Role Overview

The Human Resources Manager is responsible for leading all people strategy, organizational development, employment relations, and HR systems. This strategic role sits on the Executive Committee and is accountable for building organizational capability to support aggressive growth while maintaining culture, compliance, and employee engagement.

The role owns talent acquisition and retention strategies that enable provincial expansion, organizational design that supports operational scale, employment relations that minimize risk and maximize engagement, and HR systems/processes that create operational efficiency. 

Tactical Work

• Recruitment Excellence: Oversee end-to-end recruitment for all roles (executive searches, management hiring, specialized technical roles, volume recruitment); manage recruitment agencies, psychometric assessments, and onboarding excellence.
• Performance Management: Implement and manage performance management system including KPI frameworks, quarterly reviews, annual appraisals, performance improvement plans, and linkage to compensation.
• Employment Equity & Skills Development: Manage annual EEA submission, Skills Development reporting, WSP/ATR submissions, compliance audits, and coordinate training interventions aligned to the skills development plan.
• Employee Relations Management: Handle disciplinary matters, grievances, CCMA representation, retrenchment processes, collective bargaining (if unionized), workplace investigations, and legal compliance.
• HR Compliance & Risk: Ensure compliance across employment legislation (contracts, policy updates, legislative change implementation, internal HR audits, and risk mitigation strategies).
• Compensation & Benefits Administration: Manage annual salary review process, benefits administration, benchmarking studies, job evaluation exercises, and total rewards communication.
• Training & Development Programs: Design and implement training (technical skills, soft skills, leadership, compliance, e-learning platforms).
• HR Metrics & Analytics: Develop HR dashboard (turnover, retention, recruitment efficiency, time-to-hire, training ROI, engagement, productivity) and report monthly to ExCo.
• Change Management: Lead change initiatives related to growth, restructuring, system implementations, policy changes, and cultural transformation (communication plans and stakeholder engagement).
• HR Policy Development: Create/update HR policies and procedures (employee handbook, disciplinary code, leave policy, remote work policy, travel policy) aligned with legislation.
• Employer Branding: Build The Company's reputation as employer of choice (LinkedIn presence, careers website content, employee testimonials, graduate recruitment initiatives, industry engagement).

Operational Work

• Team Leadership: Direct management of HR Generalist, HR Administrator, and any additional HR team members (delegation, coaching, performance management, development).
• Advisory to Management: Provide daily HR advisory to Managing Director, Operations Manager, Commercial Manager, and other leaders (people matters, performance issues, employment relations, organizational matters).
• Employee Onboarding/Offboarding: Oversee onboarding for new hires and professional offboarding including exit interviews, knowledge transfer, and termination compliance.
• Payroll Oversight: Oversee payroll accuracy and timeliness including liaison with Finance/FM, leave administration, overtime calculation, deductions, and statutory compliance (UIF, PAYE, SDL).
• Health & Safety Integration: Partner with Health & Safety to integrate HR policies with OHS requirements including medical surveillance, incident investigation support, and wellness initiatives.
• Industrial Relations: Manage day-to-day union relations (if applicable), collective bargaining participation, shop steward engagement, and dispute resolution.
• Grievance & Discipline: Manage grievance procedures, conduct/advise on disciplinary hearings, prepare for CCMA cases, and ensure procedural fairness.
• Employee Engagement: Maintain employee communication including town halls, feedback mechanisms, surveys, and action on employee concerns.
• Learning Administration: Coordinate training logistics, maintain training records, manage training budget, liaise with providers, and ensure SETA compliance.
• Benefits Administration Support: Oversee provident fund, medical aid, group life, funeral cover administration, and annual benefits enrolment.
• HR Reporting: Prepare monthly/quarterly HR reports for ExCo (headcount, turnover, vacancies, recruitment pipeline, training, key HR metrics).

Minimum Education and/or Experience (Essential Qualifications)

• Bachelor's degree in human resources, Industrial Psychology, Business Administration, or related field (Honours/Masters highly advantageous).
• Appropriate registration with SABPP – Professional level (Chartered HR Practitioner).
• At least 10 years HR experience with minimum 5 years in a strategic HR management role.
• Comprehensive knowledge of South African employment legislation (LRA, BCEA, EEA, SDA, OHSA, Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act).
• Demonstrated success in BBBEE compliance and advancement (Level 2 to Level 1 experience essential).
• Experience representing the organization at CCMA, Bargaining Councils, and Labour Court.
• HR Information Systems: HRIS proficiency (e.g., Sage, SimplePay, BrightHR), implementation and optimization.
• Valid driver's license and own transport essential