Head of People & Strategy

A global leader in the creation, development and management of a wide variety of specialized animal facilities and projects is seeking a Head of People and Strategy who brings strategic leadership, operational excellence, and a proactive approach to people management. He/She will lead and direct the overall functions of the People and Strategy department, including hiring staff, administering pay, benefits, and leave, and enforcing company policies and practices.

The Head of People and Strategy will also work in close partnership with the CEO to collaborate on strategic objectives, ensuring the People and Strategy function is fully aligned with the organization's long-term vision and operational goals.

• Partners with the leadership team to understand and execute the organization's human resource and talent strategy, particularly as it relates to current and future talent needs, recruiting, retention, and succession planning.
• Establishes strategic People KPIs, productivity metrics, and ROI frameworks for human capital investments.
• Works closely with the CEO and executive leadership to ensure consistent execution of organizational strategy, operational standards, and performance expectations across departments.
• Supports departmental leadership in executing responsibilities effectively, ensuring all teams operate in alignment with company policies, strategic goals, and executive directives.

• Manages the talent acquisition process, including recruitment, interviewing, and hiring of qualified job applicants; collaborates with departmental managers to understand skills and competencies required.
• Collaborates with departmental managers to develop and implement standardized SOPs and recruitment frameworks to ensure consistency across global projects.
• Collaborates with departmental managers to oversee people management and best practices of international teams and projects, including understanding local permit and visa requirements and forecasting human capital requirements for new market entries.

• Leads and manages the staff appraisal, performance assessment, and evaluation process across all departments, ensuring departmental managers maintain regular, structured performance reviews aligned with company objectives and values.
• Collaborates with Head of Learning and Development to design, implement, and oversee a comprehensive staff development program, focusing on continuous improvement, skills upliftment, and succession planning across operational and leadership levels.
• Collaborates with the Head of Learning and Development to establish hands-on training sessions for staff, covering subject‑matter areas directly related to the core business, operational excellence, animal care standards, compliance, safety, and professional conduct.

• Actively contributes to culture building, fostering a sense of ownership, accountability, teamwork, and pride within the organization, while promoting leadership development at all levels.
• Monitors and enhances organizational culture and brand reputation through structured engagement initiatives and feedback loops.
• Provides specialist support and guidance to management when complex, specialized, and sensitive questions and issues arise.
• In collaboration with management, oversees employee disciplinary meetings, terminations, and investigations.

• Analyzes trends in compensation and benefits; researches and proposes competitive base and incentive pay programs.
• Oversees and supports the payroll function, in coordination with the administration & finance functions.
• Manages…