Head of Total Rewards, Human Resources

Introduction to the Aga Khan University:

Chartered in 1983, Aga Khan University (AKU) is a private, autonomous and selfgoverning international university with 13 teaching sites in 6 countries distributed across three continents. As an integral part of the Aga Khan Development Network, AKU provides higher education in several disciplines, carries out research pertinent to the countries in which it exists and has campuses, programs and/or teaching hospitals in Afghanistan, Kenya, Pakistan, Tanzania, Uganda and the UK. As an international institution, AKU operates on the core principles of quality, relevance, impact and access; and AKU is a model of academic excellence and an agent of social change.

As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.

Job Role / Responsibilities:

You will be responsible for planning, designing, implementing, and administering (end-to-end) a comprehensive total rewards strategy and programs for faculty and staff working in health services, academy and support functions. You should understand best practices, innovative trends and reward strategies, combined with the ability to execute and operate end to end solutions. You will also play a major role in designing compensation and total rewards programs and services to support AKU's competitive position and its continued growth.

Specifically, you will be responsible for;

• Support in the development of the reward strategy in line with the University strategy, ensuring market competitive remuneration for colleagues across AKU.
• Identify and receive business needs/challenges from the Leadership or HR Business Partners and interpret related needs to propose affordable and sustainable reward solutions.
• Analyze relevant market trends and data for comparison with AKU’s remuneration offerings and propose any changes or new reward element, ensuring AKU’s remuneration policies remain up to date for retention and attraction of desired talent.
• Collaborate with relevant stakeholders for creating awareness on developed plans and timely/effective communication.
• Review and evaluate performance of developed framework in line with existing strategies and policies.
• Analyze the financial impact of total reward program and design core measures to evaluate cost trends.
• Establish plans using the insights obtained through advanced analytics, while following upon on certain issues such as market competitiveness, internal equity, etc.
• Partner with Finance and HR teams for the purpose of planning the annual budget process, preparation of budgets and forecasting from a total remuneration perspective.
• Leverage expertise in the job evaluation process to ensure it is equitable, defensible, and supports the needs of the Organization.
• Monitor the effectiveness of compensation and benefits programs and recommends modification to reduce costs and improve delivery.
• Collaborate with other HR functions to contribute to a strategic delivery of total rewards programs.
• Implement end-to-end management of the increment cycle including but not limited to preparation of options for merit increment, promotional increases and market adjustments within the approved budget, seek leadership approval of options, process letters and handling any post increment queries.
• Develop governance and compliance with the aim of improving pay transparency.
• Develop and implement variable payment / incentive payment mechanisms for improving staff retention, while maintaining institutional sustainability.
• Develop faculty compensation plans based on different specialties to attract and retain faculty within the institution.
• Participate in and conduct market data surveys in collaboration with relevant consultancies.
• Conceive and prepare analysis related to compensation & benefits, helping form the business case for Total Reward initiatives.
• Evaluate jobs based on internationally recognized job evaluation methodologies.
• Implement career progression plans within different job families to provide career growth to staff.

Eligibility Criteria / Requirements:

• Master’s degree in human resources / finance or equivalent.
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience with an exposure of direct management of total rewards function of a large size institution. Past experience of working within an academic setup / academic medical center would be an added advantage.
• Strong knowledge of compensation and benefits practices, regulations, and trends.
• Proven leadership skills with the ability to influence and collaborate at all organizational levels.
• Excellent analytical, problem solving and financial modelling ability.
• Sound judgment, independent and creative thinking with an eye for detail and accuracy.
• Solid financial and computation abilities; must be accurate and disciplined in capturing details and maintaining records.
• Ability to proactively develop team dynamics and performance, ensuring quality standards are consistently achieved.

Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.