HR & Culture Manager

Required Skills:

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Leadership Partnership & Organizational Insight Act as a trusted HR and people adviser to the CEO COO and business heads. Maintain a strong understanding of each business function its objectives team quality and capability gaps. Stay close enough to the organization to identify changes in morale culture performance or team dynamics early. Provide honest and evidence-based views on individuals teams and organizational risks including when those views may be uncomfortable. Anticipate peoples requirements rather than waiting for management to identify them. Translate business plans into practical workforce structure and talent requirements. Talent Quality & Recruitment Own the quality of hiring across the Group not simply the completion of vacancies. Develop a strong understanding of what high performance looks like in different functions and use this to assess candidates effectively. Challenge hiring managers where role requirements seniority or candidate quality do not appear appropriate. Independently identify role requirements and prepare or improve job descriptions based on business needs and capability gaps. Assess candidates for capability judgment attitude cultural fit and future potential rather than relying solely on experience or CV credentials. Lead senior and critical hires including final-stage assessment with the CEO and COO where appropriate. Track quality of hire through probation performance first-year retention and manager feedback. Performance Capability & Development Identify where individuals have further potential and work with managers to develop them. Identify capability gaps under performance and poor role fit early and drive appropriate action. Build clear development and progression plans for high-potential employees. Coach managers on performance management feedback delegation and developing their teams. Ensure promotions and increased responsibility are based on demonstrated capability and potential rather than tenure alone. Build succession plans for important roles and reduce dependency on individual employees. Culture & Standards Actively shape and protect the culture the group is trying to build. Understand the informal culture of teams not only what appears in surveys or formal HR processes. Reinforce humility accountability ownership collaboration and high standards through hiring performance management and leadership behavior. Identify behaviors or individuals that may negatively affect team culture and address them early. Ensure company values translate into observable behaviors rather than becoming statements on paper. Help leadership maintain high standards while preserving a fair and positive working environment. Employee Relations & Escalations Lead complex and sensitive employee relations matters through to resolution. Oversee disciplinary grievance and investigation processes to ensure fairness consistency and compliance. Coach managers to handle difficult conversations confidently rather than unnecessarily transferring people management responsibility to HR. Apply company standards consistently regardless of seniority or individual relationships. Exercise strong judgment when balancing employee considerations business needs and legal risk. Team Leadership & HR Delivery Lead and develop the HR and Recruitment team. Set clear standards objectives and accountability for delivery. Delegate routine delivery while maintaining oversight of quality and judgment. Run regular one-to-ones performance reviews and development plans. Ensure the team understands the businesses it supports rather than operating as a disconnected administrative function. Review important HR output and decisions before release where appropriate. Stakeholder & Client Management Serve as the senior HR & Culture contact for business heads and relevant client leadership teams. Manage client HR relationships scope expectations and escalations. Ensure client HR services are commercial practical and delivered to agreed standards. Raise peoples risks early with clear recommendations rather than simply identifying problems. Documentation Compliance & Governance Ensure HR policies processes and records are documented and consistently applied. Maintain appropriate knowledge of UAE employment law and identify when specialist legal advice is required. Protect employee information and confidential matters with strict access controls. Ensure no critical HR process or knowledge depends on one individual. Keep organizational structures job descriptions grading and role expectations current as the group evolves. Required: 10 years HR experience including 4 years managing people. Generalist HR background across the full employee lifecycle. Experience partnering with CEOs founders or senior leadership. Strong interviewing and candidate assessment experience. Experience managing employee relations and sensitive matters. Client-facing or multi-business-unit HR experience. Working knowledge of UAE labor law. A degree in a relevant field or equivalent. Nice to Have: CIPD Level 5 or above SHRM or equivalent. Experience in fast-growing or founder-led businesses. Shared services outsourced HR or consultancy experience. Manager coaching or leadership development experience. Experience with billable hours utilization and service reporting.