People Ops, Associate/Senior Associate (Expression of Interest)

WHO ARE WE? Zora Ecosystems is a leading, tech-led developer of high-integrity nature restoration projects. We work at the intersection of applied science, land management, and emerging natural capital markets to deliver real, measurable environmental outcomes at scale. With 35 active projects, over 100,000 hectares of contracted landholdings, and a 600,000-hectare UK pipeline, we are scaling rapidly. Our work spans peatlands, woodlands, biodiversity, and catchment restoration, supported by a proprietary technology platform, cutting-edge analytics and a team of industry-leading practitioners. We focus on doing restoration properly - grounded in ecological integrity, robust evidence and practical delivery, while seeking to continuously improve and innovate. We are a venture-backed startup entering a new phase of growth. Following our success working with landowners to deliver nature-based projects on the ground, we are expanding into the demand side of the market. We’re partnering with large corporates and regulated utility companies to provide catchment solutions that target a broad scope of outcomes such as water quality, natural flood management, carbon sequestration, biodiversity uplift and more. More about working at Zora Ecosystems: https://careers.zora.eco/ YOUR MISSION This role sits close to the engine room of the business. You’ll see how a scaling, venture-backed company runs day-to-day - finance, people, systems, stakeholder relations, revenue ops - and you’ll have room to shape how it runs next.   This role is a backfill, but the business has changed a lot since the job description was last written, so we’ve updated it. We’re looking for someone with the right aptitude, ambition and fit for how we work, more so than a specific list of experience. Nobody will tick every box below. If there are three or more functional areas (out of the five below) where you are particularly strong, let’s talk.  You'll report to the Head of Governance, Risk & Compliance, with direct and regular exposure to the CEO, the Board and wider Executive Leadership Team (XLT). You’ll also act as a representative for worker's voice across all parts of the organisation. What you'll own  People Ops  * Partner with the People Lead on recruitment - job specs, ATS/tooling, interview scheduling and offer management * Own the HR system (HRIS), employee records, org chart and headcount reporting * Run performance review and calibration cycles, and support compensation benchmarking and pay reviews * Manage onboarding and offboarding end to end, including contracts, right-to-work checks and equipment provisioning * Maintain the employee handbook and HR policies, and keep them current with UK employment law * Coordinate health & safety, benefits, wellbeing initiatives and office management * Support internal comms, culture initiatives and all-hands/team event logistics Financial reporting  * Own the monthly management accounts process and produce the KPI/board pack the C-suite and Board actually use * Build and maintain the annual budget, rolling forecasts and cashflow model * Run variance analysis against budget and forecast, partnering with department heads on cost centre reporting * Model unit economics across projects and support pricing decisions for commercial deals * Own carbon accounting and reporting, keeping our footprint metrics accurate, audit-ready and moving in the right direction * Manage project-level cost tracking across our nature-based portfolio as it scales, working closely with delivery teams on budgets and spend * Support fundraising due diligence processes - data rooms, investor Q&A and document tracking * Support grant and subsidy reporting and compliance * Maintain statutory registers and support share issuance/transfer administration Financial control  * Manage accounts payable and receivable, invoicing, expense processing and payment runs * Support payroll processing and act as liaison with our payroll provider and pension scheme administrator * Support year-end audit preparation, acting as the day-to-day liaison for audit queries and schedules * Oversee treasury: bank accounts, cash management and short-term cash planning * Design and maintain financial controls, approval workflows and spend policies as the business scales * Prepare and file VAT returns, R&D tax credit claims and other routine tax filings, working closely with our external accountants * Administer the EMI share option scheme and related filings, alongside cap table changes * Maintain the risk register and manage insurance renewals and policy reviews Systems  * Manage IT, procurement and software/data licencing, working directly with our external managed IT provider * Drive AI governance and tooling decisions as we embed AI further across the business * Managecyber security posture - access controls, certifications (e.g. ISO, Cyber Essentials), policies, incident response and staff training * Own and document standard operating procedures (SOP) across all areas of the business * Manage data protection and GDPR compliance as it relates to internal systems  * Manage vendor contracts, renewals and procurement across our core operating stack * Support business continuity and disaster recovery planning Marketing & Revenue Ops  * Manage our website CMS and CRM (HubSpot) - configuration, data hygiene, automations and reporting * Build and own commercial and financial dashboards, translating between the two for internal stakeholders * Manage our intellectual property assets, including trademark applications and renewals * Plan and coordinate our presence at industry events and conferences, fromlogisticsthrough to follow-up * Own our social media channels and external content calendar, keeping our voice consistent across platforms YOUR PROFILE * You care deeply about the planet and want to apply yourself with purpose * You bring experience in a FinOps or adjacent operations role * Comfortable multi-tasking and building autonomously with urgency, precision and discretion * You’ve experimented with AI tools, automations or agents * An exceptional communicator - managing key stakeholders well is the real secret sauce here * Entrepreneurial and solutions-oriented - a problem solver who ships quickly and iterates in public  * Operators, not consultants, please Nice-to-haves:  * Previous early-stage startup experience, ideally with ownership ofoperational excellence or a key function, is a strong plus * You don’t need to be an accountant (or working towards it) to apply - equally, if you are and want to be more hands-on, this is an opportunity to add more strings to your bow * You don’t need to be a subject-matter expert in environmental science or markets but a genuine interest in the space helps WHY US? * Salary: benchmarked to experience level, headroom for finance/accounting qualification holders if you lean further this way * Equity: EMI share option plan * Location: Hybrid – 60% in our London office * Hours: Full-time, though we will exceptionally consider strong candidates who need flexible working arrangements * Contract: Permanent * Equipment: NewMacbook (or computer of choice) * Benefits: Private health insurance, summer away day, enhanced parental leave, learning and development budget * Growth: As the business scales, this role is expected to scale with it. Different growth paths are on the table depending on where you excel  Interview process  1. Initial screening call with Head of People - 45minutes 2. Take-home exercise, prepared by the hiring manager - ~1 hour 3. Hiring manager interview - take-home task discussion + your chance to interview the Head of GRC back* and evaluate if this is a role worth trading your time for (*you own the agenda!) - 1 hour, online or in-person 4. CEO + XLT interview - 30minutes, online or in-person 5. Start date - ASAP!