People Operations Partner (Hybrid) at Sporty Group

About the role

• At Sporty Group, we’re looking for a dynamic People Operations Partner to join our Cape Town team and play a key role in creating an exceptional employee experience while enabling our people and business to thrive.
• Working closely with regional leadership and international teams, you’ll combine hands-on People Operations with proactive People Partnering, supporting everything from employee experience, performance and engagement to payroll, compliance and day-to-day people needs. 
• You’ll also have the opportunity to support our wider global teams when needed, helping us build more consistent, efficient and scalable People practices across our locations.

What you'll be doing

• Own and oversee the end-to-end employee lifecycle, including onboarding, offboarding, probation, performance management, employee communications, and day-to-day People support.
• Act as a People Operations Partner to managers and leaders, providing practical, commercially minded People advice and support across the employee lifecycle, including team effectiveness, performance, engagement, employee relations, organisational changes, and day-to-day people matters.
• Partner with managers to understand their team and business needs, proactively identify People-related risks and opportunities, and translate these into appropriate People solutions aligned with company policies, practices, and business priorities.
• Provide cross-geo People Operations support and cover across the organisation as required, performing the same core HR activities within other locations during periods of leave, increased workload, capacity constraints, or other business needs.
• Partner with senior leadership to develop and deliver People strategies that align with and support the organisation’s broader business objectives and strategic priorities in South Africa.
• Own and complete the South African monthly payroll process, working closely with Finance and relevant stakeholders to ensure payroll is accurate, timely, compliant, and appropriately reconciled, including managing payroll inputs, employee changes, statutory requirements, and payroll queries.
• Produce and maintain monthly HR reporting, including headcount, attrition, employee engagement/satisfaction, and other relevant People metrics, using data and insights to identify trends, risks, and opportunities and support informed decision-making.
• Maintain accurate HRIS and employee records in compliance with POPIA, global data protection policies, applicable local requirements, and relevant policies in each supported location.
• Act as the first point of contact and trusted advisor for employees and managers on HR matters in South Africa and the Cape Town office, while providing first-line HR support and continuity to employees and managers in other locations when local People resources are unavailable.
• Manage employee relations matters and support disciplinary, grievance, and performance improvement processes in South Africa, while providing equivalent support to other geographies when required and within the relevant local policies and processes.
• Support managers throughout performance and talent processes, ensuring consistent application of People practices and helping managers address performance, development, engagement, and team-related matters effectively.
• Support employee engagement and experience initiatives, identifying themes and opportunities for improvement and working with leaders and managers to translate feedback into meaningful actions.
• Build and maintain a working knowledge of core People Operations processes, policies, payroll requirements, and compliance obligations across the organisation’s locations to enable effective cross-geo support and cover.
• Act as a point of contact for cross-location People Operations queries, involving the relevant in-country People resource or Regional HR Lead where local legal, regulatory, payroll, or policy expertise or decision-making is required.
• Own day-to-day office management for the Cape Town office, including facilities, vendors and service providers, office supplies, workplace services, and general office upkeep.
• Implement and maintain appropriate health and safety practices for the Cape Town office, ensuring compliance with applicable local regulations and company requirements.
• Support the Regional HR Lead in identifying, implementing, and embedding consistent People Operations processes, tools, and ways of working across locations.
• Contribute to the standardisation and continuous improvement of People Operations processes across geographies, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency, and employee experience.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, improve, and automate People Operations processes, reducing administrative burden and improving the employee and manager experience

What you'll bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Psychology, or a related field
• Minimum 4 years’ experience in People Operations, HR Generalist, or People Partnering roles, ideally within a fast-paced or international environment.
• Proven experience owning and completing monthly payroll in South Africa, with a strong understanding of payroll processes, statutory requirements and compliance.
• Strong knowledge of South African employment practices, labour legislation, POPIA, and HR compliance requirements.
• Experience working with HRIS platforms, People reporting, and process improvement.
• Ability to support People Operations across multiple geographies and adapt to different local processes and requirements.
• Strong organisational, analytical, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Highly proactive, solutions-oriented, and comfortable working independently in a fast-paced environment.