The Role

You are the empathetic heartbeat and organisational anchor of the People and Talent team. At Koto, we believe our people do the best work of their lives when they are truly supported, and you are the one who builds the foundation for that to happen. Balancing deep discretion with a fast-paced, proactive drive, you turn complex HR logistics into seamless, human experiences. Managing priorities and communication within the People and Talent team, you bridge the gap between necessary administration, and cultural care, ensuring every person at Koto - from their very first interview to their day-to-day studio life - feels looked after.

Your Responsibilities

People Operations

1. You will own the onboarding journey. From gathering Right to Work documentation and crafting Welcome Decks, to coordinating with IT on tech setups, you make sure a new joiner’s first day feels like a celebration. As you grow, you’ll take the lead on running first-day HR inductions.

2. Acting as the go-to guide for Koto’s benefits schemes (including Juno, Third Space, and Cycle-to-Work), you’ll manage our healthcare administration, assist with claims queries, and keep our HRIS (Humaans) and benefit platforms flawlessly updated.

3. You’ll keep a watchful eye on employee lifecycles by tracking probationary periods, prompting managers at key milestones, and preparing the necessary progression or extension paperwork under the guidance of the Senior People Director.

4. You’ll handle employee exits with the same care as our arrivals. Manage IT off-boarding paperwork, coordinate the return of studio equipment, and smoothly transition departing team members off our platforms.

5. You ensure our financial and legal data is airtight. You’ll administer all payroll paperwork (promotions, pay rises, joiners, and leavers), manage our digital personnel files, handle pension administration, and support the Senior People Director through the annual salary review.

6. You are able to draft official documentation with high attention to detail. From initial contracts and HR changes, to tenancy and employment references, while maintaining absolute confidentiality across all sensitive discussions.

Talent Acquisition

1. You’ll be our talent champion by serving as the welcoming, organised point of contact for external talent. You will coordinate closely with candidates, EAs, and internal teams to schedule interviews, provide prep materials, and handle last-minute scheduling shifts with ease.

2. You will own the administration of our Applicant Tracking System (Teamtailor), and will upload and close roles, maintain accurate candidate records, ensure strict GDPR compliance, and keep our job specs updated as our benefits evolve.

3. As you build context and experience within Koto’s creative ecosystem, you will step up to help qualify candidate applications and assist the team with proactive headhunting resources.

4. You will lean into the creative side of growth by assisting the wider team with research, data reporting, and planning for fresh Talent and People initiatives across the studio.

EMEA and Regional Growth

Once you've mastered the UK landscape, you will expand your horizons to support our regional growth, learning the ropes of Berlin contracts, benefits, and international operational support.

Our Responsibilities

1. We will ensure you have meaningful and regular access to your manager to support your personal development and career trajectory.

2. We will actively reward performance with promotions, pay increases and a discretionary annual bonus of up to 10% of salary to all employees.

3. We ensure Koto is an equal environment for all its employees.

4. We will support you in taking family leave and offer significant paid maternity and paternity.

5. We will actively encourage you to take 25 days holiday yearly, in addition to UK bank holidays (on average eight), one additional holiday day per year (capped at 5 additional days), and a studio closure between Christmas and New Year.

6. We will contribute an additional 3% to anyone wanting to engage in the Scottish Widows pension scheme.

7. We offer private medical insurance via Vitality Health and a monthly ‘employee wellness’ benefits package via Juno of £75 per month.

8. We offer access to YCN and fund relevant training opportunities to any employee looking to develop themselves and career.

9. We reward five years of service with £5,000 and five days holiday. We reward ten years of service with £10,000 and four weeks holiday.

10. We will give you the opportunity to work from any the five koto studios globally, with appropriate planning and application.

Our Culture

• At Koto we encourage our team to be ‘rationally optimistic’ about the potential of our work, our clients, their businesses, and the power of brand.

• We pursue the best briefs, want to inspire meaningful work, and for those interested provide an opportunity to make the work of their lives. We are actively cultivating leadership, culture and spaces to encourage this.

• We work in person with an optional WFH day on Friday, and an additional 20 days remote a year. We believe this produces the best work, mentoring opportunities, collective learning and culture.

• We encourage autonomy in each member of our team, allowing them to manage their own time, hours and personal commitments appropriately to complete work.