Head of People & Culture

Role title:  Head of People & Culture

Reports to:  Chief Executive Officer

Team:  Executive Management

Contract:  Full-time, permanent

1. Purpose of the role

As RSwitch advances its strategy and institutional development, the organisation, capabilities and leadership required to deliver our ambitions are increasingly important to our success. How we hire, structure ourselves, develop leaders, reward performance and sustain our culture will help determine how effectively we execute our strategy.

The Head of People & Culture will provide the leadership and people architecture required to support this ambition deliberately and sustainably.

This role leads the development of our people architecture end to end, including people and talent strategy, workforce planning, organisational design, talent acquisition, culture, performance, leadership capability and total rewards, translating business strategy into the organisational capabilities required to deliver it.

The role calls for someone who will take a broad view of the organisation, assess priorities objectively, strengthen what works and build the people systems and capabilities required for RSwitch’s next phase.

2. Mandate and authority

To do this work properly, the role carries:

• A direct reporting line to the CEO

• A seat on the Executive Management team, with full visibility of strategy, financials and planning

• Decision rights over hiring standards and process, offer levels within approved bands and budgets, and performance framework design; responsibility to advise on and recommend organisational design changes

• Ownership of the People budget, covering recruitment, systems, learning and engagement

• An explicit expectation to provide independent, evidence-based advice to leadership, including constructive challenge where organisational, talent, cultural or employee implications have not been adequately considered

3. Scope

The role provides leadership across the employee lifecycle and the organisational capabilities that support it:

1. People and talent strategy: workforce and capability planning, talent strategy, succession and organisational effectiveness

2. Talent: attracting, developing and retaining the capabilities RSwitch needs, with particular focus on critical and scarce skills

3. Culture and employee experience: strengthening the behaviours, leadership practices and working environment that support performance and RSwitch values

4. Performance and growth: performance management, career development, learning and progression

5. Leadership capability: strengthening management effectiveness, accountability and succession

6. Total rewards: compensation, benefits and recognition aligned with internal equity and relevant markets

7. People operations and systems: effective Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS), people data, policy and employee relations

8. Governance and risk: employment law, people-related regulatory obligations, workforce controls and sound employee relations

4. Key responsibilities

Strategic leadership

• Partner with the leadership team to translate business strategy into people, capability and organisational priorities

• Advise on organisational effectiveness, structure, role architecture, critical capabilities and succession

• Lead the people dimension of significant organisational change and transformation

• Bring relevant workforce insight, data and cost considerations into leadership decision-making

• Advise on the capabilities RSwitch should build and retain internally and those that can be sourced externally

• Develop and execute a talent strategy aligned with RSwitch’s business strategy, covering the capabilities the company needs to attract, develop and retain over time

• Strengthen succession and continuity for critical roles and capabilities

• Lead, with the CEO, the review and evolution of RSwitch’s organisational and job architecture, overseeing specialist external support and supporting implementation following relevant governance approvals

• Support the CEO and relevant Board governance structures on material people and organisation matters, including senior appointments, succession and remuneration

• Strengthen a culture in which leadership behaviour, accountability and RSwitch values are aligned

Talent strategy, acquisition and workforce planning

• Own the annual hiring plan, tied to the operating model and budget

• Build a rigorous, fair and effective approach to talent acquisition

• Build sustainable talent pipelines for critical and hard-to-fill capabilities

• Establish and monitor quality of hire

• Develop effective retention approaches for critical and scarce talent

Culture and employee experience

• Translate RSwitch values into clear leadership and organisational behaviours

• Ensure onboarding supports early productivity, integration and understanding of RSwitch culture

• Establish effective mechanisms for understanding employee experience and translating relevant insights into action

• Strengthen cultural coherence as the organisation evolves

Performance, growth and leadership

• Establish clear career and progression frameworks aligned with the organisational architecture

• Establish a fair and credible performance approach with clear expectations, meaningful differentiation, feedback and accountability

• Strengthen manager capability and accountability across leadership levels

• Align learning and development with business capability priorities and employee growth

Total rewards

• Develop a compensation philosophy and reward framework informed by relevant market benchmarks

• Promote internal equity and consistent, explainable reward decisions

• Keep benefits and recognition relevant to employee needs and business priorities

People operations, compliance and team

• Ensure fit-for-purpose Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS), people data and efficient administration

• Maintain proportionate policies and processes that support compliance, sound governance and effective operations

• Ensure compliance with applicable employment law and statutory obligations in Rwanda

• Ensure people processes meet applicable regulatory and governance requirements, working with relevant control functions

• Maintain appropriate workforce security, confidentiality and employee lifecycle controls in collaboration with relevant functions

• Oversee the people implications of consultants and externally sourced capabilities, including knowledge transfer and continuity

• Lead sensitive employee relations matters with fairness, sound judgement and confidentiality

• Build, coach and grow the People team

• Use specialist external expertise where appropriate, while retaining clear internal ownership and accountability

5. Priorities for the first 12 to 18 months

Priorities will be agreed and sequenced with the CEO, informed by the successful candidate’s initial assessment. The first 12 to 18 months are expected to focus on:

• Assess organisational capability and talent priorities, and develop a People and Talent Strategy aligned with RSwitch’s strategic and operating priorities

• Strengthen succession, continuity and retention for critical capabilities

• Strengthen performance management, leadership accountability and manager effectiveness

• Lead with the CEO the organisational and job architecture review, overseeing specialist external support and implementation of approved changes

• Strengthen career and reward frameworks, including compensation principles and market positioning

• Strengthen priority People operations, data and systems in a proportionate manner

6. How success is measured

Success measures will be refined with the CEO after an initial diagnostic and baseline assessment.

Talent

Quality of hire and progress in building critical capabilities.

Retention

Retention of critical talent and succession readiness.

Engagement and culture

Employee experience and evidence of action on material feedback.

Organisation

Manager effectiveness, performance discipline, organisational effectiveness and internal mobility.

Business linkage

People cost, workforce productivity and contribution of People initiatives to business outcomes.

7. Who we are looking for

Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management, Business Administration, Organisational Psychology, Management or another relevant field. A relevant Master’s degree is an advantage.

• At least 8 years of progressive experience in Human Resources or People roles, including at least 3 years in a senior HR or People management role with meaningful responsibility for talent, performance, organisational development or workforce strategy.

• Track record of strengthening people systems and organisational practices in ways that support business outcomes

• Credible adviser to senior leaders, with experience developing managers and leading material people decisions

• Able to diagnose organisational needs and develop fit-for-purpose solutions rather than relying solely on established playbooks

• Experience in technology, financial services, payments, regulated infrastructure or another operationally critical environment is an advantage

• Relevant professional certification, such as CIPD, SHRM or equivalent, is an advantage.

Mindset

• Systems thinker who connects talent, performance, rewards, leadership and culture, while remaining practical and adaptable

• Commercially literate, with the judgement and confidence to frame people decisions in business terms and provide evidence-based advice.

Appointments will be made on merit while supporting our commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply.

HOW TO APPLY:

• Interested candidates should submit their letter of intent and CV by e-mail to: recruitment@rswitch.co.rw   no later than Friday 9^th October 2026   11:59 PM

• Please note that applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Only Short-listed candidates will be contacted.