People and Experience Specialist

X, bigly labs; Pretoria; On-site; ZAR 600 000 - 800 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading innovation hub in South Africa is seeking a People & Experience Specialist to translate HR strategy into practice. This role involves managing the employee lifecycle, supporting leaders, and ensuring compliance with labor laws. Ideal candidates have over 7 years of experience in HR or People Operations, strong knowledge of HR practices, and are proficient in HRIS platforms. Join us in reimagining healthcare through innovative people solutions that drive growth and engagement.

Qualifications

• 7+ years’ experience in Human Resources or People Operations.
• Proven experience supporting leaders in fast-paced environments.
• Strong knowledge of HR practices across the employee lifecycle.
• Demonstrated experience managing employee relations and performance cycles.
• Advanced understanding of South African labour legislation.

Responsibilities

• Partner with business leaders to implement people plans.
• Serve as a trusted advisor on talent and leadership.
• Lead the onboarding, probation, and performance processes.
• Embed company culture through engagement and recognition.

Skills

Human Resources

Employee Relations

Analytical Thinking

Leadership

Understanding of HRIS

Education

Degree in HR Management or Industrial Psychology

Tools

HRIS platforms

Payroll systems

Job description

We are X, bigly labs, Dis-Chem’s high-performance innovation hub; a place where bold ideas meet data, design, and radical customer focus to reimagine what healthcare can be.

Our mission is to power the future of healthcare by lowering costs, unlocking new possibilities, and improving access to healthcare for all South Africans. We do this through cutting-edge digital solutions that deliver smarter, more human, and truly patient-focused experiences. Here, your work is not limited to a whiteboard; it becomes real. It drives decisions, shapes experiences, and moves healthcare forward. We are driven by one big question: How do we use data and today’s technology to build breakthroughs to better health?

There’s only one question left: are you ready to make healthcare smarter, and actually mean it?

People & Experience Specialist is a strategic business partner and trusted advisor to leaders and teams across X, bigly labs. This role is responsible for translating People & Experience strategy into day-to-day practice, ensuring that our people systems, rituals, and operations drive engagement, performance, and growth.

Anchored in both strategy and delivery, the People & Experience specialist champions the full employee lifecycle, from onboarding, performance, and development to operations, well-being, and employee relations, creating the conditions for people and teams to thrive.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

• 7 + years’ experience in Human Resources, Business Partnering, or People Operations.
• Proven experience supporting leaders in fast-paced, scaling, or startup environments.
• Strong knowledge of HR practices across the full employee lifecycle.
• Demonstrated experience managing employee relations, performance cycles, and organisational projects.
• Degree in HR Management, Industrial Psychology, or related field.
• Advanced understanding of South African labour legislation.

WHAT YOU WILL BE DOING

• Partner with business leaders to co-create and implement people plans aligned with business priorities.
• Serve as a trusted advisor on talent, leadership, culture, and organisational design decisions.
• Lead the delivery of the full employee lifecycle: onboarding, probation, performance, growth, and offboarding.
• Embed “The Bigly Way” culture through engagement rituals, recognition, and leadership behaviours.
• Drive performance cycles, ensuring alignment with bigly’s performance philosophy and leadership expectations.
• Ensure all People practices comply with relevant labour legislation, policies, and internal governance.
• Contribute to strategic People & Experience projects such as onboarding redesigns, process automation, and leadership programs.

WHO YOU ARE

• Deep understanding of human resources practices, including employee relations, performance, and talent management.
• Analytical thinking, interpret data and people insights to inform decision-making.
• Understands organisational drivers, business models, and value creation.
• Delivers accurate, compliant, and high-quality outputs across people processes.
• Leads by example, modelling integrity, empathy, and professionalism.
• Proficient in HRIS platforms, payroll systems, and employee data tools.

Our values show up in how we think, build, and make choices that make an impact. We are building a culture that drives progress; one that fixes friction, chases what changes, and owns the outcome. We design with tomorrow in mind, ask sharper questions, and answer them with care, urgency, and systems that scale.

Think you’ve got energy, curiosity, and guts? Come hold the space, make it matter, and own a breakthrough.