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Talent & People Operations Specialist (Maternity Cover 9-12 months)

Zencargo

Zencargo

People & HR, Operations
London, UK
Posted on Mar 6, 2026
We’re looking for a proactive and adaptable Talent Acquisition & People Operations Specialist to join us on a maternity cover contract. In this role, you’ll lead end-to-end recruitment across all business areas globally — from candidate attraction through to pre-boarding and onboarding — ensuring a seamless and efficient experience for both candidates and hiring managers.
Alongside recruitment, you’ll also own and lend support to broader People Operations workflows, that help keep the People function running smoothly.
Department
People Team
Employment Type
Fixed Term - Full Time
Location
London
Workplace type
Hybrid

Key Responsibilities


Talent Acquisition

  • Own the full recruitment lifecycle across the global organisation; US, APAC, EU
  • Partner with hiring managers to define roles, sourcing strategies, and interview processes
  • Build targeted sourcing pipelines and manage external partners where necessary
  • Stay informed on global TA trends, tools, and best practices.
  • Drive an exceptional candidate experience from first touch to offer.
  • Own pre-boarding and onboarding processes for new starters, ensuring a smooth transition
  • Track and report key metrics including pipeline health, time-to-hire, and candidate experience insights
  • Own weekly leadership updates on live roles and the broader talent landscape

People Operations

  • Own global onboarding; employment contracts, issuing equipment, tech stack setup, HRIS enrollment including right to work and payroll information
  • Own core People processes within the employee lifecycle post on-boarding; queries, benefits, and documentation as needed
  • Support the People team to ensure compliance, consistency, and great employee experience
  • Maintain accurate people data, systems, and records

What You’ll Bring

  • Proven experience managing end-to-end recruitment in a fast-moving, global environment
  • Strong organisational skills and the ability to juggle multiple requisitions and priorities
  • Comfortable switching between strategic hiring conversations and hands-on operational work
  • Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills across all levels
  • A people-first mindset with a commitment to inclusive hiring and employee experience
  • Experience with generalist People Operations and someone who is passionate about data and administration for time-efficient, future-proof people operations is a strong plus

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

Soft Skills

  • Communication & Collaboration: Build strong working relationships with stakeholders, candidates, and external partners across different locations and time zones.
  • Cultural Sensitivity: Engage effectively with global teams and adapt approaches for local cultural nuances.
  • Strategic Thinking: Anticipate hiring challenges and recommend solutions aligned with short-, mid- and long-term people needs.
  • Empathy & Candidate-Centric Focus: Create a positive candidate journey while balancing timelines and business requirements.
  • Negotiation & Influencing: Navigate offers and stakeholder expectations to achieve balanced outcomes.
  • Time Management & Organisation: Manage multiple concurrent hiring processes and People Ops tasks while prioritising deadlines effectively.

Technical / Competency Skills

  • Global Recruitment Expertise: Experience managing end-to-end recruitment across multiple international regions with knowledge of global hiring practices.
  • Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS): Skilled in managing pipelines, workflows, and reporting through ATS platforms.
  • Data Health Maintenance: Maintain accurate data across HRIS and ATS systems to ensure alignment between Talent Acquisition and People Operations activities.
  • Data Analysis & Metrics: Comfortable analysing hiring data to identify trends, measure performance, and inform decision-making.
  • Sourcing & Networking Tools: Proficient with LinkedIn Recruiter, job boards, and other sourcing platforms to build talent pipelines.
  • Employer Branding: Ability to support employer brand initiatives that enhance talent attraction and market visibility.
  • Stakeholder Management: Skilled in managing expectations and communications with senior leaders, hiring managers, and external partners.

About Zencargo


Zencargo is a digital-first freight forwarder & logistics provider. Our platform allows customers to book, maintain and keep track of their international freight as well as use analytics to drive intelligent supply chain decisions that help their businesses thrive.


Whilst shipping is a complex trillion-dollar industry, you might be surprised to know that many of the processes that could be simplified with technology are currently done over the phone, by fax and email or even jotted down on scraps of paper


Our services include ocean, air and rail freight as well as trucking and cargo insurance. We deliver significant time, paper and financial savings to our customers offering instant quoting, easy booking and an online dashboard to give them 360 degree, 24/7 visibility on their shipments. Shippers and their counterparts collaborate to oversee their logistics on Zencargo and all their supply chain data is stored together in the cloud making business analytics easier than ever.


At Zencargo, we believe that technology can simplify logistical complexity and tear down barriers to trade. Automating trade and logistics operations and providing access to data and analysis will help companies to trade smarter and more efficiently, freeing businesses to concentrate on key outcomes. Only by combining human endeavour and technology, can we build smarter supply chains that know no borders.


Life at Zencargo


What’s in it for me?
  • Zencargo is where you come to do something you're passionate about, and learn new things. We are in scale mode at Zencargo and we work to realistic growth targets and metrics. You will thrive here if you enjoy working in a scaling environment. As we grow we want you to grow with us.
  • At Zencargo there is a huge opportunity to build your experience and grow your career. We want you to be part of the team for a long time to come, and we will focus on helping you get to where you want to be. We all have dreams and aspirations. As part of the Zencargo team, we ask you to deliver your optimum work and help us create real value for our customers and teams.

Work, Life and Balance

At Zencargo, we work hard! We do, however, realise that you have family, friends, interests and life outside the world of work. As a scaling business, we constantly evolve our reward and benefits approach.


Here are some highlights!

United Kingdom
  • Generous Annual Leave
  • Flexible, Remote and Hybrid Working
  • Home Equipment Allowance
  • BUPA Private Medical Insurance
  • Annual L&D Budget
  • Paid Volunteering Days
  • Pension Scheme
  • Enhanced Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave & Pay

Netherlands
  • 33 days paid holiday annually, including statutory Dutch national public holidays
  • Pension Scheme
  • Flexible, Remote and Hybrid Working
  • Home Equipment Allowance
  • Annual L&D Budget
  • Paid Volunteering Days
  • Enhanced Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave & Pay
United States
  • 33 days paid holiday annually, pro rata, including national public holidays and Veteran’s Day
  • Home Equipment Allowance
  • 401K Pension Scheme
  • Private healthcare scheme
  • Annual L&D Budget
  • Paid Volunteering Days
  • Enhanced Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave & Pay


United States

Our Vision, Mission and Values

Zencargo is a company driven by our Vision, Mission and Values. We conduct values interviews as part of our recruitment process to ensure we are able to hire top talent that embodies concepts that align with our core values and beliefs.

  • Our Zencargo Vision - "A world with smarter trade"

  • Our Zencargo Mission - "To make customers' supply chain their competitive advantage"

Our Zencargo Values
  • We Learn Fast and Grow
  • We Build Trust
  • We Take Ownership
  • We Deliver Outcomes

A Fair Chance

Every role in the Zencargo team is open to applications from all sections of society. We believe in the superpowers and potential of everyone, regardless of race, religion or belief, ethnic origin, different physical ability, family structure, socio-economics, age, nationality or citizenship, marital, domestic or civil partnership status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other difference that makes you, you.

More than just encouraging your application, we're committed to conscious inclusion that (we hope and intend) cultivates an environment of belonging.

We open our doors to those who share these motivations.

Our Hiring Process

Stage 1:

Application Received

Stage 2:

Zencargo - Talent Acquisition Interview

Stage 3:

Zencargo - Values Interview

Stage 4:

Zencargo - Offer

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