Job Description

Aldar Education is currently seeking an outstanding Manager – People & Culture to support our growing family of owned and operated schools in the UAE.

This is an exciting opportunity to join the highly successful Aldar Education family of schools and to help shape the future of Abu Dhabi’s leading school group.

As the leading education group in Abu Dhabi, we provide inclusive and innovative learning that inspires and empowers communities. We offer a range of brands for all learners in our community, from nursery through to adult education. We offer the broadest choice of curricula. In the largest number of locations in Abu Dhabi.

Starting with one school and 250 students in 2007, Aldar Education has grown into a highly sought-after education provider, now supporting over 38,000 students in 31 schools and a growing network of almost 5,000 educators, with over 100 nationalities, offering a wide range of curricula and ancillary services such as a Teacher Training Academy.

Working collaboratively, our education network’s purpose is to empower the next generation to shape our future, directly supporting the educational goals of Abu Dhabi’s government. Today, Aldar Education’s efforts are guided by the Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030 plan, which aims to build a sustainable knowledge-based economy through premium education.

The successful candidates will be closely aligned with our core values and ethos and possess a genuine understanding and appreciation of the values of the region.

Manager – P&C will oversee and lead the HR function across the school. This strategic business partner role requires balancing daily operational HR needs with long-term workforce planning and culture-building initiatives. The P&C Manager will partner with School Principals and senior leadership teams to support all aspects of the employee lifecycle, while also ensuring alignment with Aldar Education’s group-wide P&C strategies and compliance standards.

Responsibilities

Main Duties:

• Support SLT in the effective attraction and recruitment of school-based staff
• Manage the onboarding process for all incoming staff, including pre-employment communication to ensure new starters are aware of the requirements for their role and for working and living in the UAE
• Coordinate and manage employee exit processes, liaising with the Operations teams
• Ensure adherence to updated Employment Law at all times
• Coordinate the school’s probationary processes in accordance with group-wide policies and processes
• Coordinate performance review and appraisal cycles in accordance with group-wide policies and processes to support the SLT in achieving a high-performance culture
• Training & Development; Ensuring all employees in the school are trained on new processes, policies and their implementation in the school
• Health and Safety: work closely with Operations Team to ensure risks are mitigated, and communications are distributed
• Ensure all personnel files are up to date, absence management, contract updates and offers
• Conducting annual P&C audit for related school to ensure files are updated and compliant
• Lead retention & Employee Engagement for respective school employees
• Assist in guiding junior HROs or P&C Assistant on daily operational matters
  
  

Talent Acquisition & Onboarding

• Utilise company’s careers website and subscribed job boards to advertise and manage vacancies and candidate lifecycles
• Drive pro-active recruitment at school level for following Academic Year
• Conduct pre-employment safer recruitment checks for all staff, including references and suitability/police clearances and ensuring appropriate follow-up based on each case
• Ensure the school’s recruitment activity is in line with the staffing headcount, with the School’s Ops Manager and HQ People & Culture
• Check employment contracts against budget and headcount before it reaches the line manager for signature
• Coordinate new starter induction in school, and ensure communication takes place pre-employment
• Ensure ADEK pass applications and processing for new staff, ensuring clarity of timelines and providing guidance and support where required
• Ensure the visa and work permit applications and processing for new staff, ensuring they are aware of their requirements, in line with group-wide guidance and in collaboration with the HQ People & Culture & Public Relations teams
• Create and issue contracts, contract renewals and associated documentation in line with the group wide terms and conditions and policies
• Responsible to organize potential onboarding flights/hotel and raise relevant PRs
• Coordinate new starter induction in school, and ensure communication takes place pre-employment
• Drive, track and advise SLT team and OSM/OMs on schools Emiratization target to ensure KPI achievement
• Manage the onboarding of school-based staff, liaising with IT for relevant systems / email set-up and processing staff ID cards
• Liaise with government relations to ensure new staff are ADEK compliant before the start of the Academic Year
• Assist Principal, HQ P&C and Finance in setting up the Manning budget suggestion and related expenses
  
  

Performance Enablement

• Coordinate performance review and appraisal cycles in accordance with group-wide policies and processes to support the SLT in achieving a high performance culture
• Track and provide reports to HQ P&C on all key performance cases
• Create and update Job Descriptions inline the performance enablement process and competency frameworks based on schools roles
• Professional development – monitor, book and track PD for school staff and provide reports as requested by the SLT, School Ops Manager and HQ P&C Operations
  
  

People & Culture Operations

• Health Insurance applications, renewals, cancellations and associated management for all school staff in coordination with the HQ Rewards Team
• Management and reporting of staff time and attendance, including managing the time and attendance systems
• Keep the school Organization chart up to date
• Responsible for issuing NOCs and other relevant staff letters (e.g. Bank, Government, Immigration, experience letters etc.)
• P&C KPIs – collate people P&C KPIs – collate people metrics based on the Aldar Education P&C KPI requirements and provide reports on a monthly and ad-hoc basis, including but not limited to absence, turnover, PD, recruitment activity, disciplinary and performance management cases, compliance rates (visas and ADEK pass etc)
• Process exiting staff as leavers and ensure all associated exit procedures are completed, including liaison with HQ payroll for the calculations of full and final settlements, and associated housing close-out procedures
• Responsible for ensuring all resigned staff have correct acknowledgement letter and all relevant documents collated; Exit clearances are completed.
• Maintain up to date confidential employment records and staff files on site at school
• Maintaining HR systems and ensuring they accurately reflect the staffing within the school
• Monitor and maintain CTC, ensuring agreed headcount is correct
• Participate in group-wide P&C meetings in order to share knowledge, best practice and to ensure consistency within group standards
  
  

Employee Relations

• Support the SLT with investigations and disciplinary management of staff, ensuring accurate records of cases are kept within confidential employment files
• Provide advice, counsel and guidance to employees on relevant issues and escalate to SLT or HQ Head – People Culture where required
• Provide support to SLT in managing informal ER cases in accordance with group-wide policies and standards
• Track all employee relation cases and keep higher management informed of any legal cases
• Be the first point of contact for legal cases
• Maintain and manage all employee relations files
• Any other duties as reasonably expected
  
  

Qualifications

Minimum Qualification:

• Minimum diploma / degree of higher education in Human Resources or related field.
• Related industry qualification, of graduate level, for the assigned functional area(s).
• Recognized HR Qualification and/or professional subscription (eg CIPD) desirable
  
  

Minimum Experience:

• Minimum 7 years in HR or Recruitment in any industry; or
• 5 year in Generalist HR within a service related industry
• Education industry experience preferable
• Sound working knowledge of UAE Labour Law.
• Strong Safer Recruitment Practice knowledge
• Competent using IT systems, including Microsoft Word/Excel/Outlook.
• ADEK Requitement knowledge of strong advantage
  
  

Job Knowledge & Skills:

• Strong organizational and prioritisation skills.
• Experience liaising with government bodies in the UAE as well as a working knowledge of HAAD and Immigration requirements and processes.
• Enables a working environment that promotes trust, equality and fairness
• Fluent English communication skills, written and oral (Arabic proficiency is highly advantageous)
• Attention to detail with diligent follow up, and able to execute in a timely manner.
• Skilled in multi-tasking and handling pressure.
• Organizational ability, of self and others.
• Works with team members to ensure targets are met, focusing on priorities for Aldar Education
• Forethought and forward planning (particularly as this relates to local Government compliance matters).
• Capable of influencing people and talented in networking with cultural sensitivity.
• Excellent interpersonal skills
  
  

This job description is not all-inclusive. Aldar Education reserves the right to amend this job description at any time. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to a diverse and inclusive work environment. We are also mindful of our national development strategy and encourage UAE Nationals in their application at our company.

Aldar Education is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share this commitment. Offers of appointment are subject to satisfactory references and police clearance.