Interim HR director jobs · hire an interim HR director for the restructure, the deal or the gap

Interim HR director jobs: when companies hire one

An interim HR director takes the HR seat full-time for a fixed term. It is a leadership role with authority over the function, not a project consultant and not an HR manager covering day-to-day processes. Companies usually hire one when an event arrives that carries legal risk and a deadline.

Restructures and redundancies

Where an employer proposes redundancies at or above the statutory threshold at one establishment within the statutory period, Acas explains that it must hold collective consultation with a recognised trade union or elected employee representatives, and that staggering redundancies to avoid consultation can lead to a protective award. The employer must also notify the government in advance on the HR1 form; failing to do so without good cause can mean prosecution and a fine for the company and its officers. An interim HR director owns the plan, the consultation timetable and the records.

TUPE transfers, mergers and acquisitions

When a business or a service changes hands, employees may be protected by TUPE: their jobs and terms usually transfer and continuity of employment is kept. Acas advises both the old and the new employer to make a transfer plan, keep affected employees informed and consider due diligence information, and by law both must inform and consult staff representatives. After the deal comes harmonisation: two sets of terms, two handbooks, two HR systems.

Employee-relations cases and vacancies

A grievance against a senior leader, a run of tribunal claims or a collective dispute needs someone senior and independent of the history. The Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures is the minimum an employer should follow, and a tribunal will look at the procedure used. The simplest trigger is a vacancy: the HR director has left and the permanent search will take time.

Interim head of HR: the same brief, one level down

An interim head of HR runs the HR function day to day for a fixed term: the casework, the policies, the HR system and the first call for managers. In many businesses the head of HR reports to the CEO, COO or finance lead and delivers the function, while an HR director sits on the leadership team and is accountable for it. At a smaller company the two titles often describe the same job.

Hire an interim head of HR when the programme is operational: cover through a vacancy, a policy overhaul, an HR system rollout, or a run of casework that has outgrown the team. Choose an interim HR director when the decisions also need leadership authority: a restructure, a transfer, an integration.

Either way, brief the work, not the title. Our shortlist sets out each candidate’s day rate, availability and IR35 position, so an interim head of HR and an interim HR director can be compared on the same page.

IR35 for interim HR directors

Where an interim HR director provides services through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply. In most cases the client decides the worker’s status; for a small client outside the public sector, the worker’s own company decides. HMRC sets out the size tests in its guidance for clients.

Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice, not on the contract’s label. An interim who runs the HR function full-time, manages the team and answers to the chief executive needs the contract and the working reality looked at together. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests, and we set out each candidate’s IR35 position on the shortlist without promising an outcome.