Employee Recognition Manager

About Us

We are an organization centered on valuing people by cultivating a workplace culture where employees feel acknowledged, empowered, and inspired to perform at their best. Our teams collaborate across functions such as Human Resources, Employee Experience, Talent Management, Learning & Development, Communications, Diversity & Inclusion, Corporate Culture, and Leadership to develop recognition programs that boost engagement, retention, and organizational success.

Role Overview

We are looking for a seasoned Employee Recognition Manager to architect, lead, and refine employee recognition strategies that honor accomplishments, uphold company values, and enhance employee engagement. This position involves overseeing recognition programs, engagement initiatives, rewards strategy, data analysis, and cross-departmental collaboration to create meaningful experiences organization-wide.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and execute employee recognition frameworks that mirror the organization's values, culture, and workforce goals.
• Manage enterprise-wide recognition efforts including peer appreciation, milestone events, performance acknowledgments, employee rewards, and appreciation campaigns.
• Work closely with HR, Employee Experience, Talent Management, Learning & Development, Diversity & Inclusion, Communications, business leaders, and executives to enhance recognition practices.
• Develop program designs, eligibility rules, nomination procedures, reward systems, communication strategies, and governance protocols for recognition efforts.
• Oversee digital recognition platforms, rewards programs, campaigns, and engagement activities.
• Evaluate employee feedback, engagement statistics, participation rates, and effectiveness of recognition efforts to optimize workplace experiences.
• Create communication plans that promote recognition behaviors, highlight achievements, share success stories, and reinforce organizational values.
• Collaborate with managers and leadership to embed meaningful recognition into daily workplace culture.
• Track and report KPIs like participation rates, employee engagement scores, program usage, reward utilization, retention data, satisfaction, managerial involvement, and cultural impact metrics.
• Conduct surveys, focus groups, recognition audits, benchmarking, and ongoing enhancement initiatives.
• Ensure all recognition activities comply with UAE labor laws, reward policies, data protection rules, and governance standards.
• Manage budgets, reward vendors, technology providers, employee engagement tools, and strategic culture projects.
• Lead digital initiatives using HCM platforms, AI-driven employee insights, recognition automation, analytics, workflow tools, and business intelligence solutions.
• Leverage platforms such as Workday, SAP SuccessFactors, Oracle HCM Cloud, Microsoft Viva, Bonusly, Achievers, Culture Amp, Qualtrics, Microsoft 365, Power BI, Tableau, HR analytics tools, and engagement systems for measuring and reporting recognition outcomes.
• Prepare leadership dashboards, reports, analysis, insights, evaluations, and strategic advice for senior management.
• Lead and mentor teams including employee experience specialists, recognition coordinators, and HR professionals while fostering a culture of appreciation, inclusion, collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Organizational Psychology, Business Administration, Communications, Organizational Development, Employee Experience or related fields.
• Advanced degrees or certifications in HR, Employee Experience, Organizational Development, Culture Management, SHRM, CIPD or similar qualifications are preferred.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in employee recognition, engagement, HR, talent management, culture development or similar areas.
• At least 2 years managing recognition programs, engagement efforts, culture initiatives, or HR transformation projects.
• Deep knowledge of employee engagement tactics, recognition frameworks, rewards systems, workplace culture, organizational behavior, and experience design.
• Proficiency with software including Workday, SAP SuccessFactors, Oracle HCM Cloud, Microsoft Viva, Bonusly, Achievers, Culture Amp, Qualtrics, Microsoft Office, Power BI, Tableau, HRIS platforms, and engagement technologies.
• Familiarity with AI-driven employee analytics, digital recognition solutions, personalized reward tech, predictive workforce insights, and HR automation tools is a plus.
• Strong leadership, excellent communication, stakeholder engagement, facilitation, analytical, organizational, project management, coaching, and problem-solving skills.
• Capability to create inclusive recognition initiatives accommodating diverse, remote, hybrid, and international teams.
• Ability to effectively operate within remote and distributed teams using virtual collaboration and partnering with global leadership and technology stakeholders.

Benefits and Work Environment

• Fully remote position with flexible collaboration within global people and culture teams.
• Competitive salary with performance-related bonuses.
• Access to professional development and advancement in employee experience leadership roles.
• Experience working with cutting-edge AI-powered HR tools, digital recognition programs, workforce analytics, and innovative culture-building platforms.
• A collaborative workplace culture emphasizing appreciation, inclusion, innovation, responsibility, and ongoing progress.
• Chance to influence a workplace atmosphere where employees feel valued, driven, connected, and motivated to give their best contributions.