Director of Talent & People

Overview

This opportunity is offered on behalf of a partner company looking for a Director of Talent & People to be based in the United Arab Emirates. The successful candidate will have the chance to develop and expand the people function in a rapidly growing tech-oriented company. The role encompasses ownership of talent strategy, people operations, and enriching the employee experience while establishing systems that enable team success.

Working alongside the executive leadership team, the individual will guide how the organization recruits, develops, and retains top talent. This position merges strategic leadership with direct involvement in recruitment, organizational development, and HR processes. The goal is to foster a high-performance culture within a globally dispersed setting focused on ownership, collaboration, and innovation. This role is well suited for a people leader passionate about designing scalable systems, addressing complex challenges, and driving business growth through smart talent management.

Key Responsibilities

• Direct and continuously refine the overall Talent and People strategy to ensure the organization has effective structure, systems, and capabilities that support sustained growth.
• Lead company-wide talent acquisition strategies, workforce planning, and recruitment operations with a focus on enhancing the quality, speed, and reliability of hiring.
• Oversee and mentor the recruitment team, developing scalable hiring processes across multiple departments and regions.
• Support high-level recruitment efforts personally, including refining interview methods, improving candidate experience, and optimizing evaluation protocols.
• Establish and maintain robust people operations systems, covering areas such as onboarding, offboarding, documentation, policies, and employee assistance.
• Enhance employee experience across all stages by ensuring clarity in roles, responsibilities, reporting relationships, and expectations.
• Collaborate with leadership on organization design, workforce planning, team structures, and operational enhancements.
• Develop performance management frameworks, feedback channels, career development paths, and retention initiatives to nurture employee engagement and growth.
• Implement visibility tools for organizational health through data metrics, insights, and early detection of talent risks.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to executives, providing effective solutions and building foundational infrastructure to support long-term expansion.

Qualifications and Experience

• Between 5 to 10+ years of professional experience in Talent Acquisition, People Operations, Human Resources, or similar senior leadership roles.
• Demonstrated success managing organizations with over 100 employees, especially in high-growth startups, agencies, technology firms, or rapid scaling environments.
• Proven experience leading recruitment teams and overseeing comprehensive hiring operations.
• In-depth knowledge of people operations in remote-first or globally distributed organizations.
• Capability to develop recruitment pipelines, onboarding models, performance assessment methods, and employee development programs.
• Experience working directly with founders, executives, or senior leadership on strategic human capital decisions.
• Excellent organizational judgment and decision-making skills, with adaptability to operate efficiently amid limited data and evolving priorities.
• A results-oriented ownership mentality, emphasizing execution, problem-solving, and ongoing refinement.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to influence across various organizational levels.
• Comfortable navigating fast-paced environments where creating processes and systems is a continual demand.

Benefits

• A competitive total annual compensation package ranging from $40,000 to $90,000 USD, comprising base salary, performance bonuses, and equity participation.
• Fully remote working conditions allowing flexibility to work from any preferred location.
• The chance to architect and mold the people infrastructure of a fast-expanding enterprise.
• Significant autonomy, ownership, and visibility while collaborating closely with executive leadership.
• A role that directly impacts team development, employee experience, and business scaling.
• A culture focused on flexibility, distributed work, trust, accountability, and results-oriented achievement.