People Operations Specialist (initial 6 month contract)

ThePeople Operations Specialist EMEA delivers high-quality consistent People support and operational governance across multiple countries within the EMEA region - focused on the German Market. This role acts as the central gatekeeper for the employee lifecycle ensuring absolute data accuracy rigorous documentation standards and strict operational compliance.

The role focuses on efficient query management comprehensive lifecycle documentation and seamless cross-functional workflows. Working in close collaboration with the People Success Team. The Specialist acts as the dedicated operational shield managing technical workflows so that Generalists and PSBPs can remain focused on strategic initiatives. The Specialist owns the maintenance of regional document templates ensures proper approval chains are executed and serves as the primary operational point of contact for critical stakeholders such as Payroll Legal Security and IT.

This role adheres to established policies and processes and supports their consistent application the Specialist actively ensures internal processes and compliance guardrails are strictly met.

Note on Contract Type: This is a temporary position on an initial 6-month contract. However for the right candidate there is a strong possibility for this role to be reviewed and transitioned into a permanent position based on performance and evolving business needs.

What Youll Do

• First-Line Employee Support: Act as the primary solutions-focused point of contact for all EMEA People queries via Jira; triage and escalate complex issues to People Generalists or PBPs seamlessly.
• Lifecycle Administration: Draft issue and track all regional employee lifecycle documentation (contracts addenda reference letters terminations) with 100% accuracy and strict audit readiness.
• Data & Systems Management: Own the end-to-end data integrity in Workday across the full employee lifecycle (onboarding job changes offboarding) and manage contingent worker administration and background checks.
• Operational Compliance & Governance: Enforce strict guardrails across HR workflows ensuring all necessary cross-functional stakeholder approvals (Finance Comp Legal) are systematically secured before processing system changes.
• Cross-Functional Interface: Act as the primary operational pipeline to Payroll IT Legal and Security shielding Generalists and PBPs from routine administrative ticket-handling.
• Continuous Improvement: Identify recurring query trends or data gaps to optimize internal knowledge bases updating policies and processes to elevate the overall employee experience.

What were looking for

• Experience: 35 years of experience in HR Operations People Coordination or a similar shared-services role ideally within a fast-paced high-growth tech or multinational environment.
• Languages: Full professional fluency in both English and German (written and spoken) is required to effectively support our diverse regional workforce and external local authorities.
• Local Expertise: A strong foundational understanding of German labor law and regional HR compliance compliance standards.
• Education & Background: A Bachelors degree in Human Resources Business Administration or a related field; equivalent practical experience with a strong track record in regional HR administration will also be highly valued.
• Systems Savvy: Proven experience working with HRIS platforms (Workday proficiency is highly preferred) and ticketing systems (e.g. Jira) to manage workflows and maintain data integrity.
• Compliance & Accuracy: A compliance-driven mindset with a sharp attention to detail a commitment to procedural governance and a track record of delivering 100% accurate documentation.
• Customer-First Approach: Exceptional communication skills with a personalized solutions-oriented approach to supporting employees.
• Execution & Ownership: A reliable self-starter who exercises strong judgmentknowing when to act independently to resolve routine queries and when to escalate complex issues.