Talent Development Specialist

Action is one of Europe’s most successful retail growth stories. Founded in the Netherlands in 1993, the company has grown into the fastest-growing non-food discount retailer in Europe, operating more than 3,400 stores across 15 countries and employing over 84,000 colleagues.

Despite its size, Action remains entrepreneurial, pragmatic, and highly people-focused. As the business continues to expand at pace, attracting, developing, and retaining talent has become a key strategic priority.

Therefore, Action is looking for a Talent Development Specialist to join its growing Talent Management team.

This role sits at the heart of one of Action’s most important business challenges: ensuring employees across stores, distribution centres, and offices have the right capabilities, development opportunities, and career paths to grow with the organisation.

You will work closely with HR, Country Managers, Regional Directors, and senior business leaders across Europe to understand business challenges and translate them into practical and impactful talent solutions. While the strategic ownership of programme design sits within the Talent Management leadership team, you will play a key role in supporting the development of talent initiatives and ensuring they are successfully implemented, embedded, and adopted throughout the business.

This is an exciting opportunity for a talent professional who enjoys combining strategic thinking with hands-on execution and wants to make a visible impact within one of Europe’s fastest-growing retailers.

Key Responsibilities

• Build strong relationships with HR and business leaders across Action’s international business to understand capability needs and identify opportunities to support employee development.
• Design and deliver talent development initiatives, translating talent strategies into scalable programmes, tools and frameworks that work in a fast-paced retail environment.
• Develop and enhance key talent processes and programmes, including career pathways, leadership development and succession planning, to help employees grow and progress within Action.
• Support the implementation and embedding of talent initiatives across countries and business functions, helping colleagues understand, adopt and sustain new ways of developing talent.
• Use data, feedback and business insight to evaluate programmes, measure effectiveness and continuously improve our talent and development offering.

What You’ll Bring

• Approximately 6-8 years of experience in Talent Management, Talent Development, Leadership Development, Change Management, or a related people-focused role.
• Experience within a large, high-volume environment such as retail, hospitality, logistics, FMCG, or a similarly fast-paced sector is a must!
• Experience implementing and embedding talent programmes rather than solely maintaining existing processes, with exposure to supporting the design and development of new talent initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of succession planning, leadership development, career pathing, and employee development.
• Ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders.
• Strong analytical capabilities and the ability to turn business needs into practical solutions.
• Experience working within an international or multi-country environment.
• A collaborative, proactive, and hands-on mindset.
• A self-starter who enjoys taking ownership and driving initiatives from concept through to implementation.

Why Join Action?

• The opportunity to shape talent development within one of Europe’s fastest-growing retailers.
• High visibility and regular exposure to senior business leaders and Country Managers.
• Genuine ownership and accountability from day one.
• A fast-moving business where ideas quickly become reality.
• A highly collaborative Talent team with ambitious growth plans.
• The chance to influence the careers and development of thousands of employees across Europe.
• A culture that values simplicity, entrepreneurship, and practical execution.
• The opportunity to build a long-term career within a rapidly growing international retailer, with ongoing development opportunities and future growth prospects.

Additional Information

• Location: Zwaagdijk-Oost
• Hybrid working: 3 days per week in the office
• Hours: 32-40 hours per week
• Salary indication between 80.000,- and 95.000,- + 10% bonus
• International exposure and regular interaction with senior leaders from across Europe

This is an excellent opportunity for a talent professional who is passionate about development, enjoys partnering closely with the business, and wants to help build the future talent agenda of one of Europe’s most successful retailers.

The SR Group (Netherlands) B.V. is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.

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