Senior People Operations Generalist, EMEA

About the role

At Harvey, the Senior People Operations Generalist, EMEA will partner with the global People Operations team to support the full employee lifecycle and own key compliance programs end to end. You will act as the primary real-time point of contact for employees, managers, and external partners across EMEA and JAPAC, handling queries during local hours while the broader team is offline. This role involves building and maintaining global processes such as right-to-work, statutory leave, GDPR, and data protection, ensuring they scale efficiently as we enter new countries. You will collaborate closely with global payroll and EOR platforms like Deel and Remote to manage country-specific onboarding and offboarding requirements. The position requires strong ownership of SOPs so that operations remain consistent and do not depend on tribal knowledge. You will represent EMEA considerations within the wider People Operations organization, making sound judgment calls about what must align with US hours and what can be handled immediately. This is a senior generalist role designed for someone who wants deep, hands-on responsibility for a global function with direct support from a larger, cross-functional team.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Support the end-to-end employee lifecycle for our global population, covering onboarding, changes, leaves, exits, and other people operations needs across regions
• Own global compliance programs like a program manager, building new processes and maintaining existing ones such as right-to-work, statutory leave, and GDPR/data protection
• Serve as the primary point of contact for employees, managers, and external partners during EMEA and JAPAC hours, leveraging your time zone to provide real-time support
• Partner with global payroll and EOR platforms including Deel and Remote to manage country-specific new hire and offboarding requirements worldwide
• Build and maintain standard operating procedures so that global processes are documented, clear, and resilient to turnover
• Represent the broader People Operations team on EMEA and JAPAC matters, using judgment to determine what can be actioned immediately and what requires US collaboration
• Partner cross-functionally with People Systems, Legal, IT, Payroll, and Workplace teams based in the US to ensure alignment on policies, tools, and data
• Drive ongoing efficiency and continuous improvement for compliance and HR processes as we scale into additional countries and complexity
• Act with decisiveness and simplicity in line with company values, making timely decisions based on clear judgment rather than waiting for perfect information
• Operate with intensity and ownership, staying close to internal customers and external partners to uphold high standards of service and compliance

Requirements

• 4-6 years of HR or People Operations experience, ideally gained in a mature, multi-country organization
• Experience running compliance like a program, including building, maintaining, and improving processes over time rather than only administering them
• Strong, hands-on knowledge of employment law and compliance in at least one region outside the US, with EMEA and/or JAPAC experience preferred for its time zone value
• Working knowledge of GDPR and HR data protection requirements
• Experience with HRIS and payroll platforms such as Workday, Deel, or Remote
• A track record of working independently across a global, distributed team, with good instincts about when to escalate and when to resolve issues directly
• A strategic mindset combined with a strong inclination for program and project management
• Excellent written communication skills, given the async nature of working across time zones
• Comfort being the go-to point of contact for a region during your hours and the confidence to represent the function externally to partners and agencies

Nice to have

No additional preferred items are specified beyond those listed in the requirements.

Practical notes

The role is full time and based in London, with an expectation to cover EMEA and JAPAC hours effectively. There may be an applicant privacy notice that applies depending on your location; further details are available at https://harveyai.notion.site/Harvey-Candidate-Privacy-Notices-319ac3fcdd7a803bb807d5094f249922?pvs=74. Harvey is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related condition, or any other basis protected by law. The company is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities.