Quick overview
Job description
About K&Z
K&Z is a multi-brand franchise group with a long, proud history. Our story began with a single KFC in Hastings. Today we run 14 KFC restaurants across South London and the South Coast and, since becoming one of Pret's Pioneer Franchise Partners in 2021, 12 Pret A Manger shops across seven counties. Both brands are growing, and we opened our newest KFC drive-thru in Waterlooville in October 2026.
We are big enough to have real scale and ambition, with new sites in the pipeline and refurbishments underway, but small enough that every person in our head office team makes a visible difference. Two brands, two cultures, one K&Z way of looking after our people.
Our people's success is our success, so we invest in them and back them. Everyone should be able to come to work as their authentic self. Our mantra is simple: bring the right attitude and we will give you the skills to build a career with us. And our recipe for growth is teams of passionate people, supported by technology that makes their jobs easier.
The role
You will be the go-to people partner for our operations teams across both KFC and Pret. You will run the day-to-day people agenda, from keeping employee relations on track to building manager capability, so that our restaurant managers can lead well and in line with employment law.
This is a hands-on role. You will partner our Ops leads and Area Managers, back our restaurant managers, and work with our external HR advisers and legal partners to keep K&Z safe, fair and compliant. You will also help shape how we do things: the processes, standards and tools that make good people management simple across a fast-growing, two-brand business.
We want someone who will challenge the way things have always been done, including how we use AI and automation to take the admin out of HR.
What you'll do
Partner our operations teams
Be the trusted people partner to our KFC and Pret Ops leads and Area Managers, attending ops meetings and bringing people insight to business decisions
Coach restaurant managers to handle people issues confidently themselves, so problems are fixed early and close to the floor
Use people data (turnover, absence, case volumes, stability) to spot trends by site and act before they become problems
Support organisational change, restructures and any TUPE transfers as our estate grows and changes
Oversee employee relations
Own our relationship with our HR advisers Moorepay, who provide the advice, templates and day-to-day case support, and oversee every live ER case across both brands
Make sure managers act on Moorepay's advice, deadlines are met and cases are closed properly and documented well
Coach managers and our people champions through their cases, so they handle them confidently and consistently
Step in directly on high-risk or highly complex cases, agreed with the Head of People & Culture
Keep our escalation route working: line manager, then Moorepay, then the People team
Spot case trends by site and manager, and fix the root causes rather than managing repeat cases
Keep K&Z compliant
Work with Moorepay to keep our policies, contracts and handbook current with UK employment law, including the Employment Rights Act reforms as they phase in
Embed our duty to prevent sexual harassment, including risk assessments and manager training
Support right to work checks and sponsored worker compliance, working with our immigration advisers
Make sure equality, diversity and inclusion are built into how we recruit, develop and treat people
Build capability and careers
Design and deliver practical training for managers on core people skills
Support our General Manager development pathways, helping team members see a career with K&Z
Lead probation, reference and performance processes so they are used consistently across both brands
Resource our growth
Alongside the Operations Team, build people plans for new restaurant openings and refurbishments: recruitment, costings, training and timelines
Guide managers on recruitment best practice and help fill key management roles
Support workforce planning so every site has the right leadership in place
Improve how we work
Help roll out our new employee handbook and people processes
Find ways to automate and simplify HR admin using our systems and AI tools, so time goes on people, not paperwork
Contribute to employee listening, recognition and wellbeing initiatives that make K&Z a great place to work
What success looks like
In your first 90 days you will have visited every restaurant, built strong working relationships with our Ops leads, Area Coaches and managers, and have a clear view of every live ER case with a working rhythm in place with Moorepay.
By the end of your first year, you will be measured on:
Fewer cases escalating beyond restaurant level, with faster, well-documented outcomes
Improved retention and stability in management and key roles
Full compliance of People requirements across the estate
New openings staffed and trained on time
Managers who are visibly more confident handling people issues themselves
Less HR admin through simpler processes and smarter use of technology
What you'll bring
Essential
Proven experience as an HR Business Partner or senior HR generalist in a multi-site retail, hospitality or QSR business
Strong ER judgement and current knowledge of UK employment law: you know when a case can be coached through and when it needs you
Experience of hourly paid, shift-based workforces
The credibility to coach and challenge operational leaders, and the warmth to support managers who are still learning
Comfortable using data and HR systems to spot issues and track progress
Highly organised, able to juggle priorities across many sites without dropping the detail
Full UK driving licence and access to your own car, as our sites are spread across a wide area with limited public transport links between them*
Desirable
CIPD Level 5 or above, or equivalent experience
Multi-brand or franchise experience
Knowledge of right to work and sponsored Skilled Worker compliance
Experience supporting new site openings or TUPE transfers
An appetite for using AI and automation to work smarter
What we offer
£50,000 to £60,000 depending on experience
Business mileage paid
Statutory annual leave
Workplace pension
Staff discount at both KFC and Pret
Employee assistance programme
A role with real influence in a growing business, working directly with our senior team
K&Z is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from everyone and will make reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process. If you need any support to apply, please let us know.
* Our estate falls into the following counties, currently, Greater London, Surrey, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, Dorset, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire
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