MacGregor Black
People Business Partner

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Do you have HR Business Partnering experience within engineering, manufacturing or another technically complex environment?
Can you coach managers, improve organisational capability and support demanding workforce plans?
Are you comfortable using people data to influence decisions in a fast-paced, performance-focused business?
MacGregor Black are partnering with a leading technology-led engineering organisation on the search for a People Business Partner – Engineering & Manufacturing. This is a permanent role based in Swindon, Oxfordshire.
Partnering with leaders across a highly technical business area, you will translate operational priorities and future capability requirements into focused, deliverable people plans.
This is a broad business-partnering role covering organisational capability, workforce planning, talent, succession, engagement, performance and change. You will work closely with managers and specialist People teams to build leadership capability and create a consistently high-performing employee experience.
Key Responsibilities:
- Act as a trusted partner to managers and leaders across a complex engineering and technical population.
- Translate business-area priorities into practical people plans with clear measures of success.
- Coach and challenge managers to improve leadership capability, accountability and team performance.
- Support organisational change and help leaders navigate ambiguity in a fast-moving environment.
- Identify current and future skills gaps and develop workforce strategies that address critical capability requirements.
- Partner with Finance and Early Careers teams to create sustainable workforce and talent plans.
- Support talent reviews, succession planning, capability development and retention activity.
- Use people analytics and business data to identify workforce risks, cost opportunities and organisational-design requirements.
- Work with Talent Acquisition on resource planning, talent mapping and the development of future talent pipelines.
- Support managers with performance reviews, objective setting, salary reviews and wider people processes.
- Use internal and external insights to strengthen decision-making across the employee lifecycle.
- Partner with Employee Relations specialists to help managers address complex and sensitive employee matters.
- Work collaboratively with People Services and specialist People teams to improve processes and the overall employee experience.
- Support the development of a sustainable, accountable and high-performance culture.
Reasons to use Rodeo
I’m in my final year doing Economics and I don’t know whether to apply for grad schemes now or do a masters first. What do you think?
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Graduate Consultant — 2026 Scheme
Why you're a good match
StrongYour economics background and your summer at a regional bank line up with what PwC looks for on the consulting scheme. Applications close in four weeks.
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Why you're a good match
You’ve got the grades and the economics background, and your bank internship is exactly the experience this scheme looks for. Apply soon — deadlines close within the month.
Experience fit
Your summer at the bank plus your econometrics coursework map directly to the day-one responsibilities on this scheme — client modelling, market briefings, and deal support.
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What We’re Looking For:


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- Previous experience operating as an HR Business Partner or People Business Partner.
- Experience supporting engineering, manufacturing, automotive, aerospace, defence, technology or another technical workforce would be highly advantageous.
- A track record of delivering people initiatives in a fast-paced, multidisciplinary environment.
- Experience of workforce planning, organisational change, talent development and succession planning.
- Confidence using people analytics to guide business and workforce decisions.
- Strong coaching, influencing and relationship-building capabilities.
- The ability to build credibility with technically focused managers and senior stakeholders.
- Commercially aware, pragmatic and comfortable balancing strategic priorities with hands-on delivery.
- Comfortable navigating ambiguity and supporting evolving organisational requirements.
- CIPD Level 5 or an equivalent level of professional experience.
£75k-80k plus benefits
For more information, please contact Alice Redmond.
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