Manager - Early Career

Lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of the organization's Early Career strategy and programs, creating structured development pathways that attract, develop, and retain high-potential early-career talent.

The role will oversee graduate, internship, and other early-career development initiatives from program design and selection through onboarding, development, assessment, progression, and program completion.

The Manager will work closely with business leaders, HR Business Partners, Talent Acquisition, Learning & Development, and external partners to ensure programs build the capabilities and future talent pipelines required by the organization.

The role will also ensure that early-career initiatives provide a high-quality participant experience while delivering measurable business and talent outcomes.

• Develop and implement the Early Career strategy in alignment with the overall Talent Management and workforce strategy
• Design structured graduate, internship, trainee, and other early-career development programs
• Define program journeys including onboarding, rotations, formal learning, experiential development, mentoring, assessments, and career progression
• Establish clear program governance, standards, policies, and operating procedures
• Benchmark early-career practices and introduce improvements based on market trends and organizational requirements
• Ensure programs create sustainable pipelines for critical and future capability areas

• Manage early-career programs end to end, from workforce requirements and participant selection through development and graduation
• Build structured development plans and learning journeys for program participants
• Coordinate business rotations, placements, projects, mentoring, coaching, and development activities
• Work with business leaders to identify appropriate placements and meaningful development experiences
• Monitor participant progress and proactively address performance, engagement, or development concerns
• Ensure smooth transitions from early-career programs into permanent roles where applicable

• Establish appropriate assessment methodologies to evaluate participant capability, performance, potential, and development
• Facilitate talent and progress reviews for early-career populations
• Identify high-potential participants and recommend appropriate development and career opportunities
• Partner with Talent Management and Learning & Development teams to address capability gaps
• Use assessment and performance data to continuously improve program design and participant outcomes

• Partner closely with HR Business Partners and business leaders to understand future talent and capability requirements
• Build strong relationships with managers hosting graduates, interns, and trainees
• Provide guidance and support to managers on developing and managing early-career talent
• Partner with Talent Acquisition on attraction, assessment, and selection strategies
• Collaborate with Learning & Development and Leadership Development teams to deliver high-quality development interventions
• Manage relationships with universities, educational institutions, external providers, and development partners where required

• Create a consistent and engaging employee experience throughout the early-career journey
• Develop effective communication and engagement plans for participants and their managers
• Organize development events, networking opportunities, workshops, leadership exposure, and community-building activities
• Establish feedback mechanisms to understand participant experience and identify improvement opportunities
• Act as an escalation point for significant participant or program issues

• Define and monitor KPIs for all Early Career programs
• Track participant performance, retention, engagement, program completion, placement, and progression
• Develop dashboards and reports for Talent Management and HR leadership
• Analyze program data and participant feedback to identify trends and recommend improvements
• Measure program effectiveness and demonstrate the contribution of Early Career initiatives to the organization's future talent pipeline

• Maintain appropriate governance, documentation, and controls across Early Career programs
• Ensure participant decisions and assessments are fair, consistent, evidence-based, and properly documented
• Manage program calendars, budgets, suppliers, and resources as required
• Identify opportunities to digitize and automate program administration and reporting
• Stay current on emerging practices in graduate development, skills-based talent management, AI-enabled learning, and early-career development

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Psychology, Education, Learning & Development, or a related discipline
• Master's degree is advantageous
• Professional qualifications such as CIPD, SHRM, HRCI, coaching, assessment, or talent development certifications are advantageous

• Typically 8+ years of relevant HR/Talent experience, with meaningful exposure to Early Careers, Talent Management, Learning & Development, Leadership Development, or Graduate Programs
• Demonstrated experience designing and managing structured talent or development programs
• Experience managing graduate, internship, trainee, leadership, or early-career initiatives is strongly preferred
• Experience partnering with senior business stakeholders and HR Business Partners
• Experience using talent data, assessments, and participant feedback to drive decisions
• Experience managing external vendors, universities, assessment providers, or learning partners is advantageous