Talent Acquisition Manager- Non-Education

Cognita; Dubai; On-site; AED 300,000 - 460,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognita Asia Holdings Pte Ltd is seeking a Talent Acquisition Manager- Non-Education in Dubai to lead full-cycle recruitment for corporate functions across our schools and regional offices. The role involves sourcing, screening, offers, and onboarding while ensuring an outstanding candidate experience.

You will build relationships with hiring managers, provide market insights, and guide recruitment best practices in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Five years' experience managing full-cycle recruitment across a variety of specialist and corporate functions.

Responsibilities

• Partner with hiring managers to understand workforce needs and recruit for IT, Finance, HR, Operations, Marketing and Admissions.
• Manage sourcing, screening, offer management and onboarding with a focus on an exceptional candidate experience.
• Provide market insights and recruitment guidance to hiring managers throughout the process.

Skills

Full-cycle recruitment

Stakeholder management

Sourcing

Candidate experience

Education

University degree

HR qualification (CIPD)

Tools

ATS

LinkedIn

CV databases

Job description

Talent Acquisition Manager- Non-Education

About Cognita:
Cognita is a global leader in independent education. Founded in 2004, we are a growing community of 90 schools in 20 countries - in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East - serving more than 100,000 students. Each of our schools are proudly unique, however our collective purpose is to create an environment where everyone can, "Thrive in a rapidly evolving world".
About the Role:
The Cognita Talent Acquisition Team - Non-Education plays a key role in building and delivering a high-quality talent pipeline for corporate and non-education positions across our schools and Regional Offices in Dubai. Working in a fast-paced, dynamic and competitive environment, the successful candidate will partner closely with hiring managers to understand workforce needs, develop effective sourcing strategies, and attract high-calibre talent through a variety of channels including LinkedIn, job boards, networking and proactive market mapping. The role involves managing the full recruitment lifecycle, from sourcing and screening candidates through to offer management and onboarding, while ensuring an exceptional candidate experience and full compliance with relevant regulatory requirements. You will also provide guidance and training to hiring managers on recruitment best practice and ATS usage, build and maintain strong talent pipelines, support recruitment events and sourcing campaigns, contribute to workforce planning and reporting activities, and assist with wider recruitment projects as required. This is an exciting opportunity for a proactive, commercially minded recruiter who enjoys building relationships, thinking creatively and delivering results in a collaborative team environment.
Working Arrangement: 4 days per week in the Dubai office or schools, 1 day working from home.
Who We Are Looking For:
We are looking for an experienced and proactive Talent Acquisition professional with at least five years' experience managing full-cycle recruitment across a variety of specialist and corporate functions. You will have a strong track record of sourcing high-quality talent through social media, professional networks, CV databases and applicant tracking systems, alongside experience recruiting for areas such as IT, Finance, HR, Operations, Marketing and Admissions. With excellent stakeholder management and relationship-building skills, you will be confident partnering with hiring managers and senior leaders, providing market insights, recruitment advice and guidance throughout the hiring process. Highly organised and able to manage multiple priorities, you will demonstrate sound judgement, strong negotiation skills and a commitment to delivering an exceptional candidate experience. Experience in-house is preferred, although applicants from specialist recruitment agencies will also be considered. A university degree and HR qualification, such as CIPD, are desirable, as is experience within the education sector, agency vendor management and multilingual capabilities relevant to the region.
Cognita Schools is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All appointments are subject to safer recruitment checks, including an enhanced DBS check. Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy is available on the school website. Details on Recruitment of Ex-Offenders is included within the Application Guidance.
We are an equal opportunities employer committed to diversity and treating all employees with dignity and respect regardless of background.