People Manager
Job ID 1556
Description
KEY PURPOSE OF DEPARTMENT
Heifer International is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) whose mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty while caring for the earth. We work with farmers and their communities to identify opportunities that deliver living incomes, creating solutions to local challenges that are designed to build inclusive, resilient economies. With Increased productivity of livestock and crops, farmers provide for their families and improve the health of their communities.
Heifer International is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) whose mission is to work with communities to end hunger and poverty while caring for the earth. We work with farmers and their communities to identify opportunities that deliver living incomes, creating solutions to local challenges that are designed to build inclusive, resilient economies. With Increased productivity of livestock and crops, farmers provide for their families and improve the health of their communities.
Heifer International in partnership with Mastercard Foundation (MCF) is implementing the SAYE project in 11 districts (Jinja, Mayuge, Iganga, Kamuli, Kaliro, Namutumba, Bugweri, Luuka, Buyende, Namayingo and Bugiri) in Busoga sub-region. The project is implemented by Heifer in a consortium with four partners: Enhancing University Responsiveness to Agribusiness Development Ltd (CURAD), Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises (FSME), Financial Sector Deepening Uganda (FSDU) and ASIGMA Group. The project focuses on addressing market system barriers for youth transition to work while building and strengthening systems and structures as enablers for youth to secure dignified and fulfilling work.
KEY PURPOSE OF JOB
Reporting Directly to the Heifer Uganda People Director with a matrix reporting relationship to the SAYE Project Director, this role will play a pivotal part in shaping and contextualizing the people business strategy within the SAYE Project , assist line managers and senior management to identify emerging people issues, and support project and organizational level change processes as well as broker Human Resource solutions for project impact. The role will further coordinate the implementation of the people strategy for Heifer Uganda whilst supporting the implementation of the SAYE Project.
The role is designed to cultivate a strong customer service ethos, ensuring seamless coordination with both internal and external stakeholders while consistently delivering services that meet established standards. In addition, it will provide operational leadership across project key Human Resource domains, including performance and talent management, recruitment, compensation, health and safety, learning and development, organizational effectiveness, and core HR business processes.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES
A. Strategic partnership and People Support (20%)
a. Collaborate with the People Director to design, implement, and monitor comprehensive HR strategies and systems aligned with project objectives and Heifer’s regional and global people strategy.
b. Drive the achievement of SAYE project-specific people and country-level objectives by ensuring HR strategies are responsive to project needs.
c. Act as a business partner to all cluster coordinators and specialists to build trusted relationships, serve as a guide on all People and Culture related matters.
d. Drive initiatives to promote a positive organizational culture, fostering employee engagement with the aim of improving project staff retention and enhancing employee experience.
B. Compliance and Risk Management (10%)
a. Ensure compliance with national labor laws and internal policies throughout all employee lifecycle processes.
b. Maintain accurate and up-to-date records in local and global HRIS systems.
c. Prepare timely reports on employee movements, departmental performance, and project HR KPIs, while safeguarding confidentiality.
d. Support internal HR audits and employee relations efforts, including grievances, mediation, and resolution.
e. Provide coaching and guidance to project line managers on people management best practices in line with policy.
f. Stay abreast of changing legislation and regulations across our geographies.
g. Support in identifying, assessing and reporting all threats and risks in People business processes for management and mitigation.
C. Performance Management and Reward Systems (20%)
a. Monitor and evaluate progress against established project performance indicators, providing timely, data-driven reports and performance insights to Cluster teams. Highlight achievements, performance gaps, and actionable recommendations.
b. Contribute to performance management by regularly reviewing individual and team plans to support a culture of continuous reflection, learning and improvement.
c. Consolidate individual probational, bi-annual and annual, quarterly, and performance reports that drive project-level accountability.
d. Contribute to periodic compensation benchmarking and reviews in collaboration with the People Director.
e. Support the Project Director in ensuring internal pay equity, external competitiveness and budget oversight on rewards and benefits while maintaining alignment with overall country reward framework.
D. Employee Wellness, Wellbeing and Engagement (20%)
a. Lead on the development and implementation of the SAYE Project employee engagement strategy, ensuring that strategy is informed by the Country people strategy, best practices and relevant regional and global people initiatives.
b. Implement employee wellness and wellbeing initiatives to enhance employee wellness in line with the approved budgets and workplans as well as Heifer’s wellness and wellbeing framework.
c. Oversee, review and advise on employee grievance handling and disciplinary processes in a manner that supports continuous growth and improvement.
d. Coach and advise employees on solving problems and implementing resolutions for performance management challenges; provide guidance on corrective actions, policy interpretation and other workplace human resources challenges.
E. Learning & Development (20%)
a. Support the identification of project-specific learning needs, plan capacity-building interventions, and ensure delivery of mandatory and strategic training programs.
b. Coach line managers to identify employee learning and career aspirations and agree effective development plans.
c. Collaborate with the SAYE leadership team to design and deliver capacity-building initiatives, including training and knowledge-sharing on a wide span of work-related areas of learning and not limited to agribusiness, market systems, gender equity, and youth engagement.
d. Strengthen the organizational and technical capacity of implementing partners to ensure consistent, quality delivery across all project components.
e. Stay abreast of emerging trends within the People function, integrating new approaches to strengthen and improve the organization’s people systems.
f. Continuous learning for individual growth and career progression
F. Operational Support (10%)
a. Support the People Director to develop, maintain and review People policies and procedures that ensure compliance with all relevant legislation, best practice and Heifer internal guidelines.
b. Implement efficient HR systems and processes to streamline HR operations, ensuring timely and accurate processing of employee information.
c. Provide regular training to project staff on relevant policies, procedures, and best practices.
d. Develop and implement a system for monitoring and reporting on HR metrics and KPIs, ensuring compliance with internal standards and regulatory requirements.
e. Proactively identify and address potential HR risks and compliance issues; implement corrective measures to mitigate risks and ensure adherence to regulations.
f. Partner with the SAYE Project Director, People Director, and other stakeholders to forecast and assess workforce needs for the SAYE Project.
g. Support the People Director in the recruitment efforts of project staff, maintaining accurate recruitment documentation, metrics, and reporting systems.
h. Work closely with the People Director in managing Talent and monitor implementation of Heifer Uganda’s Succession Plan.
JOB REQUIREMENTS
• A bachelor’s degree in human resources management, Business Administration with an Human Resources bias or a related field.
• A master’s degree or any other continued Human Resource education/certification is a significant plus.
• Proven 7-8 years’ experience, 3 of which should be at a manager in a dynamic organization.
• Previous experience with an International NGO is highly valued.
• Comfortable learning new technologies and systems. Previous experience with Information System (HRIS).
• Experience in implementing strategy, meeting objectives, and working within a matrix structure.
• Excellent skills, team management, active listening, negotiation, and presentation skills.
• Competence to build and effectively manage interpersonal relationships at all levels of the company.
• In-depth knowledge of Uganda Labor Law.
• CIPD, SHRP, HRMAU and any other relevant certification or professional membership
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Friday 19th September 2025