HR specialist - French speaker

Job Description

The HR specialist plays an important and active role in various HR processes for the benefit of the entire EMEA region, with a specific focus for France. You will be responsible for supporting and improving HR operational processes for France. The role acts as a key interface between Payroll, HRBP, CRM, external providers, and global / regional teams. The position ensures accurate execution of HR administration activities and HR data quality, contributes to process automation and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities

1. Process Improvement and Automation

Identify opportunities to simplify, standardize, and automate HR administrative processes.

Build or define with related teams the local needs for process improvements and identify appropriate tools (Microsoft Forms, Power Automate, SharePoint, Excel, Outlook, and Workday).

2. HR Administration and Employee Lifecycle Support Management; Tier 2 support

• Oversee vendor-delivered HR administrative services across the employee lifecycle, including hires, employee changes, terminations, and exception cases.
• Ensure compliant and efficient HR processes through governance, controls, and continuous improvement.
• Monitor service quality, data accuracy, and processes.
• Partner with HR, Payroll and vendors to resolve operational issues and support complex cases.

3. HR Systems and Reporting Support

• Work with HR systems and reporting tools to support data extraction, validation, and analysis.
• Review existing data views and reports to determine whether they meet business requirements.
• Support HR reporting for go-live activities, audits, projects, or recurring operational needs.
• Conduct reporting controls, partnering with Payroll, HR and vendors to investigate and resolve data discrepancies.
• Contribute to issue resolution between HR systems, payroll systems, and external vendors.

4. Compliance and French HR Rules

• Ensure HR processes are aligned with French labor law, internal policies, and applicable collective agreement requirements.
• Maintain process documentation in a compliant manner.
• Contribute to audit readiness by ensuring traceability, consistency, and proper documentation.

5. Project and Stakeholder Coordination

• Participate in HR transformation, payroll, reporting, and system implementation projects.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders, external providers, and project teams to clarify requirements and follow up on actions.
• Support requirement gathering, testing, and validation activities.
• Ensure open points, risks, and dependencies are identified and communicated in a timely manner.

Key Requirements

Experience

• 3 year Experience in HR operations, HR Shared Services, payroll coordination, or HR administration.
• Good understanding of French HR processes and payroll-related requirements.
• Experience working with multiple stakeholders, including HR, payroll, external vendors, and project teams.
• Experience in process improvement, automation, or HR systems projects is highly desirable.

Technical Skills

• Strong Excel skills, including data comparison, lookups, structured tables, and file reconciliation.
• Good knowledge of Microsoft 365 tools, including Outlook, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, and Power Automate.
• Ability to work with HRIS (Workday), payroll systems (SD Worx), and time and attendance systems.
• Ability to analyze data, identify inconsistencies, and propose corrective actions.
• Comfortable creating process documentation, tracking files and operational guides.

HR and Payroll Knowledge

• Understanding of employee lifecycle administration.
• Knowledge of payroll input processes and HR/payroll data dependencies.
• Familiarity with French labor law principles and collective agreement application.
• Ability to handle sensitive HR information with confidentiality and discretion.
• Awareness of compliance, audit, and data protection requirements.

Soft Skills

• Strong attention to detail and accuracy.
• Excellent organizational and follow-up skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Strong problem-solving mindset.
• Clear and professional communication skills in both French and English.
• Ability to challenge, clarify, and escalate topics diplomatically.
• Service-oriented mindset with a continuous improvement approach.

What we offer:

• Exciting work in a great team, global projects, international environment
• Opportunity to learn and grow professionally within the company globally
• Hybrid working model, flexible role pattern
• Pension and health insurance contributions
• Internal reward system plus referral program
• 5 weeks annual leave, 5 sick days, 15 days of certified sick leave paid above statutory requirements annually, 40 paid hours annually for volunteering activities, 12 weeks of parental contribution
• Cafeteria for tax free benefits according to your choice (meal vouchers, sport, culture, health, travel, etc.), Multisport Card
• Vodafone, Raiffeisen Bank, Foodora, and other discount programs
• Up-to-date laptop and iPhone
• Parking in the garage for drivers or showers for bikers
• Competitive salary, incentive pay, and many more

Required Skills:

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

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