The International Potato Center (CIP) is looking for a People & Culture (P&C) Senior Coordinator who will supervise our HR team in Kenya. This is a crucial role in driving operational excellence and HR management across our Africa regional office.

About CIP: CIP is part of the CGIAR global research partnership committed to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. CIP’s mission is to develop and share science-based innovations in potato, sweetpotato, and other root and tuber crops. CIP partners with organizations in over 20 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to strengthen agri-food systems and provide economic, social, and nutritional benefits, especially for women and youth. We integrate social and biophysical sciences to address complex challenges in food and agriculture. For more information, please visit https://cipotato.org/about/.

About the role: The successful candidate will supervise the HR team contributing to the delivery of people solutions and the implementation of wider P&C strategies in the country.  This position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya and report directly to the HR Manager in HQ.

Key responsibilities:

Oversee a comprehensive HR Services

• Act as a HR focal partner for managers and staff to promote decision making that is fair and considers the overall impact at CIP-Kenya office.
• Supervise the HR Team in Kenya, ensuring the accurate and consistent delivery of key transactional HR activities: recruitment, on-boarding, contract renewals, entitlements and benefits, payroll, systems administration, separations – leading and supporting their efforts to ensure all tasks are completed efficiently and in compliance with prevailing policies.
• Ensure full accountability for the administration of the monthly payroll run, ensuring this is delivered accurately each month and any issues are resolved quickly and effectively; ensuring that the HR Team in Kenya maintain and update internal databases with digital personnel records of relevant staff information.
• Give specialized P&C advice to country levels, in consultation with People and Culture (P&C) Department in HQ and provide support and advice to managers and staff in solving P&C issues and help them to interpret and apply P&C policies and practices in day-to-day work.
• Provide senior level support to staff to translate business requirements into effective P&C practices, delivering people solutions aligned with business objectives.
• Ensure compliance of all HR activities with CIP’s internal policies and local regulations of the country’s offices.
• Partner with the P&C team in HQ to support local disciplinary and grievance policies to guarantee compliant decision making and to accompany senior leaders in complex situations especially those with legal implications.
• Support the effective implementation of key HR programs in the client area, such as workforce planning, talent management and staff learning.
• Develop a strong understanding of HR policies to support and advise managers and staff in solving HR issues and help to interpret and apply these practices in day-to-day work.
• Use agreed metrics to measure service delivery in the client area, prepare monitoring reports and recommend corrective action as and when required.

Requirements

·       Master’s degree in human resources, financial management, organizational development, international development or any other related field related field

·       At least 5 years of relevant work experience in a similar role.

·       Bachelor’s degree with 10 or more years of experience may be considered.

·   Knowledge and expertise related to HR policies, processes and practices of Compensation and Benefits, Recruitment and Onboarding, Performance Management and Leadership Development.

·     Strong understanding of employment-related laws and regulations in Kenya. Familiarity with local regulations in other countries such as Uganda, Malawi, Mozambique, and Rwanda would be advantageous.

·       Experience in HR/Payroll administration and record keeping including compensation, taxes and other deductions/earnings.

·       Strong and proven experience in people and relationship management

·       Fluent in English and Swahili. Excellent written and oral communication skills.

·       Knowledge of other languages spoken in the region would be an asset.

Core Competencies:

·       Collaboration & Teamwork – collaborate with teams across boundaries – involve others in decision making and communicates with key stakeholders.

·       Flexibility and Adaptability – display a positive attitude in the face of ambiguity and change and adapt work methods to changing environment.

·       Communication- communicate clearly, tailoring messages for audiences as appropriate.

·       Results & Impact Orientation – demonstrate accountability for achieving results while maintaining a high level of integrity.

·       Innovation and Creativity- Adds value by constantly looking for a better way to get more impactful results.

Benefits

·       Great career opportunity in an international organization.

·       Generous compensation package commensurate with experience.

·       Work in an equal and diverse workplace.