HR Operations Specialist

At Catawiki, every day brings the extraordinary! Whether it’s Daniel Ricciardo’s Formula 1 Car, a Woolly Mammoth’s Skeleton, Lady Gaga's Jumpsuit or Usain Bolt’s running shoe, we encounter exceptional objects every day.

We’re a one-of-a-kind marketplace for buying and selling special objects. Each week, more than 100,000 unique items are auctioned, all carefully curated by our passionate in-house experts.

Having sold over 25 million unique objects, our mission is to become the world’s most popular destination for special objects. As a growing, diverse and sustainable scale-up, we proudly live by three core values. If these values resonate with you, we’d love to explore how you can join us.

• Taking ownership and driving impact

• Being open to change and feedback

• Being passionate about our mission and our customers.

About the role

We’re looking for a proactive and detail-oriented HR Operations Specialist to join our People team in Lisbon. In this hybrid role, you’ll be supporting the People Operations Team with a full range of tasks related to our employee lifecycle processes while also owning the accuracy and execution of our people operations. You will play a crucial part in supporting a seamless employee experience for 700+ employees that work in different countries, ensuring compliance, driving efficiency and partnering cross-functionally with our wider HR, Finance and external providers.

What You’ll Do

• Manage a full range of day-to-day employee life cycle processes, including on-/off boarding, issuing contracts and amendments and first line support for employees’ requests.

• Ensure our HR system is up to date and maintained accurately.

• Responsible for preparing and sending employment agreements and change letters.

• Maintain and improve operational documentation, including policies and SOPs.

• Serve as a first point of contact for employee queries related to policies, benefits, leave etc.

• Ensure compliance with local labor law regulations and CBAs, with main focus on Portugal.

• You will actively support the People Operations team in reducing administrative tasks via clearer processes and automation.

What You’ll Bring

• 2+ years of experience in People Operations or similar roles.

• Fluency in English to a professional business level, both spoken and written.

• Hands-on experience managing high-volume onboarding and offboarding processes, ideally covering the full employee lifecycle.

• Strong knowledge of Portuguese HR Operations, including local HR processes, employment practices and labour legislation.

• Knowledge of HR Operations in France, Italy and/or other European countries is a plus.

• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, international environment, managing multiple priorities and adapting to changing needs.

• Proactive, hands-on and solution-focused mindset, with a willingness to take ownership, solve problems and go the extra mile.

Where you'll be

This position is a hybrid role based in Lisbon, Portugal that requires working a fixed 2 days per week in our office.

Why You'll Love Working with Us

• Create a visible impact by working at scale in a global organisation serving millions of customers across 80+ categories. In our flat structure, every role has a broad scope and directly impacts both our customers and the business.

• Learn and grow through our Learning & Development initiatives, including clear development plans and mentorship programmes to support your career progression.

• A culture of connection defines us. We’re a passionate, diverse team of 800+ Catawikians representing 60+ nationalities. We foster an inclusive and queer-friendly environment where everyone is encouraged to bring their full self to work.

• Celebrate life’s moments with us. You’ll receive a €100 Catavoucher when you join, a €50 Catavoucher on your birthday, and an extra day off each year to “Pursue Your Passion”. We also offer additional leave for key work anniversaries and important life events. Benefits may vary by location.

Our Offices and Way of Working

Our vibrant offices in Amsterdam and Lisbon are designed to inspire collaboration. Most Catawikians operate in a hybrid setup, combining office-based and remote work, with a minimum of two days per week in the office, unless a role is explicitly stated as fully remote or fully office-based.

Interested?

Apply with an English CV and Cover Letter. By applying, you agree to Catawiki’s Applicant Privacy Policy. If you’re excited about this role but don’t meet every requirement, we still encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support the review of your application. AI may help us assess how your experience matches the requirements of the role, but hiring decisions are always made by our recruitment team