Head of People and Culture
Location: UK - Hybrid
Hours: Full time
About Swoop
We are a global community of over 100 adventure travel enthusiasts - ex-guides, avid travellers, and those with an adventurous spirit - spanning five continents. Since 2010, we’ve helped more than 15,000 people experience the trip of a lifetime in Antarctica, Patagonia and the Arctic. Our success is rooted in our intimate knowledge of these incredible regions, our deep care for their preservation, our commitment, as a B Corp, to doing what’s right for people and the planet and, above all, our connectedness as a global team.
About the role
We’re excited to be looking for a Head of People & Culture who can shape how it feels to work at Swoop. This role sits at the heart of our business — championing fairness, clarity and high performance across a global, hybrid team of 100+ Swoopers spread across multiple countries. You’ll report to our COO and join our management team, you’ll lead the design of our employee experience, ensuring Swoopers can do their best work while we continue to grow thoughtfully and sustainably.
This is a hands-on leadership role. You’ll build the frameworks, tools and ways of working that strengthen manager capability, raise performance standards and bring our values to life every day. You’ll also take ownership of our global people compliance — digging into the details, understanding what’s required in each country and implementing solutions that are fair, practical and right for Swoop.
If you’re the kind of people leader who combines clear thinking with compassion, who enjoys solving complex problems, and who can balance strategic judgement with rolling up your sleeves to get the job done, this is a rare opportunity to have a lasting impact. You’ll shape our Employee Value Proposition, support our managers and influence how we grow, lead and work together — all while making Swoop an even better place to work.
Key responsibilities
Act as the go-to people partner for managers at all levels, providing clear, pragmatic advice on hiring, performance, absence, wellbeing and exits.
Strengthen manager capability by coaching them through people decisions and giving them the tools, frameworks and confidence to lead their teams well.
Design and embed simple, effective people frameworks — including performance reviews, probation processes, feedback tools and leadership expectations.
Work with Heads of Departments to define what good looks like across roles and ensure performance expectations are consistent, fair and understood.
Lead the development and rollout of Swoop’s employee value proposition (EVP), ensuring it is reflected in recruitment, onboarding, performance and development.
Measure the employee experience through surveys, pulse checks and qualitative insight, and use this data to strengthen culture, clarity and belonging.
Take hands-on ownership of global people compliance in year one: mapping how Swoopers are engaged across all countries, understanding local requirements and ensuring we are fair, compliant and consistent.
Update contracts, policies and guidance, and produce clear documentation managers can confidently apply.
Identify people risks early and work with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Management Team (MT) to prioritise and address them.
Contribute as an active member of the Management Team — bringing insight, challenge and clarity to discussions on performance, culture, capability and change.
Help reduce people-related escalation to the SLT by creating simple processes, clear expectations and early manager intervention.
Champion Swoop’s values and ensure they show up in everyday behaviours, decisions and leadership practices across the organisation.
Own IT support across all teams at Swoop, giving Swoopers the basic tools they need to do their jobs well.
About you
You’re an experienced People professional (ideally CIPD or the equivalent on-the-job experience) who’s ready to own the whole People & Culture function for a growing, global business.
You have strong HR advisory or HR business partner experience and feel confident coaching managers through tricky people decisions with empathy and clarity.
You enjoy designing simple, effective frameworks — performance reviews, feedback tools, probation processes — and you know how to bring them to life and implement them across a business.
You’re energised by improving performance and capability, not just maintaining processes, and you’re comfortable having honest conversations when expectations aren’t being met and coaching others to do the same.
You have hands-on experience with people compliance and employment legislation and feel comfortable digging into the details, especially when roles span multiple countries.
You balance judgement and pragmatism well — you can explain options, risks and trade-offs, and you know when to be flexible and when to hold the line.
You’re confident using people data, surveys and insight to spot themes, measure the employee experience and shape culture and ways of working.
You’re proactive and accountable — someone who naturally identifies people risks early, surfaces challenges with clarity and takes ownership of finding the right solution.
You’re a clear, confident communicator who builds trust quickly and enjoys partnering with managers and leaders at all levels.
You’re organised, proactive and steady under pressure — someone who can hold both detail and big-picture thinking at the same time.
You care deeply about culture and fairness, and you’re excited by the chance to shape an Employee Value Proposition, strengthen belonging and bring Swoop’s values to life through everyday actions.
You’re motivated by roles where you can roll up your sleeves, design better ways of working and make a tangible difference across the whole business — combining practical delivery with long-term thinking.
Employment details
Holiday:
Twenty-five days paid holiday, in addition to your birthday and public holidays
Working Hours:
Full-time, 37.5 hours per week. We offer flexibility within our typical Monday to Friday (8:30 am – 5:30 pm) window to help you balance your day. As we work with Global Swoopers across different time zones, we ask for occasional flexibility to accommodate calls with our Global Swoopers that may fall outside of standard business hours.
Working Arrangements:
Hybrid
This role is mainly remote, with the expectation that the successful candidate will join us in our Bristol office at least once a month to join management team meetings and in-person collaboration
All team members will also be required to join our International Swoop Togetherness Event, held once a year — a chance for the entire global Swoop team to connect in person
Our Bristol Office:
Located in the heart of Berkeley Square, our Bristol office offers a beautiful, central setting with plenty of perks. You’ll have access to a mini gym, lovely breakout areas, and a variety of inspiring workspaces throughout the building — perfect for collaborating, meeting colleagues, or simply enjoying a change of scenery. It’s a space designed to balance focus with creativity and connection.
Benefits Include:
Annual International Swoop Togetherness event
Monthly company bonus
Company MAC laptop
Wellbeing support
A supportive, globally connected culture where balance and belonging matter
How to apply
If you feel you’ve got what it takes, please click Apply Now. The closing date to apply for this role is Sunday 4th January 2026.
Once you have applied, you will receive a Swoop application form, which must be completed and submitted by Midday on Monday 5th January 2026 in order for your application to be considered.
Supporting you to be yourself
Swoop is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer for all Swoopers all over the world. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, or veteran status. We support Swoopers to feel they can be absolutely themselves, because only then we will get the best out of each other.