Senior People & Culture Partner

Career Grade: C

Location: Bengaluru

About the role:

This role partners the newly created Networks and Digital units in India (c. 3000+ colleagues), which are undergoing a period of transformation to accelerate BT’s digital growth. The HR team plays a critical role in enabling this transformation by developing and delivering an integrated, solution-focused people plan.

The Senior P&C Partner acts as a strategic architect, connecting the dots between global business partners, Centres of Expertise (CoEs), and local execution to shape the future technology organization and its evolving value proposition.

Role Accountabilities:

Draw necessary cognizance of intersection points between Tech & India People Plans to drive initiatives for a consistent colleague experience.

Skill-Based AI Transformation:== Lead the transition from traditional job-based structures to a dynamic skills taxonomy. You will identify the future skills required for an AI-augmented workforce and implement re-skilling pathways to enhance engineering productivity.

High-Density Engineering Pod Design:== Oversee the organizational design and evolution of the "Engineering Excellence Embedded Pod Model," ensuring structures promote high engineering density and delivery velocity while reducing operational friction.

STRADA Governance:== Manage the STRADA Governance framework to ensure a strategic balance between full-time employees and vendor partners, maintaining the 10–15% headcount ceiling while ensuring culture and quality consistency.

Operating Model Simplification: Work with senior leaders to simplify the operating model, transforming the people-related cost base to create an agile, fast-paced organization.

Next Generation Skills & Location Strategy: Ensure units have the right skills in the right place by supporting a fully integrated strategic workforce plan that suits agile ways of working.

Performance & Talent Governance: Drive in-country performance management using data-led weighted scoring models and leverage talent reviews to identify leadership potential (CLB/C/D).

Diversity & Inclusion: Drive D&I initiatives (such as Lumina and Here4Her) woven through hiring, development, and sponsorship practices.

Influence and coach the leaders and broader HR team in support of the strategic workforce planning & future skills approach for the Technology units in the country

Drive rewards strategy for the business unit in the country and Digital Unit (Pay Ranges, Pay Positioning for different segments of talent, Retention Plans, Differentiated rewards strategy for high performers, off-cycle etc.)

Drive – In country performance management (Ensuring the Technology/Unit goals are broadly cascaded to all, Goal Setting completions, Underperformance management, drive regular performance check-ins and quarterly performance reviews, End of year review process to have a country view of performance distribution)

Leverage Group/In-country LLTD offerings & influence where something different is needed for Tech Units to ensure we have a structured investment in all talent segments through various learning offerings and a differentiated approach for HiPos to accelerate their readiness for next roles

HR Effectiveness: Work with the wider HR team, its ways of working and skills to deliver the people plan and strategy. Focus on development of self and the broader team, championing a culture of self directed learning & development. Leading on upskilling pathways to support internal career opportunities and talent development

The role has a responsibility of managing a team of HRBPs in the Technology Units in India – with a clear focus on their structured goals, careers and development plans

The role holder is also expected to increase the capability of our leaders to lead and manage change & transformation effectively

High performing Teams: Support the business to develop strategic imperatives including pro-active Talent agenda in order to to ensure retention of key employees, developing leadership succession plans, raising people leader capability, performance and overall healthy churn.

Skills & Experience:

15+ years of experience as an HR Business Partner, preferably in a fast-paced technology or digital work environment.

+ Experience in Skill-Based AI Transformation: Proven track record in managing workforce transitions within an "AI-first" environment, specifically focusing on skill-mapping and AI-enabled future of work strategies.

Strategic Relationship Management: Experience building strong strategic relationships and challenging senior stakeholders (e.g., Chief Digital Officer, Senior Partners).

Commercial Thinker: Strong analytical skills and commercial awareness; comfortable interpreting data to drive insight-led decisions and evidenced ROI.

Change Agent: Evidenced experience in leading large-scale people projects, OD, and cultural change management with global dependencies.

HR Mastery: Strong understanding of India labour law and market. UK Market exposure is an added advantage. Robust technical HR knowledge, and its practical application, including hands-on experience with HRIS platforms like SAP SuccessFactors.

Education: Masters/Post-graduate in HR (preferable, e.g., XLRI, IIMs).

BT Group’s Behaviours

Customer First

Prioritize customer needs in every decision and action.

Challengers

Challenge the status quo and bring innovative ideas to life.

Committed

Own outcomes and deliver with integrity.

Clear

Communicate openly and simply, ensuring alignment.

Connected

Collaborate across teams to achieve shared goals.

BT Group is the UK’s leading communications group and the holding company behind some of the country’s most recognised brands – including BT, EE, Openreach and Plusnet. Our purpose is as simple as it is ambitious: we connect for good. Our customers include consumers, small, medium and large businesses, public sector organisations and other communications providers.

BT Group’s role is about setting direction, unlocking value and creating the conditions for our brands and businesses to thrive.

Having come through the most capital-intensive phase of our fibre investment, our focus now is on what comes next – simplifying how we operate, using technology and AI to work smarter, and organising ourselves to serve customers better and grow sustainably. Group teams shape strategy, policy, brand, capital allocation and transformation, helping the whole organisation perform at its best.

We have a singular culture that unites all our people: we are customer-first challengers, who are committed, clear and connected. These behaviours unite us as one team to deliver for our colleagues, our customers, our stakeholders and the country. Joining BT Group means working at the heart of a business that matters to the UK, with the opportunity to shape decisions, influence outcomes and help set the future course of one of the country’s most important companies.