Head, Human Resources South Africa

Standard Chartered

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Requisition Number: 57778

Job Location: Johannesburg, ZAF

Global Grade: Band 5

Work Type: Office Working

Employment Type: Permanent

Posting Start Date: 13/07/2026

Posting End Date: 26/07/2026

Job Summary

The Head, Human Resources (HR), South Africa will partner with business and functional leaders to deliver the country People Plan, aligned to the relevant global People Plans and the Group People Strategy. The role provides strategic HR leadership, drives organisational effectiveness, supports talent and succession priorities, and ensures people-related decisions contribute to business performance, culture and sustainable growth.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy

Partner with business leaders to shape and deliver the South Africa People Plan.

Provide local market insights and guidance to Global Human Resources Business Partners (HRBPs) to support effective implementation of global people initiatives.

Identify, prioritise and build organisational capabilities and behaviours required for a future-ready workforce.

Business

Influence and challenge business leaders on key people decisions, including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), employee wellbeing, talent and organisational effectiveness.

Champion culture transformation and lead local and global change initiatives.

Lead South Africa People Forums and drive delivery of key People Plan priorities.

Partner with Global HRBPs and Human Resources Advisory (HRA) teams to deliver an agile, efficient and productive operating model.

Advise on country-specific Organisational Design (OD) considerations and workforce optimisation initiatives.

Processes

Identify opportunities to enhance Human Resources processes and employee experience.

Provide feedback and escalate process issues to relevant Centres of Excellence (CoEs) where required to improve efficiency and service delivery.

People and Talent

Develop and implement talent strategies to ensure strong succession pipelines for critical leadership and Country Management Team (CMT) roles.

Play an active role in senior talent and hiring decisions.

Partner with HR colleagues globally to facilitate the movement and development of key talent.

Risk Management

Support the effective management of people-related operational and reputational risks in line with Group Standards.

Provide oversight and guidance on complex employee relations matters, significant litigation and high-profile workforce issues.

Governance

Promote the Group’s Values and Code of Conduct, ensuring the highest standards of ethics, governance and compliance are embedded across the business.

Ensure adherence to relevant policies, regulations and regulatory requirements.

Regulatory & Business Conduct

Demonstrate exemplary conduct and uphold the Group’s Values and Code of Conduct.

Embed the highest standards of ethics, regulatory compliance and business conduct across Standard Chartered Bank.

Lead initiatives that support the Bank’s Conduct Principles and foster the right working environment.

Proactively identify, escalate, mitigate and resolve risk, conduct and compliance matters.

Key Stakeholders

Internal

Business Leaders in South Africa

Country Management Team (CMT)

Human Resources Centres of Excellence (HR CoE) Teams

Human Resources Business Advisors (HRBAs)

Employee Relations (ER) Specialists

Human Resources Delivery Specialists

Global Human Resources Business Partners (HRBPs)

Human Resources Advisory (HRA)

External

Regulators

Government Agencies

Human Resources Service Providers

Other Responsibilities

Embed the Bank’s Here for Good promise, brand and values across all people-related activities.

Perform additional responsibilities in accordance with Group, Country, Business and Functional policies and procedures.

Skills and Experience

Human Resources (HR) Strategy & Workforce Planning

Talent Management & Succession Planning

Reward, Performance & Talent Review (PRB)

Organisational Design (OD) & Change Management

HR Risk, Governance & Regulatory Compliance

Leadership Capability & Talent Development

HR Analytics & Workforce Insights

Culture, Engagement & Inclusion

Stakeholder Management & Business Partnering

Qualifications

Relevant Human Resources, Business, Organisational Psychology or related professional qualification.

Relevant postgraduate or professional certifications will be advantageous.

About Standard Chartered

We're an international bank, nimble enough to act, big enough for impact. For more than 170 years, we've worked to make a positive difference for our clients, communities, and each other. We question the status quo, love a challenge and enjoy finding new opportunities to grow and do better than before. If you're looking for a career with purpose and you want to work for a bank making a difference, we want to hear from you. You can count on us to celebrate your unique talents and we can't wait to see the talents you can bring us.

Our purpose, to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, together with our brand promise, to be here for good are achieved by how we each live our valued behaviours. When you work with us, you'll see how we value difference and advocate inclusion.

Together we

Do the right thing and are assertive, challenge one another, and live with integrity, while putting the client at the heart of what we do

Never settle, continuously striving to improve and innovate, keeping things simple and learning from doing well, and not so well

Are better together, we can be ourselves, be inclusive, see more good in others, and work collectively to build for the long term

What we offer

In line with our Fair Pay Charter, we offer a competitive salary and benefits to support your mental, physical, financial and social wellbeing.

Core bank funding for retirement savings, medical and life insurance, with flexible and voluntary benefits available in some locations.

Time-off including annual leave, parental/maternity (20 weeks), sabbatical (12 months maximum) and volunteering leave (3 days), along with minimum global standards for annual and public holiday, which is combined to 30 days minimum.

Flexible working options based around home and office locations, with flexible working patterns.

Proactive wellbeing support through Unmind, a market-leading digital wellbeing platform, development courses for resilience and other human skills, global Employee Assistance Programme, sick leave, mental health first-aiders and all sorts of self-help toolkits

A continuous learning culture to support your growth, with opportunities to reskill and upskill and access to physical, virtual and digital learning.

Being part of an inclusive and values driven organisation, one that embraces and celebrates our unique diversity, across our teams, business functions and geographies - everyone feels respected and can realise their full potential.