Most CPO roles come with a seat at the top table on paper. Far fewer come with a Chief Executive who genuinely wants a partner in shaping strategy, not just an executor of it — and fewer still come with a remit this broad, spanning HR, Property & Facilities, ESG and Internal Communications. This is one of those rarer opportunities, at a specialist, highly regulated financial services organisation employing c.1000 colleagues. This is not a role about keeping the HR function ticking over; it is about leading the people agenda through the next phase of maturity, post-integration. Our client has a genuine, values-led sense of purpose that runs through everything it does, with the customer experience sitting at the heart of every major decision, giving the business a clarity of mission that is rare in the sector, and it’s time to hand the next chapter to a new CPO.
This is a full Executive Committee seat, not a supporting function: principal adviser to the CEO, active co-author of business strategy, and owner of that breadth of remit, leading a sizeable team. Internal communications is used deliberately here, connecting every employee’s day-to-day role to the wider customer journey and to the outcomes customers experience — making this a genuinely commercial, not just cultural, part of the brief. You will join a well-integrated, collaborative Executive team that works effectively together and values challenge as much as consensus, led by a Chief Executive who is visibly invested in employee experience as a business imperative. The business is still on its journey following a period of significant organisational change, and the next CPO will not inherit a finished story — they will help write it, with real scope to leave a lasting mark on the organisation’s next chapter.
Read onYou are a people professional who operates as a genuine business partner. You understand commercial performance and you translate people work into business outcomes. You see your role as building the environment in which exceptional work happens. You are assertive and confident, while remaining genuinely warm and people-centred in the way you lead. You are ambitious, both for the organisation you join and for your own career, and you are ready to make your mark on two high-profile and exacting environments.
A background in multi-site, fast-paced organisations will serve you well here. The sector you come from matters far less than your ability to move quickly, hold complexity and bring people with you.
Read on
The thing that differentiates Vana is their ability to really understand not just the role but also the cultural fit that is needed in a business and they establish this through maintaining a great relationships with both candidates and clients on an ongoing basis regardless if they are actively recruiting or not. Debbie introduced me to Openwork as she managed the CPO search, but also she and Jo have since supported me with key hires within the team.
Carrie Morris, CPO, Openwork
