People Manager

Details

Level/Experience: Mid-to senior-level role.

Location: This is a hybrid role, and you have the choice to work remotely from home, or join us in the office in central Brighton.

This is a full-time role aligned to our 4-day (32-hour) work week.

We’re looking for a People Manager to join us at Great Ape Games. This is our first in-house HR hire, and a genuinely important role for the studio. You’ll take ownership of HR across the business, shaping how it works day to day while ensuring we remain compliant, consistent and supportive as we grow. You’ll be the person we rely on to make sure people matters are handled properly, fairly and with sound judgement. This is not about building layers of process or corporate structure. It’s about creating something thoughtful, practical and human that fits how we work.

You’ll partner closely with the founders and team, bringing clarity to complexity, handling sensitive situations with care, and building strong foundations that allow the business to grow with confidence.

What the Job Entails

You’ll take ownership of HR across the business, ensuring we operate compliantly, consistently and with care.

  • Take full ownership of how people experience the company from day one through to exit

  • Apply practical, working knowledge of UK employment law in day-to-day situations

  • Bring structure, clarity and calm to how we handle people processes

  • Enable leaders to focus on growing the business, knowing HR is in safe hands

  • Build strong foundations for future growth, including processes, systems and frameworks

  • Handle day-to-day HR decisions independently, using sound judgement and escalating where appropriate.

  • Partner directly with the founders, acting as a trusted HR sounding board, while working closely with leads to embed thoughtful and consistent people practices across the team.

This is a hands-on role with a high degree of autonomy, suited to someone who enjoys taking ownership and making things better.

Requirements

You’ll be our go-to for all things HR, taking ownership across the full employee lifecycle and ensuring the business operates in a compliant, consistent and thoughtful way. You’ll bring strong, practical experience applying UK employment law in real-world situations, including employee relations matters such as disciplinaries, grievances and performance management.

Employee Lifecycle

  • Manage all stages of the employee journey: hiring admin, onboarding, contracts, role changes and offboarding

  • Ensure onboarding is smooth and welcoming, and exits are handled professionally and compliantly

HR Systems & Operations

  • Own and manage our HRIS (CharlieHR), ensuring data is accurate, secure and actively used by the team

  • Build and maintain simple, scalable processes that people actually use

Compliance & Policy

  • Maintain strong working knowledge of UK employment law and apply it confidently in real situations

  • Keep policies, documentation and internal processes up to date and fit for purpose

  • Support workplace compliance (H&S, statutory training, etc.) without overcomplicating things

Payroll, Benefits & Administration

  • Work with our external payroll provider to ensure payroll runs accurately and on time

  • Manage benefits administration, enrolments and employee communications

  • Maintain clean, organised and compliant HR records

Employee Relations

  • Confidently handle employee relations matters including disciplinaries, grievances, absence and performance issues

  • Work closely with founders and managers to ensure people practices are applied consistently across the business

  • Handle sensitive situations with discretion, sound judgement and professionalism

  • Act as a trusted and discreet point of contact for sensitive and complex people matters

Reporting & Insight

  • Produce clear, useful people data and reports

  • Spot trends, risks and areas for improvement early

Culture, Wellbeing & Development

  • Support and bring structure to wellbeing initiatives alongside our wellness ambassadors

  • Help managers build confidence in leading their teams

  • Support training and development planning, including effective use of budgets

  • Comfortable operating with sensitivity and discretion in a creative, close-knit team environment with a range of personality types.

Desirables

  • Confident in applying UK employment law in real-world situations, not just policy writing

  • CIPD qualification or working towards one is desired

  • A proactive mindset where you spot inefficiencies, take ownership, and make things better, in line with our culture and values.

  • Comfortable working without a large HR team or established playbook, and confident building from first principles

  • Excellent documentation and process-building skills, with a focus on clarity and usability

  • Able to juggle multiple priorities and deadlines without dropping the ball

  • High levels of discretion, confidentiality and professional judgement

  • Comfortable working closely with founders, offering clear, trusted advice

  • Build trusted, positive relationships across the whole team

  • Act as an advocate for fair, inclusive and genuinely people-first decision-making

What Success Looks Like

  • The business feels safe, compliant and well-run from a people perspective

  • Managers feel supported and confident handling people situations

  • Processes are clear, lightweight and actually used

  • The team feels looked after, not managed

  • Founders can focus on growing the business, knowing HR is in safe hands

This role may not be for you if:

  • You prefer working within a large HR team or established structure

  • You are more comfortable advising than owning and delivering

  • You rely heavily on process or policy rather than judgement

  • You are looking for a purely strategic role without hands-on responsibility

Benefits

  • A four-day (32h) workweek as standard.

  • Work from home or the office – it's up to you.

  • A genuine, company-wide aversion to crunch.

  • Private health, dental and life insurance

  • 31 days’ paid holiday during each holiday year, including all bank holiday entitlements plus your birthday.

  • Extra time off for special days/events or emergencies. No questions asked.

  • Fast-growing studio with good potential for career advancement.

  • Team meetups (always optional) a few times a year.

  • Annual allowance for personal and career development courses.

  • A flexible perks package – spend points on whatever you want.

If you feel you have something to offer this role, even if you don’t think you qualify for all the above, please still apply. We are an inclusive employer and if you have potential, talent and a great work ethic, we want to hear from you. 🙏

Apply Now