Director – Rewards & Performance 100% (m/f/d)

Arcera Life Sciences; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 420,000 - 640,000; Full time

Job summary

Arcera Life Sciences in Abu Dhabi seeks a Director – Rewards, Performance & People Analytics responsible for designing and refining global Total Rewards, Performance Management, and People Analytics frameworks. You will partner with HR leaders and business stakeholders to drive engagement and business performance.

Reporting to the VP People & Culture – Total Rewards & Technology, this role leads rewards harmonization, job architecture, incentive design, and advanced analytics across

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in relevant fields; MBA preferred.
• Minimum 10–15 years of progressive experience in Total Rewards, Performance Management, Organization Development, or HR.
• Experience managing global or multi-country rewards and performance programs.
• Strong analytical capability with HR data, dashboards, and workforce analytics tools.

Responsibilities

• Support design, implementation, and governance of global compensation and benefits frameworks.
• Lead compensation benchmarking, market analysis, and salary structure reviews across geographies.
• Manage annual compensation processes including salary reviews and incentive payouts.
• Support STI/LTI programs; ensure competitiveness and alignment with objectives.
• Drive performance management frameworks, goal setting, calibration, and talent differentiation.
• Develop manager tools and capability programs; monitor outcomes and insights.
• Maintain global job architecture, grading structures, and governance.
• Develop and maintain workforce analytics dashboards; derive actionable insights.
• Lead or support HR transformation projects; collaborate with HR Technology teams.
• Present recommendations to senior leadership and governance forums.

Skills

Total Rewards

Performance Management

Job Architecture

Organization Design

Workforce Analytics

HR Technology

Project Management

Strategic Thinking

Stakeholder Management

Data Interpretation

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR / Business related field

Master's degree (MBA or equivalent) preferred

Job description

The Director – Rewards, Performance & People Analytics is responsible for supporting the design, implementation, and continuous enhancement of Arcera's global Total Rewards, Performance Management, and People Analytics frameworks. The role partners closely with business leaders, HR teams, and functional stakeholders to ensure reward programs, performance processes, and workforce insights drive organizational effectiveness, employee engagement, and business performance.

Reporting to the VP People & Culture – Total Rewards & Technology, the role plays a key part in delivering strategic transformation initiatives, including global rewards harmonization, job architecture and grading, performance management, incentive plans, workforce analytics, and HR technology implementation.

Key Responsibilities

Total Rewards

• Support the design, implementation, and governance of global compensation and benefits frameworks.
• Lead compensation benchmarking, market analysis, and salary structure reviews across geographies.
• Manage annual compensation processes, including salary reviews, incentive payouts, and reward governance.
• Support the administration and enhancement of Short-Term Incentive (STI) and Long-Term Incentive (LTI) programs.
• Ensure reward programs remain competitive, equitable, and aligned with business objectives.

Performance Management

• Drive the implementation and continuous improvement of performance management frameworks and processes.
• Support goal setting, calibration, performance reviews, and talent differentiation initiatives.
• Develop tools, guidelines, and manager capability programs to strengthen performance culture.
• Monitor performance outcomes and provide insights to leadership teams.

Organization Effectiveness & Job Architecture

• Support organizational design initiatives, workforce planning, and job evaluation activities.
• Maintain global job architecture, grading structures, and governance frameworks.
• Partner with HR Business Partners and business leaders on organizational effectiveness initiatives.
• People Analytics & Insights
• Develop and maintain workforce and rewards analytics dashboards.
• Generate actionable insights on workforce trends, performance outcomes, compensation effectiveness, and organizational health.
• Support data-driven decision making through advanced people analytics and reporting.

Transformation & Projects

• Lead or support strategic HR transformation initiatives and cross-functional projects.
• Partner with HR Technology teams on system selection, implementation, and optimization.
• Drive process improvements and governance enhancements across Rewards and Performance functions.

Stakeholder Management

• Act as a trusted advisor to HR and business leaders on rewards, performance, and workforce effectiveness matters.
• Collaborate with regional and country HR teams to ensure consistent implementation of global frameworks.
• Present recommendations and insights to senior leadership and governance forums.

Key Competencies

Technical Competencies

• Total Rewards Strategy & Governance
• Compensation Benchmarking & Market Pricing
• Incentive Design (STI & LTI)
• Performance Management
• Job Evaluation & Job Architecture
• Organization Design
• Workforce Planning
• People Analytics & Data Interpretation
• HR Technology & Process Transformation
• Project Management

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic Thinking
• Business Acumen
• Stakeholder Management & Influencing
• Change Management
• Collaboration & Relationship Building
• Problem Solving & Analytical Thinking
• Communication & Presentation Skills
• Execution Excellence
• Continuous Improvement Mindset

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, Economics, Psychology, or a related field.
• Master's degree (MBA or equivalent) preferred.
• Professional certifications in Rewards, Compensation, Job Evaluation, HR Analytics, or Organization Design are advantageous.
• Minimum 10–15 years of progressive experience in Total Rewards, Performance Management, Organization Development, or Human Resources.
• Demonstrated experience managing global or multi-country rewards and performance programs.
• Experience in compensation benchmarking, incentive plan design, job evaluation, and organizational effectiveness initiatives.
• Proven track record supporting large-scale HR transformation and change initiatives.
• Strong analytical capability with experience using HR data, dashboards, and workforce analytics tools.
• Experience working within complex, matrixed, and multicultural organizations.

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