Head of HR
About this role
1. JOB PURPOSE
To provide strategic and operational leadership of the company's Human Resources function, ensuring the organisation has the people, leadership capability, organisational structure, culture, systems and governance required to deliver its corporate strategy and successfully transition from a credit-only microfinance institution into a fully-fledged, deposit-taking bank regulated by the relevant central bank authorities.
The role will serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO and Executive Leadership Team on workforce strategy, organisational effectiveness, talent, leadership, performance, employee engagement, succession, reward, employee relations and change management.
The Head of Human Resources will be responsible for building a scalable, high-performance and bank-ready people function that supports sustainable business growth while ensuring compliance with employment legislation, regulatory expectations and internal governance standards.
2. STRATEGIC CONTEXT
The company is executing a strategic transformation from a leading credit-only microfinance institution into a fully-fledged, deposit-taking bank regulated by the central bank.
This transformation will require significant organisational, cultural and workforce readiness. The Head of Human Resources will therefore play a critical role in ensuring that the company's people strategy, organisational structure, leadership capability, talent pipeline, policies, performance systems and HR governance evolve in line with the banking transition roadmap.
The role will lead the development of a future-ready workforce capable of operating within a more complex, highly regulated financial-services environment while maintaining the company's entrepreneurial culture and customer-focused orientation.
The priority is to build the right organisation, with the right people, capabilities, leadership and controls, at the right time to support profitable growth and regulatory readiness.
3. KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
A. HR Strategy and Business Partnership
Develop and execute the annual Human Resources strategy aligned with the company's corporate strategy and banking transition roadmap.
Act as a strategic advisor and trusted business partner to the CEO and Executive Leadership Team on people, organisational and workforce matters.
Translate business strategy into workforce requirements, organisational capability priorities and people initiatives.
Provide executive leadership with workforce insights, HR analytics and recommendations to support evidence-based decision-making.
Establish HR as a strategic business function with clear service standards, governance and measurable business outcomes.
Participate in strategic planning, executive reviews and other forums where organisational capability and workforce considerations influence business decisions.
B. Organisation Design and Workforce Planning
Lead organisation-wide workforce planning to ensure the company has the capacity and capabilities required to achieve its strategic objectives.
Review and optimise organisational structures, reporting lines, spans of control and job architecture in line with business growth and the transition to banking.
Develop workforce plans covering headcount, critical roles, succession, capability gaps and future talent requirements.
Lead organisational restructuring and change initiatives where required to support strategic priorities.
Conduct workforce analysis to identify productivity opportunities, capability gaps, critical roles and emerging people risks.
Develop and maintain a clear organisation structure and job architecture appropriate for a regulated financial institution.
C. Talent Acquisition and Talent Management
Develop and implement a strategic talent acquisition framework covering executive, managerial, specialist, technical, sales and operational positions.
Partner with business leaders to define critical roles, capability requirements and succession priorities.
Build talent pipelines for key and hard-to-fill positions, particularly roles required for the company's banking transition.
Establish robust recruitment, selection, onboarding and talent assessment processes.
Strengthen employer positioning and employee value proposition to attract high-quality talent.
Develop talent review processes to identify high-potential employees and critical capability gaps.
Establish succession plans for executive, management and other business-critical positions.
D. Performance Management and Organisational Effectiveness
Design and implement an enterprise-wide Performance Management Framework aligned with the company's strategic objectives and KPIs.
Ensure individual and departmental objectives are clearly cascaded from the corporate strategy.
Establish regular performance review and calibration processes across the organisation.
Develop mechanisms for identifying and addressing underperformance while recognising and retaining high performers.
Use performance data and organisational insights to identify capability, productivity and leadership-development priorities.
Embed a culture of accountability, performance ownership and continuous improvement.
E. Learning, Development and Leadership Capability
Develop and implement an organisation-wide Learning and Development strategy aligned with current and future business capability requirements.
Establish structured leadership-development programmes for current and emerging leaders.
Identify critical technical, behavioural and regulatory capabilities required for the company's transition to banking.
Develop competency frameworks and career-development pathways for key functions.
Establish mechanisms for measuring learning effectiveness and return on investment.
Build internal capability and reduce organisational dependency on external recruitment for critical positions through targeted development and succession planning.
Partner with senior leaders to strengthen management capability, coaching and people leadership.
F. Culture, Employee Engagement and Change Management
Define and champion a high-performance organisational culture aligned with the company's values, strategy and future banking identity.
Lead culture transformation initiatives required to support the company's growth and transition into a regulated banking environment.
Develop and monitor employee engagement initiatives, using employee feedback and workforce data to drive improvement.
Lead communication and change-management initiatives associated with organisational restructuring, systems implementation, policy changes and the banking transition.
Strengthen employee experience across the employee lifecycle.
Develop employee wellbeing and financial-wellness initiatives that support attraction, engagement and retention.
G. HR Digital Transformation and People Analytics
Lead the digital transformation of HR processes and employee lifecycle management.
Evaluate, implement and optimise HRIS and other people technology solutions.
Digitise and streamline recruitment, onboarding, performance management, leave, employee records, learning and other HR processes.
Establish reliable HR dashboards and management reporting covering headcount, recruitment, turnover, engagement, performance, diversity, absenteeism and workforce costs.
Provide regular people analytics and workforce insights to the CEO and Executive Leadership Team.
Use data to identify trends, risks and opportunities relating to workforce productivity, retention and organisational effectiveness.
H. Compensation, Benefits and Reward
Develop and maintain a competitive and sustainable compensation and benefits framework aligned with market practices and the company's financial capacity.
Lead periodic salary benchmarking and remuneration reviews.
Develop reward mechanisms that support performance, retention and achievement of strategic business objectives.
Ensure compensation structures maintain internal equity and appropriate market competitiveness.
Partner with Finance and Executive Management on workforce cost planning and remuneration budgets.
I. Employee Relations, Employment Law and HR Governance
Provide strategic advice on employee relations, disciplinary matters, grievances, investigations and workplace disputes.
Ensure HR policies, employment contracts and practices comply with applicable local employment legislation and regulatory requirements.
Develop, review and maintain HR policies, procedures and governance frameworks.
Ensure appropriate documentation and controls across the employee lifecycle.
Manage employee relations risks and provide timely advice to management on labour-law matters.
Promote fair, consistent and transparent application of HR policies and employment practices.
Maintain appropriate HR records and reporting to support governance, audit and regulatory requirements.
J. Regulatory and Banking Transition Readiness
Partner with the CEO, Executive Leadership Team, Compliance, Risk and other functions to ensure people-related requirements for the banking transition are addressed.
Develop a workforce and capability roadmap aligned with the company's licensing and regulatory-readiness programme.
Ensure critical banking capabilities, leadership positions and specialist functions are identified and appropriately staffed.
Support the development of governance structures, accountability frameworks and role clarity required for a regulated financial institution.
Ensure employees receive appropriate training on regulatory, compliance, risk, customer protection and conduct requirements relevant to their roles.
Provide people-related documentation, workforce data and HR governance information required for regulatory, audit and internal assurance processes.
Support organisational readiness for the increased governance, risk management and operational requirements associated with becoming a bank.
K. HR Leadership and Team Management
Build, lead and develop a high-performing Human Resources team.
Establish clear HR operating models, responsibilities, service standards and performance measures.
Develop HR capability in business partnering, analytics, talent management, employee relations and strategic HR.
Establish strong working relationships between HR and all business functions.
Promote a culture of professionalism, confidentiality, integrity, responsiveness and business partnership within the HR function.
Prepare and present HR reports and workforce insights to the CEO, Executive Leadership Team and Board as required.
4. QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Commerce, Industrial Relations, Psychology or a related field.
Professional qualification in Human Resources Management (e.g., CHRP or equivalent national/international professional body certification).
A Master's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organisational Development or a related discipline is an added advantage.
At least 10 years' progressive experience in Human Resources, with at least 5 years in a senior HR management / strategic HR leadership role.
Demonstrable experience partnering with CEOs, Executive Leadership Teams and/or Boards on strategic people and organisational matters.
Experience within banking, microfinance, financial services or another highly regulated environment is strongly preferred.
Demonstrable experience implementing HRIS, HR digital transformation and/or people analytics.
Strong knowledge of relevant employment law, HR governance and employee-relations practices.
Originally posted on Himalayas