Area HR Business Partner - Commercial at Baker McKenzie

The job holder report directly to the Area Head of HR with a dotted line to respective Heads of Functions. The prime objective is to support the business achieve the BAT ESA SLA whilst ensuring alignment to global and regional HR initiatives in Leadership, Talent, Culture, Learning, Reward and Fit for Future HR Capabilities. The job holder will act as HRBP for Marketing/Trade (Commercial). He/She will act as a business partner by ensuring alignment between the HR strategic agenda and Commercial function - Marketing & Trade - across ESA. Furthermore, as a member of Area HR Leadership team, contribute to the development and execution of Area HR strategy aligned with the overall Functional and Business objectives.

What You Will Be Accountable For

Operational/Professional/Business

• To contribute to overall strategic HR planning activities for the business, identifying and directing People priorities, ensuring relevant interventions are planned and delivered.
• To deliver and provide guidance on all people decisions, in order to enhance team performance, morale, productivity, culture, and diversity thereby ensuring the attraction, development and retention of world class talent as part of the ESA talent powerhouse agenda. This includes Leadership capabilities, talent SOP and talent pooling, Performance Management, Learning and Development, Reward, Talent acquisition and especially the oversight of the MSDM role, to ensure Commercial Future capabilities are in place.
• To own and monitor Commercial employment cost, as well as Headcount management, ensuring on time in full compliance with SF/BPC cycles and OD updates.
• To own and monitor Commercial/TMD JML - joiner, movers, and leavers- ensuring onboarding and offboarding checklists are completed.

Leadership

• To drive and enhance an optimal business partnership between Commercial Line Managers and HR, ensuring an integrated business approach.
• To lead and facilitate change as well as change management interventions, inspiring the Functions to embrace change in order to ensure they are equipped for BAT Better Tomorrow.
• To lead the on-going development of ‘HR Skills’ of the line managers, building Future capabilities in order to improve the contribution to the business.
• Implement leadership development interventions to ensure that all employees are fully conversant with our Ethos/ leadership capabilities and operating at the right level.

Management

• Provide strategic alignment and inputs to the HR strategy with specific focus on ensuring the alignment with Commercial function across the Area.
• To lead the execution of the HR Strategy within Commercial (Marketing & Trade).
• To drive and participate in interventions focused on organisational renewal strategies - OE/OD, thereby preparing the function for operational and strategic success
• To drive functional specific HR projects identified as priorities

Relationship

• To act as a link between Commercial functional/business needs and HR CoE (Reward, OE, Talent and GBS HR) ensuring a high level of service excellence and support
• Develop strong networks across Marketing/Trade/HR functions within and outside East & Southern Africa and ensure that HR leverages on synergies and minimum duplication of efforts across the patch.
• Ensure consistent and regular contacts and appropriate networking with comparator companies to keep up to date benchmarking and consistent approaches.

Innovation

• Develop and implement initiatives which will improve the bottom-line impact of HR within the organization
• Proactive in ensuring that HR service levels to Commercial (marketing & trade) are reviewed and revamped where required so that line managers see the value add
• Identify and drive the communication and sharing of learning across functions within and outside ESA to facilitate continuous improvement of the HR team

Essential Experience, Skills And Knowledge

• Higher education in Business Administration and/or HR Management with a minimum 5-6 years’ experience in HR role(s) in comparable business organisations. Proven ability to engage with Unions.
• Written and verbal fluency in English. Computer/Digital literacy.
• Ability to engage, inspire and influence people (including peers/Leadership Team members).
• Team player, high level of interpersonal skills, eager to deliver results.
• Project management skills and ability to organise and prioritise diverse in nature and intensity activities.
• Thorough understanding of the business vision, objectives, strategy, values, planning processes and cycles, key performance indicators, and the different functions and their interaction
• Problem solving is usually related to people issues, non-repetitive in nature but the solution can always be found either through personal experience/common sense or through consultation with others, if needed.