Senior Manager - Lead - People Support (Talent, Operations & Capability)

Role Purpose

The Senior Manager – People Support will serve as the operational and cultural anchor of pcl.’s people ecosystem during the transition to the 2026 model.

This role leads across three core areas

· Talent & Culture

· People Operations, HR Tech & People Analytics

· Learning, Leadership & Organisational Capability

The role ensures that pcl.’s workforce strategy, performance discipline, learning architecture and people systems actively enable delivery across the Transformation, Capability & Learning, Client Market and Digital Engines.

This is not an administrative HR role. It is a performance-enabling, culture-shaping, execution-support role that strengthens leadership capability, workforce discipline and organisational coherence.

Initially, the role will operate across all three areas. As the function scales, specialisation may occur.

• Talent & Culture Leadership

· Lead structured performance routines across the firm (goal-setting, quarterly reviews, feedback cycles).

· Ensure all consultants have defined role clarity, growth expectations and performance documentation.

· Reinforce pcl.’s ways of working and behavioural standards during the operating model transition.

· Identify and address early signs of team health issues, burnout or misalignment.

· Coach Managing Consultants and Senior Consultants on delegation, leadership behaviours and team management.

· Provide structured evidence and calibration inputs for progression and reward decisions.

· Support hiring processes aligned to Engine/Pillar capability needs.

· Strengthen onboarding processes to reinforce identity: “who a pcl. person is.”

· Support retention actions through structured check-ins and issue resolution.

2 . People Operations, HR Tech & People Analytics

· Execute performance, promotion and appraisal cycles with discipline and documentation quality.

· Ensure accurate role definitions, reporting lines and progression pathways are reflected in people systems.

· Support implementation and adoption of HR tech tools and workflow automation.

· Maintain data integrity across people systems (role data, utilisation signals, skills tagging, team allocation).

· Use people analytics outputs to flag workload, engagement and capacity risks.

· Provide structured people insights to Chiefs and Partners for workforce planning decisions.

· Support workforce planning aligned to pipeline forecasts and strategic priorities.

· Escalate employee relations and wellbeing risks early and appropriately.

· Ensure compliance with internal governance and statutory people requirements.

· Embed consistent documentation standards across teams.

3 . Learning, Leadership & Organisational Capability

· Lead internal learning cohorts aligned to consulting capability and digital enablement priorities.

· Ensure internal learning aligns with live delivery needs (3×3 model, transformation methodologies, digital adoption).

· Promote consistent playbook usage and knowledge reuse across the firm.

· Support skills tagging and capability assessment processes.

· Track learning impact and engagement metrics; recommend improvements.

· Coach consultants on development plans aligned to role expectations and future skills.

· Support leadership capability development across levels (Leading Self, Leading Others, Leading the Business).

· Embed capability uplift as a structured part of performance cycles.

· Strengthen succession planning inputs in partnership with Chiefs and Partners.

• Workforce Strategy & Organisational Alignment

· Support firm-wide workforce planning aligned to the Client Market Engine pipeline.

· Identify capability gaps across Transformation, Capability & Learning, and Digital Engines.

· Support hiring and associate ecosystem decisions.

· Provide structured insight into deployment imbalances and productivity risks.

· Ensure clarity of authority, reporting and role boundaries during transition.

· Reinforce alignment between People, Finance and Operations to support delivery discipline.

• Leadership & Advisory Contribution

· Act as a trusted internal advisor to Engine and Pillar leads on people risk and capability readiness.

· Influence performance discipline without creating bureaucracy.

· Support structured conversations around underperformance and accountability.

· Provide evidence-based people insights for leadership decision-making.

· Contribute to strengthening a performance culture rather than policy-driven compliance.

· Balance empathy and standards — protecting both delivery quality and human sustainability.

Success Measures

T alent & Culture

• 100% completion of performance and appraisal cycles with high documentation quality.
• Clear differentiation in performance outcomes and progression decisions.
• Reduction in unmanaged burnout or silent disengagement risks.
• Stronger leadership behaviour scores in internal feedback.

People Operations & Analytics

• Accurate and up-to-date role data and reporting structures across all engines.
• Workforce planning insights regularly used in leadership forums.
• Reduction in performance-cycle slippage or documentation gaps.
• Increased adoption of HR tech and self-service workflows.

Learning & Capability

• Internal learning programmes aligned to live client needs.
• Increased consultant participation in capability uplift programmes.
• Clear linkage between development plans and role progression.
• Documented improvement in skill tagging and capability visibility.

Organisational Impact

• Improved clarity of accountability across the firm.
• Stronger retention of high-performing consultants.
• Reduced dependency on Chiefs/Partners for routine people management.
• Recognition of the People Support function as a performance enabler.

Experience & Skills Required

· 8–12 years’ experience in talent management, people operations, organisational development or HR leadership within professional services or consulting.

· Strong understanding of consulting operating models and utilisation dynamics.

· Experience running structured performance management cycles.

· Exposure to HR tech systems and people analytics dashboards.

· Demonstrated ability to coach mid-level leaders.

· Strong documentation and governance discipline.

· Analytical mindset with ability to translate data into insight.

· Strong stakeholder management skills across senior leadership levels.

· Ability to balance culture-building with performance accountability.

· Experience operating in high-growth or transformation environments preferred.