Our client located in Cape Town CBD is looking for a HR Generalist/Senior Recruiter.

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

We are a multi-entity FSCA-regulated financial services holding company scaling aggressively across several business verticals. This role exists to build and own the end-to-end recruitment pipeline for the group, delivering 20–40 quality hires per month across all entities, while ensuring every new joiner is onboarded effectively through a structured, repeatable programme.

Beyond recruitment, this role carries broader HR Generalist accountability — specifically around workforce management, performance management, Training, and maintaining headcount thresholds across business units to ensure operational continuity.

The split is approximately 60% recruitment / 25% HR & workforce management / 15% onboarding.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES – RECRUITMENT (60%)

• Own the full recruitment lifecycle: sourcing, screening, interviewing, assessment, offer, and placement across all group entities.
• Deliver 20–40 hires per month consistently, primarily contact center agents (sales, customer service, debt counselling) with periodic niche and specialist hires requiring targeted sourcing strategies.
• Build and maintain a structured recruitment process including competency-based interview frameworks, scoring rubrics, and standardized assessment tools.
• Manage and optimise sourcing channels: job boards (Indeed, LinkedIn, PNet), recruitment agencies, referral programmes, community partnerships, and walk-in drives.
• Maintain a live candidate pipeline and talent pool database to reduce time-to-fill and ensure bench strength for high-attrition roles.
• Track and report weekly on recruitment KPIs: applications received, interviews conducted, offers made, acceptances, time-to-fill, cost-per-hire, and 90-day retention rate.
• Partner with hiring managers across all business units to define role requirements, calibrate quality expectations, and manage intake meetings.
• Ensure all recruitment activity complies with BCEA, EEA, and POPIA requirements.
• Conduct reference checks, background verification, and coordinate pre-employment screening as required by FSCA-regulated entities.
• Continuously improve sourcing strategy based on data – identify which channels produce the highest-converting, longest-tenured hires and shift spend accordingly.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES – HR GENERALIST (25%)

• Monitor headcount across all business units against minimum staffing thresholds; proactively trigger recruitment when headcount drops below agreed levels.
• Own and drive the performance management process: ensure performance reviews and PIPs are conducted fairly and consistently across all business units.
• Partner with line managers to identify underperforming staff, guide corrective action, and manage backfill recruitment to maintain operational strength.
• Maintain workforce planning dashboards that give leadership real-time visibility into headcount, attrition risk, and open roles.
• Oversee the training function through the dedicated Trainer (direct report), ensuring training programmes remain aligned with performance outcomes and business needs.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES – ONBOARDING (15%)

• Design and own the group-wide onboarding programme: Day 1 induction, Week 1 orientation, and 30/60/90-day check-in frameworks.
• Manage the Trainer (direct report) who delivers day-to-day onboarding and initial training for new hires.
• Ensure onboarding content is current, entity-specific where needed, and aligned with compliance requirements (FSCA, NCR, POPIA).
• Coordinate with department heads to ensure new hires have equipment, system access, login credentials, and assigned buddies/mentors before Day 1.
• Track onboarding completion rates and early attrition (0–90 days) as a key performance metric.
• Collect structured feedback from new hires at Day 7, Day 30, and Day 60 to identify onboarding gaps and continuously improve the programme.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• Minimum 5 years' experience in a recruitment role with demonstrated HR Generalist accountability — this is non-negotiable.
• Formal HR qualification (Diploma or Degree in Human Resources Management or equivalent) — a true generalist background is required, not purely a recruitment background.
• Proven track record of delivering 20+ hires per month in a fast-paced, high-volume contact centre or call centre environment.
• Demonstrable experience recruiting niche and specialist roles in addition to high-volume contact centre hiring.
• Hands-on experience with performance management, disciplinary processes, and workforce planning in a multi-site or multi-entity environment.
• Experience managing or supervising at least one direct report.
• Working knowledge of South African labour legislation: BCEA, EEA, LRA, and POPIA as it applies to recruitment, HR, and employee data.
• Proficiency in applicant tracking systems (ATS) or recruitment CRMs.
• Strong Excel/Google Sheets skills for pipeline tracking, headcount reporting, and workforce dashboards.
• Based in Cape Town with reliable transport – this is a full-time, in-office role.

ADVANTAGEOUS

• Experience recruiting within financial services, debt counselling, insurance, or regulated industries.
• Familiarity with FSCA and NCR fit-and-proper requirements for regulated hires.
• Experience overseeing or managing a training or onboarding department (not just delivery).
• Experience with psychometric assessments or competency-based testing tools.
• Bilingual (English + Afrikaans or isiXhosa) given the Western Cape talent market.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• Pace & urgency – This is a high-volume, fast-moving environment. Speed without sacrificing quality is expected.
• Process discipline – You build systems, not just fill seats. Every hire should go through the same structured process.
• Data-driven decision making – You track everything, you report weekly, and you use data to improve sourcing, selection, and workforce planning.
• Stakeholder management – You manage hiring managers, set expectations, push back when briefs are unclear, and hold people accountable for feedback timelines.
• HR Generalist credibility – You are equally comfortable running a performance review as you are running an interview. Line managers trust you as a people partner, not just a recruiter.
• Resilience – High-volume contact centre recruitment has high fallout. You don't take it personally; you fix the funnel.
• Quality over quantity – Filling seats with warm bodies destroys retention. You understand that a bad hire costs more than an unfilled seat.

Experience:

• End-to-end recruitment: 2 years (Required)

Job Type: Permanent

Salary: R15 000 to R25 000 depending on experience

Work Location: In office

Application Question(s):

• Have you managed bulk/high-volume recruitment campaigns in a contact centre or BPO environment?
• Have you designed or built recruitment processes, including structured interviews and vetting procedures?
• Do you have hands-on experience supporting performance management within an HR function?
• Have you been involved in training and development, such as identifying training needs or supporting onboarding and learning pathways?

Important Information

Surgo (Pty) Ltd will consider all applications in terms of its Employment Equity (EE) and is committed to maintaining diversity in its appointments. Surgo (Pty) Ltd therefore also encourages people with disabilities and from other diverse backgrounds to apply.

Due to the high volume of applications, should you not receive feedback within three months of submission, please consider your application unsuccessful. We encourage you to reapply for future opportunities.

Surgo (Pty) Ltd does not charge any application fees.

Your CV will be kept on our database for future opportunities. Should you prefer that we do not retain your details, please contact: recruitment@surgo.co.za