People Lead

Founded in 2021, Apron is set out to help SMBs win. Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, yet the systems they rely on - especially payments - are slow, manual and not built for them. Cash flow remains their biggest challenge, driven by the gap between the demands of managing payments and the tools available to do it well.

We are closing the gap by digitising and simplifying the payments process: capturing invoices, issuing expense cards, paying and getting paid, all in one place.

We have grown fast over the past few years, expanding our team to 100 individuals across the UK, Germany, Spain and more. We are backed by Index Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Zinal Grow and Tony Fadell and we’ve raised $50m.

The ambition now is clear: build a category-defining, global fintech business. The next phase requires not just great product and ambition, but a world-class operating engine — and a People function that can scale performance without lowering the bar.

Reporting to the COO and working closely with the CEO and founder, you will own and evolve the People function end-to-end - shaping how Apron hires, operates and scales.

Your mandate: build an environment where exceptional people can do the best work of their careers, at pace. This is a hands-on role requiring sharp judgement and strong execution.

Build a High-Performance Culture

• Define a clear, founder-aligned people philosophy

• Set and maintain a high-performance bar across the business

• Ensure expectations are explicit and performance is measurable

• Strengthen a highly collaborative, in-person operating model

• Maintain consistency as the company scales internationally

Enable Performance & Leadership

• Design and embed pragmatic performance frameworks

• Equip leaders to run high-quality performance and feedback conversations

• Coach senior leaders on team effectiveness, decision-making and conflict

• Identify and resolve organisational friction early

• Ensure scale enhances, not dilutes, performance

Own Hiring & Talent Quality

• Define and uphold a rigorous hiring bar

• Improve role design, scorecards and structured interview processes

• Introduce robust, case-based assessments

• Embed clear 30-60-90 success measures

• Partner on workforce planning and prioritisation

Build Scalable People Operations

• Own the full employee lifecycle

• Ensure compliance across geographies

• Build simple, scalable systems — avoiding unnecessary process

• Leverage AI and tooling to drive efficiency

• Oversee compensation and equity frameworks

Shape Organisational Design

• Partner with leadership on org design and structure

• Translate strategy into effective teams and capabilities

• Support headcount planning and scaling decisions

• Contribute to long-term operating and location strategy

A commercial, founder-aligned People leader with experience scaling high-growth, VC-backed companies.

You likely bring:

• Experience scaling a VC-backed tech business through rapid growth

• Close partnership with founders or C-level leadership

• A strong track record coaching senior leaders

• Deep expertise in organisational design and performance management

• A high-bar, structured approach to hiring

• Operational strength - turning strategy into simple, repeatable systems

• Sound judgement in complex or sensitive situations

• Experience across international teams

• Comfort in fast-paced, high-expectation environments

• Meaningful stock options

• Pension plan

• Private health insurance with AXA (including optical and dental)

• Life assurance with MetLife

• Enhanced parental leave

• Weekly Deliveroo allowance

• 29 days holiday (plus bank holidays)

• Flexible working hours

• Cycle to Work scheme

• Electric vehicle scheme

This role is being managed on behalf of Apron by Hawkwood Partners (recruiting agency). Your application will be processed by both Apron and Hawkwood. Please refer to Hawkwood's privacy policy and Apron's candidate privacy policy for details.

#LI-ABJC1