People and Culture Lead

The opportunity 

We are looking for someone with broad People & Culture expertise, combining strong generalist HR judgement with experience in organisational development, culture and leadership. 

Atuka sees People & Culture as comprising three connected areas: 

• Culture definition and activation - translating our mission and values into how people lead, collaborate, develop and experience the organisation. 
• Operational HR - ensuring that recruitment, onboarding, employee relations, policies, compensation, benefits, performance and people systems operate professionally, fairly and effectively. 
• Emergent support and adaptation - staying sufficiently connected to the organisation to recognise issues as they develop, support individuals and managers, facilitate difficult conversations and help teams adapt. 

The People and Culture Lead will work closely with Dr Jonathan Brotchie, co-Founder and Executive Chair, and the wider leadership team as a trusted adviser, constructive challenger and colleague. Although the role is fractional, we want the relationship to be genuinely embedded. The central question for us is: can this person become part of Atuka rather than simply provide services to Atuka? 

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About Atuka

Atuka is a Toronto-based neuroscience company with a mission to accelerate the development of better treatments for Parkinson's disease and related neurological disorders. Founded in 2003 as a spin-out of Toronto's University Health Network, we are a scientifically driven organisation of approximately 30 people globally, working at the interface between research, biotechnology and drug development. 

We are a small organisation in which functional responsibilities are clear but the way we work is deliberately non-siloed. Science, Operations, Communications, Finance and People & Culture interact closely, and our leaders work together on the challenges and opportunities facing the organisation as a whole. 

We think organisations can be both highly demanding and deeply humane. We believe exceptional performance is best sustained through fairness, trust, development, intellectual freedom, psychological safety, personal responsibility and genuine connection to purpose. In particular, we see the development of our people as a core organisational responsibility and aim to take it as seriously as the development of our science. 

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What the role involves

We are looking for a genuine People & Culture generalist who can move comfortably between strategic thinking and practical execution. 

Culture, leadership and people development 

The People and Culture Lead will work with leaders and managers to strengthen Atuka's culture in practical, lived ways; support psychological safety, constructive feedback, accountability and agency; and help develop leadership and management capability across the organisation. 

A flagship People & Culture priority for 2027 will be the introduction of Personal Development Plans for everyone at Atuka. We want these to support genuine conversations about growth, capability, judgement and contribution rather than become a bureaucratic annual exercise. 

We are particularly interested in someone who brings experience and new ideas about how people develop at work. We are intellectually curious about organisational development, adult development, behavioural science, motivation and progressive workplace design, but are not committed to any particular management theory. 

People operations, compensation and inclusion 

The role will provide senior generalist leadership across the employee lifecycle, including: 

• recruitment, onboarding and employee relations; 
• performance, policies and people systems; 
• compensation, benefits and annual review processes; 
• organisational change and difficult people situations; 
• leadership and manager advice and coaching; and 
• identifying when specialist employment or legal expertise is required. 

Fairness is central to how we think about People & Culture. We are continuing to develop our approach to compensation and recognition around contribution, fairness and connection to mission rather than relying solely on conventional financial incentives. 

We also have a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and want this perspective embedded in recruitment, development, decision-making and everyday organisational life rather than treated as a standalone programme. 

Health and safety 

We are particularly interested in candidates with practical experience in occupational health and safety. 

Atuka operates scientific laboratory and research environments. Technical and day-to-day safety responsibilities sit appropriately with our Operations and Science teams, while People & Culture has an important role in governance, regulatory compliance, training, employee participation and creating an environment in which people feel able to raise concerns. 

Experience with Ontario occupational health and safety requirements, Joint Health & Safety Committees or related training would be particularly valuable. 

Fractional and flexible work 

Fractional work is an intentional part of Atuka's talent strategy. Approximately half of our employees and consultants work fractionally, across technical, scientific and leadership roles. 

We believe exceptional people do not always fit conventional full-time employment models. Fractional roles allow us to access a broader talent pool while giving the organisation useful flexibility. We want fractional colleagues to be fully integrated into their teams and to have equitable access to development, feedback and recognition. 

The People and Culture Lead will help us continue developing this approach across Atuka. 

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Who we are looking for

We are looking for breadth of judgement and experience rather than a narrowly defined HR career path. 

A strong candidate is likely to bring: 

• significant progressive experience in People & Culture, HR or organisational development; 
• experience as a trusted adviser to CEOs, executives or senior leadership teams; 
• strong generalist HR judgement and knowledge of Ontario employment requirements; 
• experience in organisational development, culture, leadership and people development; 
• sound experience with compensation, employee relations and people systems; 
• a meaningful commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion; 
• ideally, practical occupational health and safety experience; 
• comfort working in a small, dynamic organisation where close collaboration across functions is essential; and 
• intellectual curiosity, good judgement and an ability to work thoughtfully with ambiguity. 

Experience in a small or growing organisation would be particularly attractive. 

We are looking for someone with a calm, grounded presence who combines practical capability with curiosity about how organisations and people can work better. 

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Working model

This is a fractional leadership role undertaken as an independent contractor. 

We anticipate: 

• 40-60 hours per month; 
• one regular day each week in our Toronto office; and 
• the remaining time distributed flexibly across the week, with sufficient accessibility for leadership support and emerging issues. 

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How to Apply

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