Reward Manager

ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY

We are looking for a Reward Manager to play a key role in designing and delivering a reward framework that helps attract, motivate and retain exceptional people across our organisation. Working as part of the wider HR team, you will lead pay and reward strategy, manage annual pay review cycles, oversee benefits and pension schemes, drive equal pay initiatives and provide insightful analysis to inform decision-making.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced reward professional with strong analytical skills, expertise in pay and benefits, and the confidence to work with senior stakeholders. You will help ensure our reward approach is fair, competitive, compliant and aligned to our mission of delivering outstanding education and life-changing opportunities for young people.

If you're passionate about using reward to make a real impact and want to contribute to an organisation that transforms lives through education, we'd love to hear from you.

WORKING WITH US

The founder and sponsor of the Harris Federation, Lord Harris of Peckham, opened our first school in 1990. We have, over the past thirty years, implemented ideas and initiatives that have transformed the opportunities of pupils from working class and disadvantaged backgrounds. Harris academies are widely recognised as a force for social mobility. We are immensely proud of the role that our alumni are now beginning to play in the world and of what we believe our current generation of pupils will go on to achieve.

We now have over 50 schools educating more than 40,000 young people across London and Essex, and employ over 5,000 staff across our academies and head office. With the majority of our academies located in areas of high socioeconomic disadvantage, a high-quality education is key to the futures of the pupils we serve.

As a provider of employment and education, we value the diversity of our staff and students, and all our staff are equally valued and respected. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment for our students and staff.

Our work will impact many generations to come, and our staff come from all backgrounds and walks of life, coming together to inspire young minds. We promote an inclusive culture that embraces the valuable and enriching contribution that all of our community make. We continue to be proactive in uplifting and supporting all voices at Harris.

To discover more about our culture, ethos and what it is like to work here, visit the Why Work For Us page.

MAIN AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

Your responsibilities will include:

• Designing and managing performance-related pay, recognition and reward programmes that support engagement and high performance
• Managing employee benefits, including pension provision, and developing clear communications that maximise understanding and uptake
• Leading annual pay review and performance-related pay processes
• Maintaining and developing reward policies to ensure they remain effective, competitive and aligned with organisational needs
• Managing in-year pay review processes, ensuring consistency, fairness and value for money
• Ensuring compliance with reward-related legislation, regulations and internal governance requirements
• Monitoring external market trends, salary benchmarking data and sector developments to inform reward strategy
• Producing reward analysis, insights and reporting to support decision-making
• Leading the job evaluation process and maintaining accurate grading and salary structures
• Evaluating new and revised roles, balancing market competitiveness with internal equity and consistency
• Partnering with stakeholders to provide expert advice on reward, pay and job evaluation matters
• Identifying opportunities to enhance the employee value proposition and support the attraction, retention and motivation of colleagues

For a full list of responsibilities, please download the Job Pack.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We would like to hear from you if you have:

• A track record of delivery in the scoping, design and implementation of pay and reward policies
• Strong analytical and numerical skills, with the ability both to see the big picture and to focus on detail in making robust, evidence-based decisions and recommendations
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to build relationships and work collaboratively with senior stakeholders
• Experience delivering at pace, with the ability to prioritise effectively across competing demands
• Confidence to navigate complexity and ambiguity, with a strong understanding of relevant legislation, including Equal Pay requirements, Real Living Wage and the treatment of casual and atypical workers

For a full job specification, please download the Job Pack.

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

Harris has a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top-quality training programmes delivered at every level.

You will also have access to a variety of benefits, support programmes and initiatives including:

• Excellent opportunities for continuous professional development and career progression
• Annual loyalty bonus
• Pension scheme (Teachers' Pension Scheme or Local Government Pension Scheme) with generous employer contribution
• 26 days' annual leave (inclusive of our Christmas Eve closure day) plus bank holidays, rising to 27 days after 2 years' service, or equivalent for staff on term time contracts
• Harris Wellbeing Cash Plan including cover for routine and specialist healthcare
• Employee Assistance Programme for free and confidential advice
• Cycle to work salary sacrifice scheme
• Wide range of shopping, leisure, and travel discounts
• 20% off at Tapi Carpets, exclusive to Harris employees
• Interest-free ICT and season ticket loans

For most non-teaching staff based at our Head Office in Croydon, we also offer lifestyle friendly working arrangements including flexible start and end times, and hybrid working with two days from home and three days on site.

OUR VISION & VALUES

Our vision, from the start, has been to provide the structure and services needed for our schools to amount to more than the sum of their parts, and to free-up our teachers and leaders to focus on one thing and one thing only: the outstanding education of all their pupils. Our young people and communities are at the heart of everything we do. Our core mission has always been to close the educational gap between young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers. Our ambition is one where every child in London, no matter their background, has equal access to high quality education, giving them the same opportunities and potential to succeed.

We know there are many challenges facing our young people and the communities we serve, and that's why we need determined people like you to help us tackle those inequalities. Whilst each of our academies has their own unique cultures and values; as a whole Federation, we have four core values which are central to successfully achieving our vision: Excellence, Collaboration, Support, and Innovation. We are proud of our values because they guide us in how we work allowing us to achieve the best possible outcomes for our young people, communities, and colleagues.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Safeguarding Notice

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest level