Head, People & Culture

POSITION DETAILS

Position: Head, People & Culture
Company: Unified Payment Services Limited (UP®)
Location: Lagos, Nigeria
Employment Type: Full-time
Work Arrangement: On-site
Department: Human Resources / People & Culture
Experience Requirement: Minimum of 10 years of progressive HR experience, including at least 5 years in a senior HR leadership role.
Compensation: Not officially disclosed by the employer. An external job listing provides an indicative estimate of ₦1,000,000–₦1,200,000 monthly, but this has not been confirmed by the company and should not be treated as an approved salary range.

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

Unified Payment Services Limited (UP®) is one of Nigeria's established payment and financial technology groups. Founded in 1997 by a consortium of leading Nigerian banks, the organization provides shared payment infrastructure and technology services to banks, financial institutions, merchants and payment service providers within and outside Nigeria.

The organization operates across several areas of the digital financial ecosystem, including payment processing, digital financial services, payment schemes, financial technology infrastructure and software solutions.

Its wider group includes:

UP®: Payment and financial technology services supporting the banking and digital payments ecosystem.

Hope PSBank: Digital payment banking services.

PayAttitude®: A digital-first payment scheme.

UP Digital: Telecommunications value-added services.

TM30: Software and technology solutions.

The organization's vision is to become a trusted enabler of businesses and lifestyles through secure, innovative and customer-focused technology infrastructure.

Its operating values include professionalism, respect, innovation, customer-centricity, dependability and execution.

Official company website: https://www.up-ng.com/

FULL JOB DESCRIPTION

Position Overview

The Head, People & Culture will be responsible for driving the organization's overall people strategy by developing and implementing initiatives that attract, engage, develop, retain and optimize talent while building a high-performance organizational culture aligned with business objectives.

This is a strategic HR leadership position with responsibility across workforce planning, talent acquisition, employee engagement, performance management, talent development, compensation governance, employee relations, organizational development and HR analytics.

The successful candidate will work closely with senior management and business leaders to ensure that people strategies support organizational growth, business transformation, workforce productivity and operational effectiveness.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Talent Acquisition and Workforce Planning

Develop and implement strategic recruitment and workforce planning initiatives that ensure the organization attracts, selects and retains high-performing professionals.

Key responsibilities include:

Establishing workforce plans that support present and future business requirements.

Ensuring optimal staffing levels across departments.

Improving recruitment efficiency, reducing time-to-fill and recruitment costs.

Strengthening the quality of recruitment and selection decisions.

Developing talent pipelines for critical and difficult-to-fill positions.

Aligning recruitment priorities with organizational growth and business strategy.

Employee Engagement and Organizational Culture

Lead initiatives that strengthen employee engagement, workplace culture, employee experience and employer branding.

Key responsibilities include:

Developing strategies to improve employee engagement and satisfaction.

Promoting an inclusive, collaborative and high-performance working environment.

Implementing employee recognition, reward and wellness initiatives.

Reinforcing organizational values and expected workplace behaviours.

Building a culture that encourages accountability, innovation and collaboration.

Employee Retention and Talent Management

Develop and implement talent management and retention strategies that strengthen workforce stability and ensure the availability of qualified professionals for critical organizational positions.

Key responsibilities include:

Developing strategies to retain high-performing employees.

Reducing voluntary employee turnover.

Establishing succession planning frameworks for key leadership positions.

Supporting employee career progression and internal mobility.

Identifying critical talent gaps and developing appropriate talent development initiatives.

Performance Management and Organizational Effectiveness

Lead the organization's performance management framework to improve employee accountability, productivity and organizational performance.

Key responsibilities include:

Establishing effective performance management systems.

Ensuring timely and consistent employee performance reviews.

Aligning individual performance objectives with corporate goals.

Improving individual and departmental performance outcomes.

Promoting a culture of measurable performance and continuous improvement.

Compensation, Benefits and Reward Management

Oversee compensation and benefits strategies to ensure that remuneration structures remain competitive, equitable and aligned with organizational objectives.

Key responsibilities include:

Reviewing compensation structures and benefits programmes.

Supporting annual salary reviews and incentive processes.

Promoting internal pay equity and reward governance.

Evaluating market competitiveness of remuneration packages.

Improving employee satisfaction through effective reward strategies.

Employee Relations and Workplace Climate

Maintain positive employee relations and ensure that workplace practices support employee well-being, organizational stability and productivity.

Key responsibilities include:

Managing employee grievances and disciplinary processes.

Strengthening employer-employee relationships.

Resolving workplace conflicts effectively.

Promoting a positive and respectful workplace environment.

Ensuring consistency in employee relations policies and procedures.

Organizational Development and Change Management

Lead organizational development initiatives that improve operational effectiveness, workforce alignment and organizational readiness for change.

Key responsibilities include:

Supporting organizational restructuring and workforce optimization.

Leading change management initiatives.

Reviewing organizational structures, policies and processes.

Improving organizational effectiveness and operational agility.

Supporting leadership teams through organizational transformation.

HR Analytics and Workforce Productivity

Use workforce data and people analytics to support strategic decision-making and improve organizational performance.

Key responsibilities include:

Developing HR dashboards and performance scorecards.

Monitoring workforce productivity and employee-related metrics.

Identifying workforce trends and organizational challenges.

Providing actionable insights to senior management.

Supporting data-driven HR and business decisions.

HR Operations, Governance and Compliance

Ensure effective HR service delivery, operational consistency and compliance with applicable labour laws, regulations and internal policies.

Key responsibilities include:

Maintaining HR policies and governance frameworks.

Ensuring compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements.

Strengthening HR operational processes and service standards.

Managing HR-related risks and internal controls.

Promoting consistency and accountability across HR operations.

Strategic HR Business Partnership

Work closely with senior management and business leaders to ensure that people strategies directly support organizational priorities.

Key responsibilities include:

Translating corporate objectives into practical people strategies.

Advising management on workforce planning and talent decisions.

Supporting business transformation and organizational growth.

Providing strategic HR guidance to departmental leaders.

Ensuring alignment between workforce capabilities and business objectives.

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT EXPECTATIONS

Beyond the operational responsibilities, this position requires an individual capable of providing strategic direction to the People & Culture function.

The successful candidate will be expected to:

Provide leadership, direction and professional development for the HR team.

Build accountability and encourage strong performance across the department.

Advise senior management on people-related risks and strategic workforce decisions.

Lead organizational culture and employee experience initiatives.

Develop HR policies and systems that support long-term organizational objectives.

Build effective working relationships with executives, department heads and employees.

Ensure the HR function contributes measurable value to the organization's overall performance.

The position therefore requires someone who can balance strategic leadership with effective execution of HR policies, programmes and operational responsibilities.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Performance in this position will be assessed through measurable organizational and workforce outcomes, including:

Employee Engagement Score.

Voluntary Employee Turnover Rate.

Quality of Hire Index.

Time-to-Fill Critical Positions.

High-Performer Retention Rate.

Performance Review Completion and Goal Achievement Rate.

Workforce Productivity Index.

Compensation Competitiveness Ratio.

Succession Coverage for Critical Positions.

HR Compliance and Audit Score.

EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

The organization requires:

A Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Industrial Relations, Psychology, Business Administration or a related discipline.

A Master's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration or a related field is an added advantage.

A recognized professional qualification such as CIPM, SHRM-SCP, SHRM-CP, HRCI, CIPD or an equivalent professional certification.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

The ideal candidate should demonstrate:

A minimum of 10 years of progressive Human Resources experience.

At least 5 years in a senior HR leadership position.

Proven experience in talent management and workforce planning.

Strong knowledge of employee engagement and organizational development.

Demonstrated experience in performance management and employee relations.

Experience in compensation management and HR strategy execution.

Strong understanding of HR analytics and the ability to use workforce data to support business decisions.

CORE COMPETENCIES

Strategic Human Resources Management.

Talent Acquisition and Workforce Planning.

Employee Engagement and Culture Development.

Talent Management and Succession Planning.

Performance Management.

Compensation and Benefits Management.

Employee Relations and Conflict Resolution.

Organizational Development.

Change Management.

HR Analytics and Reporting.

Business Acumen.

Leadership and Stakeholder Management.

Communication and Influencing Skills.

Problem-Solving and Decision-Making.

Emotional Intelligence.

LOCATION AND WORK ARRANGEMENT

The position is based in Lagos, Nigeria, and is advertised as a full-time, on-site leadership appointment.

This means the successful candidate should be prepared to work from the organization's Lagos location and collaborate directly with management, departmental leaders and employees.

STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF THE POSITION

What makes this opportunity particularly significant is that the successful candidate will not simply be responsible for managing routine HR activities.

The organization is looking for a leader who can connect workforce strategy with business performance, strengthen organizational culture, improve employee retention, develop leadership pipelines and ensure that the company's people capabilities support its continued growth within the financial technology and digital payments industry.

The role offers the opportunity to influence decisions that affect the entire workforce while contributing to organizational transformation and long-term business effectiveness.

CAREER ALIGNMENT

Considering your experience at eHealth Africa, I believe this opportunity is worth evaluating as a potential progression into broader HR leadership.

Your background in talent acquisition, performance management, strategic policy development, employee engagement and change management provides relevant foundations for several of the position's core responsibilities.

The opportunity would also allow you to demonstrate your ability to move from managing HR responsibilities within an organization to providing wider strategic direction across an entire People & Culture function.

However, the employer's requirement for at least five years of senior HR leadership experience is an important consideration that we would need to assess carefully against your CV.