a competitive and demanding environment;
Improved levels of representation across the organisation (particularly in respect of female and BME staff);
Maintaining optimal capacity levels across the organisation: working collaboratively with colleagues across MPS (Learning & Development, Vetting Unit, Supplier Assurance Function etc.) and other key partners such as SSCL, plus third parties, to ensure that resourcing plans meet corporate workforce planning requirements.
Supporting leaders across the MPS in managing recruitment risk, using deep knowledge of MPS policy, relevant UK employment legislation and national policing guidance/regulations.
Building the Met’s talent pipeline to ensure we have high quality candidates to fill key positions in a timely manner. This requires a deep understanding of the factors affecting recruitment at scale and pace in a London market.
Acting as a Resourcing expert/business partner to provide additional support to recruitment activity within the business, such as direct sourcing, advice on assessment approach and offer negotiations.
Providing recruitment expertise and acting as the point of contact for escalation and problem solving.

Key activities include:

Manage projects within the resourcing space that contribute to the continuous improvement of the candidate and hiring manager experience; ensuring a strong employment offer that can attract talent into MPS into a variety of roles at different levels within the MPS to include officers, volume staff, non-volume staff and specials
Volume Staff. Partner with MPS senior leaders to identify volume staff recruitment requirements, manage campaigns to effectively attract the right capacity, oversee the management of the pipeline of candidates, oversee assessment and manage risks.
Work collaboratively with the MPS recruitment partner, manage service delivery, performance against service measures, that time to hire is quick and that candidates are not dropping out.
Undertaking environmental scanning in conjunction with colleagues in the wider Met-HQ to assess how the impact of changing demographics and economic conditions and increasing competitiveness within labour markets will impact on the pool of talent available to the MPS;
Well-developed understanding of supply pipelines and organisational requirements, producing forecasts, linking in with Corporate Workforce Planning and escalating risk as appropriate.
Delivering ongoing efficiency and continuous improvement in end to end resourcing processes, including assessment centres, through innovative design developments to ensure competitive time-to-offer timescales and exceptional candidate experience.
First point of escalation for resourcing issues, complaints and advice to SSCL re recruitment decisions on volume police officer, MSC, Volume Police staff and non-volume staff lines
Working with partners to support the delivery of assessment events that are fair, taking account of gender, cultural differences and norms, meeting standards for diversity and fair access of opportunities for all.
Line management responsibilities, with a dual focus of both day to day line management duties alongside a proactive approach to upskilling both direct and indirect reports

Skills

Highly developed project management skills with an ability to deliver at pace and to deadline;
The confidence to challenge current practices and develop new ideas, solutions and business cases – ensuring resourcing activities can be delivered with maximum benefit and are aligned to the organisation’ s wider strategy;
Balancing risk and innovation in trialling new ideas or translating insights into actions;
The ability to engage confidently with the business at the required level. Offers appropriate and considered challenge and designs around continuous improvement.

Knowledge

Working knowledge of how to select from a variety of assessment and selection approaches based on their relative merits and fit with organisational demands and current/desired culture.
Good knowledge across recruitment/selection practices and appropriately compiling resourcing insights and identifying areas for continuous improvement
Good practical knowledge of the range of tools and techniques that are required in a senior resourcing role, for example, supporting policy development, benchmarking, data/trend analysis and introducing new ways of working.
An understanding of the key organisational commercial and value drivers and the link to people related plans and solutions.
Deep understanding of how things really work in the organisation and the barriers to change.
Harnessing IT: a good practical knowledge of MetHR, Discoverer, MS Exel & Powerpoint.
A professional level knowledge of recruitment policies, practices and relevant employment legislation.

Experience

Experience of working in resourcing functions, providing resourcing services to a large, multifaceted organisation.
Experience of direct sourcing talent into a complex organisation.
Leading and delivering recruitment projects within a similar organisation or setting.
Experience of managing outsourced service provision.
Leading and delivering change programmes.
A professional level knowledge of relevant HR policies, practices and employment legislation.
Experience of delivering through others by setting clear goals and recruitment targets, monitoring progress and holding people to account.

Qualifications

CIPD membership (equivalent accreditation) or equivalent experience.

Note: In addition you may from time to time be required to undertake additional duties necessary to meet the needs of the Met; such duties to be commensurate with the responsibilities and grading of the post.

How to apply

Click the apply now button below and start your career at the Met. Applications will be via a detailed CV, Personal Statement, and online application form. Your personal statement should outline why you are interested in the role and how your Knowledge, skills and experience demonstrate your suitability for the role. (NB. Please do not attach 2 copies of your CV).

Completed applications must be submitted by 23:55 on 20th April 2025.

www.metpolicecareers.co.uk