Senior HR Business Partner - Operations (KZN)

SUMMARY:
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POSITION INFO:

Position Details:

• Position Title: Senior HR Business Partner – Operations
• Reports To: Head of HR / HR Director
• Business Unit: Restaurant Operations
• Direct Reports: HR Officers / Talent Acquisition / Training Coordinators (as applicable)
• Level: Strategic Operational Leadership

Role Purpose

To serve as the strategic HR partner to restaurant operations, enabling the business to scale rapidly while maintaining the company’s people-first culture, operational discipline, and brand standards. The role ensures that restaurant teams, franchise partners and operational leaders have the talent, leadership capability and workforce structures required to support continued national expansion. Operating in a high-volume, multi-site quick service environment, the role focuses on workforce scalability, labour optimisation, leadership pipeline development, employee relations stability, franchise support and culture preservation during rapid growth.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Strategic HR Partnership with Operations:

• Partner with Regional Operations Managers and Franchise Partners to translate growth strategy into workforce plans
• Align workforce planning with new store openings and expansion plans
• Support labour cost optimisation while maintaining service delivery standards
• Strengthen the HR partnership between Head Office and field operations

2. Rapid Talent Acquisition for a Growing Brand:

• Forecast workforce requirements for new store openings and existing operations
• Build talent pipelines for Restaurant Managers, Assistant Managers and Supervisors
• Reduce Time-to-Fill for operational management roles
• Standardise recruitment processes across corporate and franchise stores
• Implement structured onboarding and induction programs

3. Employee Relations & Operational Stability:

• Coach restaurant leaders on labour relations and conflict resolution
• Manage disciplinary, grievance and misconduct processes
• Monitor ER trends across regions and implement preventative interventions
• Ensure compliance with South African labour legislation and franchise labour standards

4. Performance Management & Leadership Development:

• Implement performance management systems for restaurant teams
• Develop management capability programmes
• Support underperformance improvement plans
• Build succession pipelines for Restaurant Managers and Regional Operations roles

5. Remuneration & Workforce Cost Management:

• Maintain job grading structures across restaurant operations
• Conduct salary benchmarking for restaurant management roles
• Align incentive schemes to restaurant performance metrics
• Monitor labour cost ratios and productivity measures

6. Employment Equity & Skills Development:

• Develop and maintain Employment Equity plans
• Prepare and submit EE reports
• Facilitate stakeholder consultations
• Support training and skills development initiatives

7. Culture, Engagement & Retention:

• Monitor turnover trends and implement retention initiatives
• Drive employee engagement initiatives within restaurant teams
• Strengthen communication between Head Office and operational teams

8. HR Governance & Systems:

• Maintain HR systems integrity and reporting accuracy
• Ensure HR policies and procedures remain updated
• Conduct HR compliance audits across restaurant operations
• Support franchise partners with HR best practices

Key Performance Indicators:

• Time to Fill – Management Roles
• Labour Cost % of Sales
• Voluntary Turnover Rate
• 90-Day Attrition Rate
• Internal Promotion Rate
• Engagement Survey Scores
• ER Case Resolution Time
• Succession Coverage Ratio
• Compliance Audit Outcomes
• Employment Equity Targets Achievement

Minimum Requirements:

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Industrial Psychology or Business Management
• Postgraduate qualification advantageous

Experience:

• 7–10 years progressive HR experience
• Minimum 3–5 years in multi-site retail, restaurant or hospitality environments
• Proven HR Business Partner experience supporting operational leadership teams
• Experience in franchise or multi-brand restaurant systems advantageous

Ideal Candidate Profile:

• Strong operational mindset and ability to work in fast-paced environments
• High emotional intelligence and strong stakeholder management capability
• Deep understanding of labour relations within large operational workforces
• Ability to balance people culture with operational discipline
• Comfortable working close to field operations while partnering strategically with senior leadership