Head of people jobs
Battersea is entering an exciting phase of innovation and transformation as we embark on the first year of our new five-year strategy. Our fundraising team bridges the journey of the animals in our care with the wider public, demonstrating how their contributions enable us to support every dog and cat. We now have several new roles within this team to further our mission.
Within this role, you will manage and deliver Battersea’s Lottery & Lead Generation programme, maximising income and achieving budgeted targets and KPIs. You will be responsible for managing and motivating a team of three to deliver the programme effectively and professionally. You will also be responsible for managing the business-critical agency relationships key to the success of the programme.
What we can offer you:
In return for your commitment to our cause and to recognise the value of our employees, Battersea offers a range of benefits to support the wellbeing of our employees. These include:
- 28 days of annual leave (plus 8 days paid public holidays) per year
- Discounted gym memberships and cycle to work schemes
- Employee Assistance Programme and access to Wellbeing Resources
- Generous pension contributions - up to 10% employer contribution
- Free healthcare cash plan, where you can claim for a range of treatment including dental, optical, physiotherapy, chiropody and acupuncture every year
- Annual interest-free season ticket loans
We are also committed to providing learning and development to our employees. During your time with us, we provide support for your professional and career development, including access to digital and in-person training programmes, leadership and management training, mentoring and much more.
Our hybrid working model:
We operate a 50% onsite hybrid working model, with our office-based staff splitting their time between site based and home working. This enables our office-based staff to balance the benefits of home working with onsite collaboration and maintaining a connection to our cause.
Diversity and inclusion:
We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive experience for all staff, volunteers and trustees and those hoping to join us. We operate an anonymised shortlisting process and actively seek to ensure our process is fair and equitable for all.
We understand the value of diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences to help us deliver even more for our dogs and cats, and we welcome applicants from all sections of the community.
As a Disability Confident Committed Employer we will ask about any adjustments you may need at application and/or interview stage, and if you are offered a role with us, we’ll talk to you about any workplace adjustments you may need to help you perform at your best.
More about us:
At Battersea, we aim to never turn away a dog or cat in need of help. We give each one lots of love, expert care and get to know their characters and quirks so we can find them a new home that’s just right for them. Join us and help us be here for every dog and cat, wherever they are, for as long as they need us.
Acceptable use of AI:
At Battersea, we value expertise. We recognise each candidate that applies to us will have a range of expertise they can offer us, so we want to hear about this in your own words. We understand the support that generative artificial intelligence (AI) software can offer but it can also lead to numerous applications presenting as generic and impersonal. This makes it difficult to gain understanding of your unique experience.
To best showcase yourself, we encourage you to write your responses without the assistance of AI. If you require the use of AI software to aid in completing your application, we ask you use the generative responses as a prompt for writing your answers and avoid copying and pasting. You must also ensure the information presented in your application accurately reflects your experience.
Closing date: 15th October 2025
Interview date(s): First Round Interviews: w/c 20th October 2025 (Teams); Second Round w/c 27th October 2025 (In Person)
All applications must be submitted before the closing date advertised. We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a high volume of applications is received. For full details on the role, please download the recruitment pack.
Registered Charity
501 - 1000
Battersea is here for every dog and cat, and has been since 1860. We believe that every dog and cat deserves the best.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
About Topos Research UK and Topos Institute
Topos Research UK is an entrepreneurial, dynamic charity start-up in the UK (inc. 2024) with a parent charity start-up, Topos Institute in the US (inc. 2019). We are a non-profit research institute dedicated to realising a world where the systems that surround us benefit us all, so that society can better cooperate on critical issues — the climate crisis, pandemic responses, agricultural modelling, global access to education, and more — through interconnected systems that consider holistic impacts. We develop new tools for collective inquiry and modelling, enabled by a combination of novel foundational mathematics, open-source software engineering, and meaningful collaboration with domain specialists.
The Opportunity
We seek a strategic Operations Director to lead the successful scaling of our rapidly growing UK operation. This is a pivotal, creative leadership role reporting directly to our Board of Trustees, with day-to-day collaboration with board representative Brendan Fong (Topos UK Trustee and Topos USA CEO).
Current State:
- 1-year-old entity with £500k annual revenue
- 6 talented staff (research scientists, software engineers, postdocs)
- 3 planned new staff members within the next 6 months
- Two major grants: £600k (1-year) and £1.2M (2.25-year)
- Projected FY26 revenue: £1M
The Challenge: You’ll be our first senior operations hire, responsible for establishing the systems and culture that will enable Topos UK (and Topos as a whole) to thrive as we scale from startup to established institution, collaborating between the UK and US offices, and pioneering a new style of technology-oriented research organisation keenly focussed on improving lives.
Key Responsibilities
Operations & Finance Leadership
- Lead operations and finance for a projected £1M+ annual budget from research grants
- Support grant solicitation, budgeting, procurement, monitoring, and reporting
- Collaborate with financial consultants on organizational strategies, budgets, treasury, and tax affairs
- Coordinate with US-based Topos Institute on governance, consolidated reporting, and shared contracts
Strategic Planning & Culture Building
- Partner with the Board of Trustees and Topos Institute USA to develop and implement strategic plans aligned with our institutional mission
- Champion the critical role of operations and administration in achieving our research mission
- Establish and nurture an organizational culture that:
- Integrates diverse perspectives and lived experiences
- Views uncertainty as opportunity for innovation
- Balances operational efficiency with academic freedom
- Embodies public purpose, intellectual rigor, and collaboration
Team Leadership & Development
- Nurture and mentor our growing team of 6+ researchers and engineers
- Support individual career aspirations while building collective capacity
- Work with HR consultants to develop talent management systems and support organizational human resources needs
- Foster an environment where exceptional people can do their best work
Systems & Infrastructure
- Design and implement policies, internal controls, and procedures for sustainable growth
- Oversee operational functions including inventory management and facilities
- Oversee compliance, risk management, and organizational governance
- Manage physical space requirements, including future lease negotiations
- Coordinate legal affairs with Board of Trustees, sourcing expertise as needed
Stakeholder Management
- Serve as operational interface with funders, partners, and collaborators
- Represent Topos UK’s capabilities and needs to external stakeholders
- Support business development for future grant and contract opportunities
- Assume additional responsibilities as organizational needs evolve
What We’re Looking For
Essential Experience
- 5+ years in senior operations/finance roles at mission-driven organizations
- Proven ability to build systems and culture from the ground up
- Experience with research institutions, nonprofits, or technology startups
- Track record managing complex budgets and grant funding
- Track record of successfully impacting both strategic and tactical finance and administration initiatives
Leadership Qualities
- Collaborative, supportive management style with focus on team development
- Skilled at building consensus in a complex organisation and able to achieve results through influence and partnership
- Ability to foster inclusive environments where diverse perspectives thrive
- Experience mediating differences and supporting individual team member success
- Ability to communicate clearly and collaboratively, both internally and externally
- Creative problem-solving approach with strong analytical skills
Cultural Fit
- Intellectually curious with appreciation for technical research
- Mission-first orientation with commitment to public benefit
- Comfortable with complexity, ambiguity, and rapid change; sees challenges as opportunities for growth
- Committed to building inclusive, supportive team environments
- Values-driven leader who can balance efficiency with academic freedom
- Motivated by meaningful work that contributes to helping solve global-scale challenges
- Values continuous learning, diverse perspectives, and collaborative problem-solving
- Ability to periodically travel to the head office in Berkeley, California, or other locations as needed
- Flexibility with working hours, to accommodate for collaboration across global time zones
- Energetic, flexible, collaborative, and proactive; a team leader who can positively and productively impact both strategic and tactical finance and administration initiatives
Preferred Qualifications
- Advanced degree in relevant field (business, nonprofit management, etc.)
- Experience with international organizations or multi-entity coordination
- Familiarity with academic research environments
- Technical literacy sufficient to engage with mathematical/computational work
Why Topos UK
Exceptional Team: Collaborate with world-leading researchers and high calibre funding agencies.
Inclusive Environment: Be part of building a diverse team where different perspectives are valued and everyone can contribute their best work.
Meaningful Impact: Your operational excellence directly enables breakthrough research on humanity’s most pressing challenges—from climate change to public health to collaborative open science.
Technical Innovation: Support the development of genuinely novel technologies that could transform how humanity approaches complex, collaborative decision-making.
Supportive Culture: Join a caring, inquiry-driven community that values both intellectual rigor and personal well-being, with a strong focus on in-person office culture but flexibility to support work-life balance.
Growth Opportunity: Shape the foundational systems of an organization poised for significant expansion and impact.
Apply
Topos Research UK is committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion. There is evidence to suggest that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they meet every one of the qualifications as described in the job description. No matter who you are, if this role speaks to you, we encourage you to apply, even if you don’t believe you tick all the boxes. We’d especially like to encourage people from underrepresented backgrounds to apply.
If you require any adjustments to the application process, such as accessibility accommodations, additional preparation time, or other, please let us know in your application. We’re happy to support your needs and adjust the application process.
Next Steps: This role offers the rare opportunity to be the operational backbone behind important research that contributes to how humanity tackles global challenges. If you’re energized by building meaningful institutions and enabling exceptional people to do transformative work, we’d love to hear from you.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We expect the process to include initial screening, work assessments, team interviews, and references.
Thank you!
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
We’re looking for an experienced content officer to create and share our charity’s impact, stories and campaigns in new and compelling ways to help raise awareness, grow our audience and drive engagement.
This is a hands-on role and requires someone with proven experience of creating high-quality, creative and engaging content across print and digital platforms, including video, email, web and social media.
If you’re excited by the opportunity to create and deliver a wide variety of content which makes a difference to women, sick kids and their families, we’d love to hear from you.
Please see our job information pack for further details on this role and what we as a Charity have to offer!
Interviews will be held at our office at 5 Rowchester Court, Whittall Street, Birmingham, B4 6DH on Wednesday 22 October.
Registered Charity
51 - 100
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Terms & Conditions:
Location: Can be remote or based in London or Manchester. Must be able to regularly attend all day meetings in London and to travel extensively in England
Working hours: Part time – 3 days a week
Contract: 12-month initial term with a view to extending
Salary: £25029 per annum, actual salary (FTE £41705). If based in London: £27423 per annum, actual salary (FTE £45705, inclusive of London weighting)
Benefits:
Pension: Aviva Stakeholder pension with a 5% employer contribution .
Annual leave: April to March - 30 days plus statutory bank holidays (18 days + pro-rated bank holidays for a 3-day week) we also have an additional 3 closure days between Christmas and New Year.
Other benefits: Eye-care vouchers, Cycle to Work Scheme, Employee discount platform, Clinical Supervision and Employee Assistance Programme.
Role Summary:
We are building something bold: a collective of women and organisations working side by side to end the unjust, unsafe and unfair use of remand against women in the UK. We need a leader who is not only strategic and organised, but also deeply committed to the power of lived experience, coproduction, and intersectional feminist principles.
This role is the backbone of the project. You’ll hold the threads that connect our members, supporting and championing women with lived experience of the criminal justice system, and ensure our collective voice is strong, united, and impactful. You’ll be guiding—not dictating—so that the project grows from the wisdom, creativity, and resilience of the women at its heart.
If you’re ready to use your skills and passion to create real change, and you believe in leadership that listens, collaborates and disrupts the injustice of remand, this is the role for you.
Women with lived experience are actively encouraged to apply for this role, if you do not think you meet all the criteria set out below but do believe you have transferable skills or relevant experience that would make you successful in this role, we would be happy to have an informal conversation with you, to arrange this, please proceed to the application portal for the contact details of Kate Frasier.
Key Responsibilities Areas:
- Project management and coordination
- Coordination of the collective
- Partnerships and stakeholder engagement
- Communication
For full description please download the recruitment pack.
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The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.