HR Generalist

About The Role

We are looking for a capable, hands-on HR Generalist to join our New York team. Reporting to the Head of HR - US, you will become the operational backbone of HR for our US business, which makes this a broad, varied role with genuine ownership from day one.

Employee relations sits at the heart of the role. You will be the first point of contact for US employees and managers on the majority of day-to-day people matters directly with confidence, partnering with the Head of HR - US on the most complex or sensitive issues.


Alongside employee relations, you will own a wide span of operational HR - policy and compliance, HR systems and records, payroll coordination, benefits administration, immigration administration, and the full employee lifecycle. You will sit within a global HR team spanning London and Hong Kong, working to ensure employees enjoy a consistent, welcoming experience wherever they are based. An interest in supporting social activities, bringing people together, and considering actions through an EDI and Sustainability lens will be warmly welcomed.

This is an exciting time to join a growing business, where you will play a key role in shaping the way we work.

Employee Relations

• Act as the first point of contact for US employees and managers on day-to-day employee relations matters, providing timely, empathetic, and pragmatic advice.
• Manage employee relations matters end to end - including leaves of absence, complaints, disciplinary matters, and performance concerns - escalating complex, high-risk, or sensitive cases to the Head of HR - US.
• Support and, where appropriate, conduct investigations, ensuring accurate documentation and fair, consistent outcomes.
• Coach and guide line managers through performance conversations, feedback, and informal resolution, building their confidence and capability.
• Maintain accurate, confidential records of all ER activity and track themes to surface trends and recommend improvements.

Policy, Compliance, and Immigration

• Maintain and regularly review US HR policies and the employee handbook, ensuring alignment with federal, state, and local requirements (including NY/NYC and multi-state), and escalating material changes to the Head of HR - US.
• Maintain compliance records and support statutory and regulatory reporting obligations.
• Administer immigration and work-authorization processes, including record-keeping for visas, secondments, and relocations, coordinating with external counsel and the Head of HR - US as needed.

HR Operations, Systems, and Budget ing

• Serve as the primary US administrator for HR systems (Hibob and TriNet), maintaining accurate, up-to-date records and strong data integrity.
• Manage the operational HR budget for the US business, tracking spend against budget and managing day-to-day vendor relationships within agreed parameters.
• Own employee lifecycle administration, including offer letters, contractual changes, salary and promotion letters, resignations, and template management, ensuring timely and accurate communication.
• Produce and analyze HR data to support decision-making and recommend business and team improvements.

Benefits and Open Enrolment

• Provide day-to-day administration of US employee benefits, acting as a knowledgeable first point of contact for employee queries.
• Support the annual benefits renewal and open enrolment process - with a view to leading operational delivery over time - ensuring smooth execution and clear employee communication.

Employee Lifecycle and Experience

• Own employee onboarding and offboarding, partnering with line managers to deliver a consistent, welcoming, and smooth experience.
• Conduct stay and exit interviews, analysing feedback to identify retention and engagement themes, and sharing insight and recommendations with managers and the Head of HR - US.
• Manage the Buddy scheme for new starters and conduct onboarding check-ins, summarizing feedback for managers where appropriate.

Engagement, EDI, and the Wider Team

• Champion equality, diversity, and inclusion through proactive engagement, initiatives, and events.
• Work closely with HR colleagues in London and Hong Kong to ensure a consistent employee experience across PEI, wherever colleagues are based.
• Support ad hoc HR projects and wider people initiatives as the US business grows.

About You

Essential Experience:

• Solid HR generalist experience (typically three or more years), ideally in a fast-paced or international business.
• Demonstrable employee relations experience, including managing issues independently.
• Working knowledge of US federal and state employment law (New York / multi-state advantageous).
• Experience administering a mid-tier HRIS (Hibob or similar).
• Experience administering employee benefits.
• Strong administrative discipline and accurate record-keeping.

Desired Experience:

• Experience working with a US-based PEO (e.g. TriNet).
• Supporting more than one location across time zones.
• Maintaining HR policies and employee handbooks.
• Exposure to immigration / visa administration.
• Working in an environment where EDI or ESG considerations are a priority.

Essential Knowledge/Skills:

• Strong relationship building and collaboration skills across all levels of the business.
• An ownership mindset with curiosity to problem-solve.
• Discretion and confidentiality.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Exceptionally organized, with strong time management and the ability to prioritise competing demands.
• Consistent attention to detail and accuracy.
• Confident with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook) and workplace communication tools (Slack, Zoom).

Desired Knowledge/Skills:

• HR qualification (aPHR, PHR, SHRM-CP or working towards one).

About Us

Who we are:

PEI Group is a subscriber-focused business intelligence company. With our multi-talented global team of over 490 people, spread across EMEA, USA & Asia, our purpose is to inform and connect investment professionals across global, specialised markets. We identify specific high growth, high value investment sectors and themes where deep insight, strong market relationships and active capital flows are critical for success.

What we do:

PEI Group provides industry-leading journalism, data, and market insight to subscribing clients via a wide portfolio of specialist brands supported by our robust and scalable digital publishing, analytics, and database platform. We also track the firms and individuals who shape markets and bring client-communities together to enable knowledge sharing, profile building and relationship development through professional networks and events. Wherever our markets are active - in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Sydney, Hong Kong, Singapore, London and elsewhere - PEI is hard at work examining crucial market forces and shifting investment themes, identifying active investors and their capital allocations, and scanning ahead for regulatory changes, new compliance requirements and other risk factors.

At PEI we value diverse talent and welcome applications from everyone - regardless of background. We are an equal opportunity employer and our inclusive culture at PEI is reflected in every stage of the recruitment journey. Please inform us at initial stages of the recruitment process if you require any reasonable adjustments and we can accommodate this.

PEI Group supports flexible working arrangements, and we welcome career returners.