People Manager

The Client

Virgin Limited Edition operates two of Africa’s most iconic luxury safari retreats: Mahali Mzuri (Maasai Mara) and Finch Hattons (Tsavo). The People Manager plays a strategic yet hands-on role in shaping a world-class employee experience across both luxury properties (~72 team members each) and the Nairobi central office (8 team members).

The Role

This is an elevated people & culture leadership role requiring a commercial, empathetic, and highly capable HR professional. The position serves as a bridge between high-end hospitality operations and corporate/commercial standards—driving employee engagement, ensuring complete legal and regulatory compliance, managing end-to-end employee relations, and providing vital HR operational support to relieve property General Managers.

Key Responsibilities

1. Commercial HR & Operational Alignment (Elevated Scope)

• Corporate Metric Training: Educate property teams and line managers on modern luxury hospitality metrics (e.g.,  Average Daily Rate (ADR), headcount control, throughput, and operational efficiency) to successfully align operations post-merger.

• Management Support: Serve as a trusted advisor to General Managers, completely offloading routine HR admin, and complex caseworker tasks from their daily routines.

• Change Management: Guide long-tenured, stable property teams through corporate integration with empathy, clear communication, and practical support.

2. Employee Relations (ER) & Legal Compliance

• Employment Law: Serve as the subject-matter expert on the Kenyan Employment Act and applicable labor legislation, ensuring strict compliance across all sites.

• Casework Management: Manage the entire HR lifecycle, including grievances, performance management, disciplinary investigations, capability reviews, and workplace mediations with fairness and empathy.

• Statutory Compliance: Oversee immigration, work permits, visas, local statutory requirements, and labor audits across all locations.

3. Engagement, Culture & Employee Experience

• Virgin VIP Culture: Act as a vibrant ambassador for Virgin’s core values, brand spirit, and culture.

• Presence & Connection: Maintain an active physical presence across all sites, spending quality time on property each quarter to connect directly with camp teams.

• Engagement Surveys: Lead the Workbuzz employee engagement survey process—coordinating rollout, evaluating feedback, and converting insights into actionable property-level plans.

• Reward & Recognition: Oversee Length of Service (LOS) milestones, work anniversary celebrations, and wellbeing programs to maintain high staff retention.

4. Talent Acquisition, Onboarding & Development

• Recruitment Lifecycle: Oversee end-to-end recruitment for property and office roles, including job postings, candidate screening, interviews, and offer management.

• Induction & Onboarding: Deliver warm, inspiring Virgin onboarding and induction programs for all new starters.

• Learning & Development: Identify training needs across departments, conduct leadership/management coaching, and oversee succession planning with HODs.

5. HR Systems, Payroll & Administration

• Payroll Ownership: Coordinate monthly payroll processing in close partnership with Finance. Reconcile Workday HRIS records against payroll entries to ensure 100% accuracy in base pay, overtime, allowances, and leave balances.

• Statutory Deductions: Ensure accurate management and remittance of Kenyan statutory payroll obligations, including PAYE, Housing Levy, NSSF, and SHIF (Social Health Insurance Fund).

• HRIS Data Management: Maintain up-to-date employee records, contracts, role changes, and metrics (headcount, turnover, leave) within Workday.

Skills & Experience

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management, Psychology, or a related field; equivalent professional accreditation may be considered.

• Professional Certification: Must be a fully certified member with the Institute of Human Resource Management (IHRM Kenya) and hold a valid Practicing Certificate or hold the Certified Human Resource Professional – Kenya (CHRP-K).

• HR Experience: Minimum 5 years’ progressive HR experience, including at least 3 years in a HR Manager, HR Business Partner, or Senior People Specialist role, ideally within luxury hospitality, lodge/safari environments, or other premium service sectors.

• Broad HR Expertise: Comprehensive knowledge and hands-on experience across the full HR function, including recruitment, employee engagement, culture and change management, compensation and benefits, employee welfare, learning and development, HR systems, performance management, and HR budgeting.

• People Strategy & Performance: Proven ability to develop and implement people strategies that support business objectives, strengthen organisational culture, and drive both employee and business performance.

• Employment Law & Compliance: Expert knowledge of Kenyan labour laws, employment regulations, statutory requirements, data protection, equality, and HR policies and professional standards, with the ability to ensure consistent compliance across the organisation. Strong knowledge of statutory requirements including PAYE, Housing Levy, NSSF, SHIF and other statutory deductions.

• Commercial Acumen: Strong understanding of business and financial objectives, with the ability to translate commercial priorities such as ADR, headcount control, productivity and operational performance into practical people solutions and clear guidance for property and corporate teams.

• HR Systems & Analytics: Experience with enterprise HRIS platforms, with Workday strongly preferred, as well as employee engagement survey platforms such as Workbuzz. Strong analytical skills and the ability to use people data to inform decision-making.

• Leadership & Advisory Capability: Exceptional leadership and influencing skills, with the confidence to provide expert HR advice, make difficult decisions, challenge appropriately, and act as a trusted role model for employees and managers at all levels.

• Interpersonal Skills: Highly empathetic, approachable and an excellent active listener, with the ability to build trust and strong relationships across diverse teams, from remote camp staff to senior corporate executives. Demonstrated discretion and ability to maintain strict confidentiality.

• Personal Attributes: High energy, adaptable, resilient, highly organised, detail-oriented, and committed to the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, with an authentic sense of fun and a positive approach to people.

• Mobility: Willing and able to travel regularly, including quarterly or as required, to remote safari properties in Tsavo and the Maasai Mara.

• Languages: Fluency in English is required; Swahili fluency is highly advantageous.