HR Manager

Leidos is seeking an experienced and strategic HR Manager to support our growing operations in India. This role serves as a trusted advisor to business leaders and employees, ensuring compliance with Indian employment legislation while driving employee engagement, organizational effectiveness, talent management, and workforce planning initiatives.

The HR Manager will partner closely with the HR EMEAI Lead, HR Business Partners, Talent Acquisition, International Payroll, Finance, and business leaders to deliver HR programs that support business objectives, foster a positive workplace culture, and enhance the employee experience across the employee lifecycle.

This position requires a hands-on HR professional with strong business acumen, deep knowledge of Indian employment laws and statutory requirements, and the ability to balance strategic partnership with operational execution in a fast-paced, global environment.

Key Responsibilities

HR Business Partnership

• Serve as a trusted advisor to leaders and employees, providing proactive HR guidance and support across the employee lifecycle.
• Partner with business leaders to support workforce planning, organizational design, succession planning, restructures, and talent management initiatives.
• Support the implementation of regional and global HR strategies within India, ensuring alignment with business objectives and local requirements.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders to support business objectives and people outcomes.
• Coach and influence managers on leadership effectiveness, employee development, performance management, and organizational best practices.

Employee Relations & Workplace Culture

• Foster a positive, inclusive, and high-performing workplace culture aligned with Leidos values and business objectives.
• Lead and manage employee relations matters, including performance management, disciplinary actions, grievances, investigations, and capability issues.
• Promote employee wellbeing, engagement, retention, and workplace satisfaction initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, equality standards, health and safety requirements, and employee welfare programs.
• Drive initiatives that strengthen organizational culture, employee engagement, and workplace effectiveness.

Talent Acquisition & Employee Lifecycle Management

• Support managers with recruitment, onboarding, development, retention, and offboarding activities.
• Partner with Talent Acquisition to support hiring strategies, workforce growth initiatives, and talent pipeline planning.
• Prepare employment contracts and related employment documentation while providing guidance on terms, conditions, and employment best practices.
• Coordinate employment-related administration, including right-to-work verification, visa applications, and airport pass requirements where applicable.
• Ensure a seamless and positive employee experience throughout all stages of the employment lifecycle.

Compensation, Benefits & Payroll

• Support the design, implementation, and administration of compensation and reward programs, including pay structures, annual salary review cycles, employee compensation adjustments, and reward initiatives.
• Manage compensation-related employee lifecycle activities including promotions, role changes, and organizational restructures, ensuring alignment with internal governance, compensation philosophy, and market practices.
• Partner with HR Business Partners, Talent Acquisition, International Payroll, Finance, and business leaders to provide compensation insights, analytics, and recommendations that support hiring, promotions, retention strategies, workforce planning, and broader talent decisions.
• Support the administration and review of in-country benefits programs while monitoring external market trends, competitive practices, and pay positioning to ensure continued market competitiveness.
• Coordinate monthly payroll submissions and ensure compliance with HR Shared Services processes and timelines.
• Work closely with the International Payroll Manager to ensure payroll practices comply with applicable Indian labor laws, tax regulations, and statutory requirements.
• Maintain strong controls over compensation and employee data integrity, ensuring governance-ready documentation, remuneration summaries, audit support, reporting accuracy, and leadership reporting requirements.
• Support salary review processes, wage administration, performance management programs, and employee reward initiatives.

Compliance & HR Operations

• Develop, implement, maintain, and communicate HR policies and procedures in compliance with Indian employment legislation and company requirements.
• Ensure HR records, training documentation, and HR systems are maintained accurately and in accordance with regulatory and organizational requirements.
• Monitor employee absence trends and support effective attendance management practices.
• Maintain compliance with all applicable employment laws, statutory obligations, and company policies.
• Stay current on changes to Indian labor legislation and advise leaders on compliance implications and required actions.
• Support audits, reporting requirements, and regulatory compliance activities.

Collaboration & Continuous Improvement

• Work collaboratively with regional HR teams, Centers of Excellence, Shared Services, and business leaders to deliver consistent HR solutions.
• Identify opportunities to improve HR processes, systems, compliance practices, and employee experience.
• Support HR projects and strategic initiatives across the EMEAI region.
• Undertake additional responsibilities consistent with the scope and level of the role.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 8+ years of progressive HR experience, including significant experience in an HR Generalist, HR Business Partner, or HR Manager capacity.
• Strong knowledge of Indian employment law, statutory compliance requirements, payroll regulations, and HR best practices.
• Strong understanding of Indian organizational culture, workforce practices, and employment frameworks.
• Proven experience supporting multi-state operations and ensuring compliance with both national and state-specific labor regulations.
• Prior experience developing, revising, and implementing HR policies and procedures aligned with business objectives, organizational needs, and local labor regulations.
• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing HR programs across employee relations, performance management, compensation, benefits, talent management, and organizational development.
• Experience supporting compensation planning, salary review cycles, employee compensation actions, and market benchmarking activities.
• Demonstrated experience influencing and partnering with cross-functional stakeholders in a complex, matrixed organization.
• Experience supporting payroll processes and working with HRIS platforms.
• Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Office applications and HR systems.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Exceptional organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, influencing, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively within a regional and global HR team.

Employment Law, Payroll & Compliance Expertise

The successful candidate will possess:

• Deep understanding of Indian employment legislation and statutory compliance requirements, including:
  • Code on Wages, 2019
  • Employees' Provident Fund (EPF)
  • Employee State Insurance (ESI)
  • Professional Tax (PT)
  • Tax Deducted at Source (TDS)

• Demonstrated ability to partner closely with International Payroll and Finance teams to ensure compliance with payroll, taxation, statutory reporting obligations, and regulatory requirements.
• Strong knowledge of gratuity calculations and administration, maternity benefit requirements, statutory bonus obligations, and other employee benefit programs mandated under Indian law.
• Working knowledge of regional labor law requirements, including state-specific Shops and Establishments Acts and other local employment regulations across India.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting U.S.-based multinational organizations and operating within global HR governance frameworks.
• Experience supporting multinational, matrixed, or global organizations.
• Exposure to HR practices across EMEAI or other international regions.
• Professional HR certification such as SHRM-CP/SCP, HRCI, CIPD, or equivalent.
• Experience supporting government, aerospace, defense, engineering, technology, or professional services organizations.

What You'll Bring

• Strategic thinking combined with strong operational execution.
• A collaborative and consultative approach to HR partnership.
• The ability to influence and advise leaders at all levels of the organization.
• Strong business acumen and data-driven decision-making capabilities.
• A passion for creating positive employee experiences and fostering an inclusive workplace culture.
• Commitment to integrity, compliance, and organizational excellence.

Why Leidos

At Leidos, we are committed to creating a workplace where innovation, integrity, collaboration, and inclusion drive our success. We value diverse perspectives and empower our employees to make meaningful contributions to our customers, communities, and each other.

All employees are expected to uphold our corporate values, demonstrate the highest ethical standards, and contribute to a culture of respect, inclusion, collaboration, and accountability.

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.