Group VP of People and Culture

SUMMARY JOB DESCRIPTION:

The VP of People and Culture is a global leadership role responsible for shaping, leading and modernising the human capital strategy, HR operations and organisational culture across the Cladtek Group. Operating out of our Singapore headquarters on a full-time basis, this role is tasked with supporting transformation of the group into a suitably standardised, automated and unified global function, while serving as a strategic business partner to the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) to proactively support business growth and long-term workforce planning.

Managing an international footprint of approximately 2,000 personnel across manufacturing and construction operations in Brazil, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Singapore and Indonesia, this leader ensures our workforce is strategically aligned with dynamic and project-driven business demands. The primary objective is to balance human resource planning (ensuring optimal staffing and cost-control without over-manning) while driving global retention, diversity, standardised policies, modern digital workflows and optimised global HR policies, procedures and medical insurance portfolios.

Crucially, this role leads through active mentorship and empowerment, driving capability-building across all regions by personally training site HR leaders and equipping them with the tools and knowledge to continuously upskill their local teams.

DETAILED JOB DESCRIPTION AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

a)  Leadership Role
General Leadership and managerial aspects:

• Sets short, medium and long-term departmental goals & objectives based on Annual Cladtek Business Objectives & KPIs. Develops also standard-form templates, processes and procedures for group goals, objectives and KPI implementation and monitoring.
• Develop strategy, monitor progress and ensure that goals and objectives are achieved on time, within the approved budget and in compliance with the pertinent policy and procedures at Departmental Level.
• Drive & deliver change management as required to streamline & optimize operations, proactively align and strengthen operations efforts, systems and personnel to suit the growth and development of the business and the drive for continual improvement.
• Build and maintain good relationships and alignment with departments internally as well as externally with outside suppliers, contractors and related entities to have smooth operations.

Organisation and People Management:

• Review the Organisation Chart quarterly and make sure a review and/or adjustment is made to meet with business objectives.
• Lead macro-level global manpower planning to ensure the company is optimally manned for its projects subject to volatile, project-driven manufacturing and construction demands, ensuring capacity to execute project milestones without creating excess overhead while also addressing diversity needs with ESG and putting in place processes to retain key personnel and mitigate attrition.
• Proven experience design or oversight of international compensation and benefits frameworks, ensuring cross-border equity, local market alignment and compliance with regional statutory structures.
• Review with direct report and ELT the global salary structure, compensation, allowances, and benefits against proven market norms and standard frameworks.

Training & Competency Development:

• Review employee competence against performance expectations at departmental and regional levels.
• Design and oversee corporate training programs that extend beyond initial onboarding and mobilisation, ensuring continuous development, training and policy alignment for both corporate and site-based personnel.
• Cultivate change-management and "train-the-trainer" capabilities within local teams to smoothly overcome natural resistance to standardisation and ensure policies are effectively taught to local teams and followed-up.

Career & Performance:

• Implement succession plans for key positions and define targeted regional development plans.
• Direct the annual Performance Management System (PMS) closing loops, carefully reviewing and approving performance-based salary increments and bonuses in strict accordance with corporate financial policies and ensuring clear transparency for advance executive review in an expedient and pragmatic manner.

Behaviours & Discipline:

• Provide high-level directions to ensure operational excellence, data tracking and procedural discipline are achieved across all global hubs.
• Review departmental and global collective behaviour with regional HR managers and policy frameworks to reduce people cases, minimise local fragmentation, labour disputes and optimize standard corporate policy and procedure execution.

b)     Human Resources & Operational Modernisation Role

• Lead the strategic modernisation, optimisation and standardisation of global payroll systems, employee claims processes and corporate travel booking platforms in close partnership with the Finance and IT Departments.
• Lead the development and management of global compensation frameworks across all operating countries; ensure consistency in salary structures while carefully balancing local market practices, taxation, statutory requirements and internal equity.
• Drive transition toward centralised digital workflows, supporting development and embedding of AI-driven solutions and automation to enhance operational efficiency, data integrity and ease of use.
• Standardise HR policies and procedures globally to minimise local fragmentation, fostering a cohesive "One Cladtek" environment while maintaining a highly pragmatic and transparent approach to implementation.
• Provide comprehensive quarterly updates to the ELT on global headcount, workforce health, strategic resource mapping and other key areas of HR.
• Partner closely with the Legal Department to draft robust HR agreements, templates and manage external consultants, agents and recruitment vendors and ensure standardisation of salary categories/banding, benefits and allowances, all subject to jurisdictional requirements.
• Maintain a strong executive-level understanding of international tax structures, local union frameworks and statutory labour laws across all operating jurisdictions (with particular emphasis on highly regulated environments like Brazil).
• Collaborate dynamically with the Finance and IT Departments to deploy streamlined digital tracking of international personnel movements, ensuring seamless visibility for global mobility tax frameworks.
• Implement clear education initiatives across the group so all personnel remain fully aligned on corporate policies, limits of authority, annual leave tracking, business travel guidelines and corporate expectations.
• Oversee and manage the group’s comprehensive global medical insurance programs. Lead the annual review, premium negotiation and renewal cycles to drive year-on-year cost-containment for each location and as a group well in advance of deadlines.
• Manage direct global HR costing sheets and overhead costs associated with international recruitment, systems implementation and external HR consultancies as defined in annual corporate budgets.
• Authority to commit costs strictly within approved global HR operational and program budgets.
• Conduct international site visits as required each year, as per budget, to manufacturing facilities and corporate offices (including Brazil, KSA, Indonesia, etc.) to evaluate local HR health and maintain strong cultural alignment and a “One Cladtek” approach.

c)     Safety Role

• Review the operation of the health, safety and environmental management systems across global HR footprints; responsible for ensuring that all global HR department personnel and onboarding pipelines strictly adhere to Cladtek HSE standards, policies and onsite safety rules.
• Provide necessary HR-driven support and personnel resources for the seamless implementation of the corporate HSE management system in respective office and manufacturing environments.
• Assure complete fulfilment of local laws, rules and procedural compliance obligations regarding employee wellness, occupational safety and labour law requirements.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

a)     Education & Certifications

• Minimum: Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Law or a related field.
• Preferred Qualifications: Master’s degree, MBA or senior professional HR credentials (e.g., CIPD Level 7, SPHRi or equivalent senior-level designations).

b)     Knowledge/ Courses

• Digital application understanding and operating ability relative to modern corporate workflows.
• Familiarity with cross-border resource governance, international employee travel parameters, tax considerations and international medical insurance portfolio frameworks.
• Fluent/ understand organisation-related tools, automation processes and global project coordination dynamics.

c)     Required Technical Competencies (Skills)

• Minimum 12–15 years of progressive HR experience, with at least 5+ years in a global corporate leadership capacity (VP, Head or Senior Director).
• Proven track record within manufacturing, construction, engineering or the oil & gas sectors is preferred.
• Substantial experience managing cross-border HR operations across multi-country setups, including Singapore and also markets such as the GCC (UAE/Saudi Arabia) and emerging global markets (Brazil, Indonesia, etc.) which are preferred but not mandatory.
• Demonstrated history of leading distributed, multi-cultural global teams via active empowerment, continuous coaching, and "train-the-trainer" delivery models.
• Experience sponsoring, directing or organising digital workflow rollouts, automated travel/expense tools and implementing and managing a modern integrated Human Resource Information System (HRIS) platform.
• Experience overseeing high-value global medical insurance portfolios and executing strategic cost-reduction methods.
• Experience providing HR updates and face-to-face reports (video/ in-person) to executive leaderships teams, executive committees and board members.
• Clear operational understanding of managing international union relationships, collective bargaining agreements and cross-border employment tax considerations.
• Strong communication ability, interpersonal and empathy skills combined with a highly pragmatic problem-solving approach under business-driven pressure.
• Complete business fluency in spoken and written English is mandatory. Working knowledge of Arabic, Portuguese or Bahasa Indonesia is an advantage but not a condition.
• Demonstrable high level of integrity, dedication, discretion and professional commitment.

d)     Required Training

• Cladtek Integration (Onboarding – “Cladtek journey”).
• Environment, Social, & Governance (ESG) Global Strategies & Diversity Reporting.
• Integrated-Quality Management System (IQMS).
• HSE Understanding (HSE Awareness, PPE, and onsite Safety Rules).
• Role-specific regulatory and competency training following the department training matrix.

e)     Health, Safety and Environmental Requirements

• Occupationally healthy, fit for the job and fully compliant with the company's Medical-Check Standards.
• Based full-time in the Singapore headquarters (5 days per week in-office).
• Fit to travel internationally multiple times a year to Company group offices and facilities to deliver hands-on training and evaluate local operations first-hand.
• In accordance with the documentation issued by the HSE (Health, Safety, and Environment) department and in compliance with current legislation:

1. Risk Management Program (RMP).
2. Occupational Health Medical Control Program (OHMCP).
3. Occupational HealthCertificate (OHC).