Job Description

We're on a mission to

make real estate transactions smarter, faster, and friction-free.

Real estate is the

world's largest asset class

, yet the legal processes and tools behind it remain slow, manual, and underinvested. Lawyers must review dense documents line by line and piece together information across silos, all while clients demand faster, more transparent due diligence.


That's where we come in.

Orbital Copilot

is the AI assistant built exclusively for commercial real estate law. Developed with former practicing real estate lawyers, it accelerates complex due diligence by up to 70% while delivering legal-grade precision.


We're trusted by leading firms like

Goodwin and BCLP

to remove the busywork so legal teams can focus on what they do best: applying sharp legal judgment, delivering standout client service, and getting deals over the line faster.


Working at Orbital means joining a team that's reimagining how real estate transactions get done - moving fast, working collaboratively, and giving people the ownership to make a real impact from day one.

The job, in a nutshell

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You'll be the first hire in the People function, working alongside and reporting to the newly appointed People Director. As a foundational hire, you'll have real influence over how this function (and your role within it) evolves. We're building a modern People team leaning into an 'Employee Experience as a Product' methodology: designing scalable solutions that support individual growth and business success, not just reactive fixes.


Our operating model is built on three functional engines:

Efficiency Engine:

Creates the operational backbone that keeps workflows smooth, data reliable, and systems scalable*

People Product Engine:

Designs fit-for-purpose people solutions that shape how the organisation works*

Manager Success Engine:

Enables managers to lead confidently and consistently*


These engines work seamlessly together and not in silos;

this role sits equally across People Product and Manager Success.

In practice, this means that you'll partner with managers to surface insights, then own the design and implementation of people solutions from start to finish. Initially you'll work with managers across all departments and locations (London and New York); as we grow, your Manager Success focus will shift to supporting primarily our Product Engineering teams.

What you'll do

------------------

Partner with managers

across the business to diagnose team challenges, surfacing deep insights that will shape our People Product roadmap.

Enable managers

to confidently handle performance, conduct, and team issues through effective coaching, guidance, and accessible resources

Apply product management principles

, such as user research, problem framing, roadmap prioritisation, MVP testing and tracking outcomes, when designing new People processes

Design and implement

scalable People Products that support employees at all stages, create measurable business outcomes, and scale effectively with the business

Own the People Product lifecycle

end-to-end:

from identifying the foundational problem and designing the solution, through to successful rollout and adoption

Identify patterns

that signal where new solutions are needed and translate insights into clear, actionable recommendations

Find ways to measure outcomes

that highlight impact and identify where we still need to improve

Iterate on what you build

based on real-world feedback; nothing is set and forget

What you might be working on

--------------------------------


Our initial 2026 People team priorities give a flavour of the types of challenges you'll help tackle:

Manager capability:

Equipping managers with frameworks and guidance to handle performance, conduct, and team issues at first line

Onboarding:

Designing structured onboarding that accelerates new hire time-to-productivity to support our ambitious growth plans

Performance enablement:

Implementing clear expectations and feedback cycles that scale with team growth

And these are just the tip of the iceberg. There are still foundational layers to build and new challenges that you will play a central role in identifying and prioritising.

Requirements

----------------

The must-haves

You have relevant experience in People Partnering and/or People Operations

with strength on one side combined with desire to build in the other.

You have strong understanding of UK employment laws

and regulations, exposure or experience with US laws and regulations is a big plus.

You enjoy working closely with managers

as well as building scalable people initiatives and have the ability to transform insights into real business impact.

You have strong communications and relationship-building skills

combined with good judgement and discretion when working with sensitive employee matters and issues.

You care deeply about employee experience and business impact

, and want to find ways to combine these in a meaningful way.

You thrive in ambiguity

where we don't always have all the answers and rewriting People Playbooks excites you.

You combine strategic thinking with a pragmatic, hands-on approach

, operating comfortably across proactive projects whilst building foundational processes.

You embrace technology and AI

, and actively look for ways they can help you and others work smarter.

You understand the nuances between urgent and important

and how to prioritise accordingly.

And a few nice-to-haves

Experience in fast scaling tech/AI startups Transferable skills from another discipline (e.g. product management, operations, analytics) that you're keen to apply in a People context Comfort with tools like Hibob, Notion, Slack and the Google ecosystem

Why you'll love it here

---------------------------

You'll join a startup at an exciting inflection point ahead of a period of high-growth. You'll enjoy rethinking how a People team delivers real value through new ways of working and evidence led design. You'll have the opportunity to tackle meaningful challenges in a genuinely career-defining role. You'll be part of a collaborative, highly ambitious and friendly culture where curiosity and innovation are celebrated.

Why this might not be for you

---------------------------------

You are looking for a conventional HR role; this remit requires passion equal for partnering with managers as well as solving operational challenges, and leaning into opportunities enabled by AI and modern tooling. You prefer steady rhythms or high predictability; we are building a new function with big bets and ambitious goals, and the work will stretch your thinking in a supported environment with space to learn and grow. You want to follow fully defined processes or you feel uncomfortable with areas that are not yet structured; we are still shaping and rewriting People Playbooks and building foundations for a fast paced AI startup so you need to be comfortable with a level of ambiguity and work-in-progress.

Hiring process

------------------


This is our planned process for this role, though there may be slight variations where needed.


If you need any reasonable adjustments at any stage, please let us know!

Application review:

We'll review your CV and application. Due to the high volume of applications, unfortunately, we're not able to provide individual feedback at this stage.

Screening video call (60 min):

A conversation with Riikka (People Director). She'll share more about Orbital and the role, hear about your background, and ask some questions about your experience. You'll have time to ask her questions too.

Take-home task:

If the screening call goes well, we'll send you a short, realistic scenario - this shouldn't take you more than an hour. We're interested in how you think, not the "right" answer or a full-fledged process. If you're successful, we'll invite you to the panel discussion. If not, we'll share feedback.

Panel discussion (90 min, in person):

You'll present your task and we'll dig into it together, followed by further questions about your experience. You'll meet the People Director (again) and one of our Tech Leads at our Farringdon office.

Culture interview (30 min):

A conversation about values and how we work with some of our team members. A great opportunity for you to learn more about Orbital as well so bring your questions! Usually we try to schedule this on the same day as your Panel discussion, but if that's not possible, we can do this remotely at another time too.

Offer!!

Benefits

------------

Compensation:

We offer a competitive starting salary in the range of 69,000-74,000, depending on experience. We share salary ranges upfront to build trust, reduce bias, and support an inclusive process, even as we continue developing our internal pay structures.

Flexible Work:

We believe in flexibility, but we're also big on in-person collaboration. This role is based in our London office (Farringdon) three days a week, with additional time in as needed for things like all-hands, interviews, or team sessions. It's about being present when it matters, and balancing autonomy with impact.

Preparing for your future:

We match your pension contributions to help you build long-term financial security, and provide ownership in the company through options.

Rest and Recharge:

Everyone gets 25 days of paid annual leave, plus bank holidays, so you can rest, recharge, and take care of what matters most to you

Supportive Parental Leave:

Generous parental leave policy designed to support all parents and caregivers in balancing family and work life

Equipment & Development:

As you bring value to our mission, we're committed to bringing value to you*. We want everyone who works here to leave stronger than they came in - whether that's in skills, confidence, or career direction. That's why we provide top-quality equipment, a personal development budget of 1,000 per year, and ongoing training opportunities to support your growth from day one.

Cycle to work:

Reduce your carbon footprint and stay active while commuting. We know it's an oldie but a goodie - and we're proud to support it through our Cycle to Work scheme.

Belonging & Community:

We're in the process of building an inclusive, welcoming culture where everyone feels seen and valued. Expect regular team off-sites, shared lunches, and social events, with something for everyone.

Security is everyone's responsibility at Orbital.

We ask all team members to follow our security policies, complete regular awareness training, and handle sensitive data with care in line with ISO 27001 standards. Spot something unusual? Reporting risks or incidents quickly helps us maintain the strong culture of security and compliance we all depend on.

At Orbital, we're committed to building a diverse and inclusive team.

We especially welcome applications from people who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. Even if you don't meet every single requirement, or if the right role isn't listed yet, we'd still love to hear from you.

This hiring range is a reasonable estimate of the base pay range for this position at the time of posting

. Pay is based on several factors, which may include job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and business requirements.