Robert Walters
Vice President – HR Planning & Rewards
- Permanent
- Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Experience 10 - 15 yrs
Job expiry date: 28/05/2026
Job overview
Date posted
13/04/2026
Location
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Salary
AED 50,000 - 60,000 per month
Compensation
Comprehensive package + relocation
Experience
10 - 15 yrs
Seniority
VP/Executive
Qualification
Bachelors degree
Expiration date
28/05/2026
Job description
The Vice President – HR Planning & Rewards is a senior leadership role responsible for developing and executing enterprise-wide human resources strategies related to workforce planning, organization design, and total rewards. This position plays a critical role in aligning people strategy with business objectives, ensuring that organizational structures, workforce capabilities, and compensation programs support long-term growth and operational excellence. The role requires close collaboration with executive leadership, HR business partners, and key stakeholders to drive organizational effectiveness and talent optimization initiatives. The Vice President will oversee workforce planning activities, ensuring that talent supply aligns with future business needs while identifying capability gaps and developing strategic workforce solutions. This role also leads the design and implementation of competitive compensation and benefits frameworks, ensuring internal equity, regulatory compliance, and market competitiveness. The position requires strong leadership capability to manage HR Planning & Rewards teams and foster a high-performance culture. Additionally, the role emphasizes the use of HR analytics, workforce insights, and technology-driven solutions to improve decision-making and operational efficiency. The Vice President will also play a key role in supporting business transformation initiatives and driving continuous improvement across HR functions.
Required skills
Key responsibilities
- Lead the development and implementation of HR planning and rewards strategies that align with organizational objectives and long-term business goals, ensuring workforce and reward structures support sustainable growth and operational excellence.
- Partner with executive leadership and senior stakeholders to integrate workforce planning, organizational design, and talent strategies into enterprise-wide business planning and transformation initiatives.
- Oversee organizational design initiatives by evaluating current structures, identifying opportunities for improvement, and implementing operating models that enhance efficiency, agility, and performance.
- Develop and maintain job architecture frameworks, career pathways, and succession planning models that support employee development, talent retention, and leadership continuity.
- Lead enterprise workforce planning processes, including forecasting talent demand, identifying skill gaps, and implementing workforce strategies aligned with future organizational needs.
- Design and implement total rewards strategies, including compensation, benefits, incentive programs, and recognition initiatives to attract, retain, and motivate top talent.
- Establish performance metrics and HR analytics dashboards to measure effectiveness of HR planning and rewards strategies and support data-driven decision-making.
- Collaborate with Talent Acquisition, HR Business Partners, and leadership teams to align workforce planning and rewards initiatives with broader talent management strategies.
Experience & skills
- Minimum 12 years of experience in human resources leadership roles with demonstrated expertise in HR strategy, workforce planning, and compensation and benefits management.
- Proven experience in organization design, job architecture development, and workforce planning at a senior leadership level within large or complex organizations.
- Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills with the ability to engage executive leadership and align HR strategies with business priorities.
- Demonstrated experience in developing and implementing total rewards programs including executive compensation, incentive structures, and benefits frameworks.
- Advanced analytical skills with experience leveraging HR analytics, workforce data, and insights to drive strategic decisions.
- Experience implementing HR technology solutions and optimizing HR processes to improve efficiency and transparency.
- Excellent leadership capabilities with experience building and managing high-performing HR teams and fostering a collaborative work environment.
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field, with Master’s degree preferred and 15+ years of experience considered advantageous.