Human Resources Business Partner Lead at Welcome2Africa

Purpose of the Role 

The purpose of this role is to align W2A’s people, operations, systems, internal processes, and performance culture with the organization’s strategic goals. The HR Business Partner Lead will support leadership by ensuring that: • Departments are properly structured 

• Roles are clearly defined 
• Staff are accountable 
• Performance is measured against organizational priorities
• HR supports business growth, not just administration 
• Processes are documented and followed

The role will help W2A move from reactive execution to a more proactive, structured, process-driven, and institutionally credible organization. 

Growth Potential 

This role has significant growth potential as W2A evolves into a HoldCo with multiple entities and business lines. The HR Business Partner Lead will initially support the current W2A structure, but over time, the role may grow into a broader group-level people and operations leadership function, supporting: 

• Talent strategy 
• Culture and performance 
• Organizational structure 
• Entity-level people operations across W2A Connect, W2A Trade, W2A Impact Capital, and future entities 
• HR systems and processes 

This is an opportunity for someone who wants to help build the people architecture of a growing African investment and trade group from the inside. 

Key Responsibilities 

Strategic HR and Business Alignment; 

• Work closely with the CEO, senior leadership, and department heads to understand W2A’s strategic goals and translate them into people, structure, and execution plans. 
• Ensure that roles across the organization are linked to wider objectives, including revenue generation, investment facilitation, trade execution, donor delivery, stakeholder engagement, and institutional growth. 
• Advise leadership on team structure, capacity gaps, duplication, role overload, reporting lines, and manpower planning. 
• Ensure HR is directly supporting W2A’s business priorities and long-term group ambitions. 

Operations, Systems, and Process Development; 

• Support the strengthening of internal operations by helping to design, document, and implement practical processes across departments. 
• Develop and improve processes for: 
• Recruitment and onboarding 
• Performance management 
• Leave and attendance 
• Staff records 
• Departmental reporting 
• Approvals and escalation 
• Task tracking and accountability 
• Handovers and exits 
• Disciplinary matters 
• Internal communication and documentation 
• Ensure W2A does not rely only on verbal instructions or scattered email trails. 
• Help create clear trackers, folders, templates, SOPs, and reporting systems that improve visibility, reduce chaos, and support continuity. 

Organizational Structure and Role Clarity; 

• Support the development of a clear organizational structure aligned with W2A’s group and HoldCo ambitions. 
• Ensure that each department and, over time, each entity has: o A defined mandate o Clear reporting lines o Measurable responsibilities o Properly assigned ownership 
• Review and update job descriptions, KPIs, role briefs, reporting expectations, and departmental structures. 
• Identify where W2A needs to hire, restructure, retrain, or reassign responsibilities to improve delivery. 

Performance, Culture, and Accountability; 

• Support the development of a performance culture where staff understand their roles, deliverables, timelines, and contribution to W2A’s strategic goals. • Track performance across departments and escalate concerns early where there is: 
  • Underperformance 
  • Lack of ownership 
  • Weak follow-through 
  • Poor communication 
  • Missed deadlines 
• Support fair but firm performance reviews, probation reviews, disciplinary processes, and performance improvement plans. 
• Help build a culture of ownership, professionalism, accountability, institutional discipline, and execution. 

Required Experience 

The ideal candidate should have: 

• Minimum of 5–7 years’ experience in HR, people operations, organizational development, business operations, or HR business partnering. 
• Experience working in a fast-growing, founder-led, project-driven, consulting, investment, trade, development, or SME environment. 
• Strong experience designing and implementing HR processes, policies, SOPs, trackers, and performance systems. 
• Practical understanding of organizational structure, manpower planning, recruitment, performance management, and employee relations. 
• Good knowledge of Nigerian labour practices and employment documentation. 
• Experience in donor-funded, international development, investment, trade, or private sector organizations would be an advantage. 

Required Skills and Competencies 

The candidate must be: 

• Strategic, structured, proactive, and execution-driven 
• Strong in operations, systems, and process design 
• Excellent in documentation, reporting, and follow-through 
• Strong in performance management and accountability 
• Able to work with senior leadership and department heads 
• Able to manage sensitive HR matters with maturity and discretion 
• Comfortable creating order in a fast-paced environment
• Strong in communication, writing, and stakeholder management 
• Able to balance empathy with firmness and institutional discipline