Chief People & Culture Officer (CPCO) job at Omia Agribusiness Development Group Ltd

Job Purpose

The Chief People & Culture Officer (CPCO) provides executive leadership for Omia Agribusiness Development Group Ltd.’s people strategy, organizational capability, culture and workforce productivity. The role ensures that Omia has the right organizational structure, leadership, talent, systems and performance culture required to achieve its strategic, commercial and impact ambitions. As a member of the Senior Management Team, the CPCO serves as a strategic business partner to the CEO, Commercial, Finance, Operations and Farmer Support functions, ensuring that workforce decisions and people investments support revenue growth, EBITDA, net profit margins, operational efficiency, national expansion and long-term sustainability.

 Key Result Areas (KRAs)

1.  People Strategy, Organizational Design and Workforce Productivity (20%)

 Key Responsibilities.

• Develop and execute the People and Culture Strategy in direct alignment with Omia’s corporate strategy, annual business plan and growth ambitions.
• Lead strategic workforce planning, organizational design, job analysis and staffing reviews to ensure the organization has the right roles, skills, structures and staffing levels.
• Drive workforce productivity and ensure that people costs, deployment and capability support the achievement of revenue, EBITDA, net profit margin and impact targets.
• Advise management on restructuring, decentralization, branch expansion, role creation, role consolidation and workforce affordability.
• Establish productivity measures such as revenue per employee, staff cost as a percentage of revenue, span of control, staffing efficiency and workforce utilization.
• Lead organizational development and change management initiatives arising from growth, restructuring, digital transformation and new business models.

  Expected Outputs.

• Approved and implemented People and Culture Strategy.
• Workforce plans and organizational structures aligned to business priorities.
• Improved workforce productivity, role clarity and staffing efficiency.
• People costs maintained within approved and sustainable levels.
• Organizational changes implemented effectively and with minimal disruption.

 Illustrative Performance Measures.

• Workforce productivity trends and revenue per employee.
• Staff cost as a percentage of revenue and against budget.
• Percentage of critical roles adequately staffed.
• Timeliness and effectiveness of organizational restructuring actions.

2.  Talent Acquisition, Employer Brand and Leadership Pipeline (15%)

  Key Responsibilities

• Lead workforce acquisition strategies that attract, select, onboard and retain competent employees for current operations and future expansion.
• Build and promote Omia’s employer brand and employee value proposition to strengthen how the organization is perceived by employees, candidates, universities and the wider labour market.
• Oversee recruitment, selection, onboarding, confirmation, promotion, transfer and separation processes, ensuring fairness, transparency, merit and timely decision-making.
• Develop and manage graduate, internship, volunteer and early-career recruitment programmes.
• Establish strategic partnerships with universities, technical institutions, professional bodies and training providers to build long-term talent pipelines.
• Identify critical positions, high-potential employees and succession risks, and maintain succession and readiness plans for leadership, branch, commercial and technical roles.
• Build the leadership pipeline required for Omia’s national expansion through structured development, mentoring, stretch assignments and internal mobility.

 Expected Outputs

• Critical vacancies filled with competent employees within agreed timelines.
• Stronger employer visibility and quality candidate attraction.
• Functional graduate, internship and volunteer talent programmes.
• University and institutional talent partnerships established.
• Succession plans and ready-now/ready-later talent pools maintained for critical roles.
• Increased proportion of leadership and specialist vacancies filled internally.

 Illustrative Performance Measures

• Time to fill, quality of hire and new-hire retention.
• Internal promotion rate for leadership and critical positions.
• Percentage of critical positions with identified successors.
• Candidate experience and employer brand indicators.

3.  Performance, Execution and Organizational Capability (15%)

 Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design, implementation and continuous improvement of an organization-wide performance management system linked to Omia’s strategic and financial priorities.
• Ensure corporate objectives are translated into clear departmental, team and individual KPIs with defined accountability and measurable results.
• Drive timely goal setting, performance check-ins, appraisals, feedback, coaching, performance improvement plans and consequence management.
• Hold managers accountable for execution, team performance, staff development, retention, attendance, employee engagement and timely resolution of performance issues.
• Use performance and workforce analytics to identify productivity gaps, capability risks, underperformance trends and opportunities for improvement.
• Lead organizational learning, technical capability building, management development and leadership development based on verified business needs.
• Evaluate the effectiveness and business impact of learning and development investments.

 Expected Outputs

• Performance plans aligned to organizational priorities.
• Improved execution, accountability and employee productivity.
• Underperformance addressed consistently and within agreed timelines.
• Capability gaps identified and addressed through targeted interventions.
• Managers equipped to lead teams and deliver results.
• Learning investments linked to measurable performance improvement.

 Illustrative Performance Measures

• Performance review completion and quality rates.
• Percentage of employees meeting or exceeding agreed targets.
• Timely closure and success rate of performance improvement plans.
• Training effectiveness and post-training performance improvement.
• Manager accountability and people-management scorecard results.

4.  Culture, Change and Employee Experience (15%)

 Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development and embedding of a high-performance, accountable, ethical and “Farmers First” organizational culture.
• Lead organizational change initiatives and support employees and managers through transitions arising from growth, restructuring, technology adoption and new ways of working.
• Design and monitor the employee experience across recruitment, onboarding, development, performance, recognition, wellbeing and separation.
• Lead employee engagement, communication, recognition and wellbeing initiatives that support motivation, productivity and retention.
• Provide strategic oversight of employee relations, disciplinary processes, grievance management, safeguarding, diversity, equity and inclusion.
• Build manager capability and accountability for people outcomes, including engagement, retention, conduct, performance, development and team climate.
• Use employee feedback, engagement data, exit information and turnover analysis to recommend and implement corrective actions.

 Expected Outputs

• Organizational values and expected behaviours consistently demonstrated.
• Improved employee engagement, trust and accountability.
• Change initiatives implemented with effective communication and adoption.
• Fair, timely and consistent employee relations practices.
• Reduced avoidable turnover and improved retention of high-performing employees.
• Managers held accountable for employee experience and people outcomes.

 Illustrative Performance Measures

• Employee engagement and culture survey results.
• Voluntary and regrettable turnover rates.
• Employee relations case resolution timelines.
• Retention of high performers and critical talent.
• Change adoption and employee communication effectiveness.

• 5.  HR Governance, Digital Transformation, Analytics and Risk (15%)

• Key Responsibilities

• Ensure compliance with labour laws, employment regulations, internal policies, donor requirements and applicable governance standards.
• Lead the development, review, approval and consistent implementation of People and Culture policies, procedures and controls.
• Oversee HR audits, compliance reviews, employment documentation, payroll-related controls and accurate employee records.
• Lead digital HR transformation, including implementation and optimization of HR information systems, employee databases, automated workflows, digital records and self-service processes.
• Build reliable workforce dashboards and analytics covering staffing, productivity, performance, turnover, absenteeism, compensation, diversity, learning and succession.
• Ensure workforce data is accurate, secure, confidential, timely and useful for executive decision-making.
• Identify, assess and mitigate people-related, succession, compliance, conduct, safeguarding and workforce continuity risks.
• Strengthen integration between HR systems and Finance, Operations and other organizational systems where appropriate.

• Expected Outputs

• Compliance with labour legislation and organizational policies.
• Accurate, secure and accessible employee records.
• Automated and efficient HR processes.
• Timely workforce dashboards and management reports.
• People risks identified, reported and mitigated.
• Improved data integrity and evidence-based decision-making.

• Illustrative Performance Measures

• HR audit findings and closure rate.
• HR process turnaround time and automation rate.
• Workforce data accuracy and reporting timeliness.
• Compliance incidents and people-risk mitigation status.

• 6.  Executive Advisory and Strategic Business Partnership (10%)

• Key Responsibilities

• Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO, Senior Management Team and Board on workforce, organizational capability, leadership, culture and people-related risks.
• Partner with Commercial, Finance, Operations and Farmer Support leaders to diagnose organizational constraints and design people solutions that improve business performance.
• Contribute to strategy formulation, annual planning, budgeting, expansion decisions, organizational reviews and performance discussions.
• Provide workforce scenarios, cost implications, productivity analysis and organizational recommendations to support sound executive decision-making.
• Ensure people implications are considered in new branches, projects, partnerships, investments, products and operational changes.
• Prepare and contribute to Board and management reports on human capital, organizational performance, workforce risk and succession.
• Represent Omia on strategic people and organizational matters with regulators, professional bodies, universities, partners and other external stakeholders.

• Expected Outputs

• People considerations integrated into strategic and commercial decisions.
• Evidence-based executive advice provided in a timely manner.
• Improved cross-functional execution and organizational performance.
• Quality Board and management reporting on human capital matters.
• Strong external relationships that support organizational capability and talent access.

• 7.  People & Culture Function Leadership and Organizational Collaboration (10%)

• Key Responsibilities

• Provide leadership, direction, coaching and mentorship to the People and Culture team.
• Set departmental priorities, service standards, budgets, work plans and performance expectations aligned to organizational needs.
• Ensure the People and Culture function is appropriately structured, skilled, resourced and responsive.
• Build the capacity of managers and supervisors to carry out their people-management responsibilities effectively.
• Promote collaboration, shared accountability and effective communication across departments, branches and project teams.
• Monitor the quality, timeliness and internal customer experience of HR services.
• Promote continuous improvement, professional ethics, confidentiality and service excellence within the function.

• Expected Outputs

• High-performing and responsive People and Culture function.
• Departmental plans and budgets implemented effectively.
• Improved manager capability and ownership of people responsibilities.
• Consistent and timely HR service delivery across the organization.
• Stronger cross-functional collaboration and internal customer satisfaction.

• 8.  Other Duties

• Perform any other duties reasonably assigned by the CEO, provided they are consistent with the level, purpose and strategic nature of the role.

• Decision-Making Authority

• May Independently

•  Provide professional advice on people, culture, organization and workforce matters.
• Approve routine People and Culture processes within delegated authority and approved policies.
• Initiate approved recruitment and workforce planning processes.
• Commission workforce analysis, organizational reviews and people-risk assessments.
• Recommend learning, leadership, engagement and organizational development interventions.
• Initiate employee relations, performance and compliance processes in accordance with policy.

• Requires CEO and/or Board Approval, as Applicable

•  Organizational restructuring and major changes to the operating model.
• Creation, abolition or significant redesign of positions.
• Senior management appointments and separations.
• People and Culture budgets and major unbudgeted expenditure.
• Compensation structures, salary adjustments and incentive frameworks.
• Major policy changes and matters reserved for the Board.
• Significant employee relations decisions outside delegated authority.

• Internal Working Relationships

• Chief Executive Officer.
• Board of Directors and Board Committees, where required.
• Chief Financial Officer.
• Commercial and Sales Leadership.
• Operations Leadership.
• Head of Farmer Support & Partnerships.
• Project and Business Unit Leaders.
• People & Culture Team.
• All Managers and Supervisors.
• All Employees.

• External Working Relationships

• Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development.
• National Social Security Fund and Uganda Revenue Authority on employment and payroll-related matters.
• Professional HR bodies and labour consultants.
• Universities, technical institutions and training providers.
• Recruitment agencies and assessment providers.
• Development, investment and strategic partners where relevant.
• Employment-law advisors and other regulatory institutions.

• Minimum Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Human Resource Management, Organizational Development, Business Administration, Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Public Administration or a related field.
• A bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management, Industrial Psychology, or a related discipline.
• CIPD, CHRP or an equivalent recognized professional HR qualification is an added advantage.

• Experience

• Minimum of ten (10) years of progressive experience in human resource management, organizational development or people leadership, including at least five (5) years in a senior management or executive leadership role.
• Demonstrated experience linking people strategy, workforce productivity and organizational capability to business performance.
• Proven experience in organizational design, strategic workforce planning, performance management, leadership development, succession and culture change.
• Experience advising executive leadership and contributing to strategy, budgeting, restructuring and business-growth decisions.
• Demonstrated experience implementing HR systems, automation, workforce dashboards and people analytics.
• Experience leading complex organizational change and strengthening manager accountability.
• Experience in agribusiness, agriculture, commercial, manufacturing, retail, multi-branch or project-based organizations is highly desirable.
• Experience engaging regulators, professional bodies, universities and strategic or development partners is an added advantage.

• Knowledge Requirements

• Strategic human resource management and organizational development.
• Commercial and financial literacy, including understanding of revenue, EBITDA, profitability, labour cost and productivity drivers.
• Organizational design, workforce planning and job evaluation.
• Performance management, execution and accountability systems.
• Talent acquisition, employer branding, succession and leadership development.
• Organizational culture, employee experience and change management.
• Labour laws, employee relations, safeguarding and corporate governance.
• HR information systems, digital transformation, automation and workforce analytics.
• Compensation, benefits and reward principles.
• Risk management and business continuity.

• Technical Skills

• People strategy formulation and execution.
• Business partnering and executive advisory.
• Workforce productivity and organizational analysis.
• Organizational design and job evaluation.
• Strategic workforce planning and talent management.
• Performance management and leadership development.
• HR analytics, dashboard development and data interpretation.
• HR technology implementation and process automation.
• Policy development, governance and compliance.
• Change leadership, facilitation, coaching and stakeholder management.
• Budgeting, workforce costing and report writing.

• Behavioural Competencies

• Strategic and commercial thinking.
• Leadership, influence and executive presence.
• Results orientation and accountability.
• Integrity, discretion and confidentiality.
• Sound judgement and evidence-based decision-making.
• Emotional intelligence and courage in addressing difficult issues.
• Collaboration and cross-functional partnership.
• Coaching, mentoring and talent development.
• Negotiation, conflict resolution and change leadership.
• Adaptability, resilience and continuous improvement.
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement.

• Develop and execute the People and Culture Strategy in direct alignment with Omia’s corporate strategy, annual business plan and growth ambitions.
• Lead strategic workforce planning, organizational design, job analysis and staffing reviews to ensure the organization has the right roles, skills, structures and staffing levels.
• Drive workforce productivity and ensure that people costs, deployment and capability support the achievement of revenue, EBITDA, net profit margin and impact targets.
• Advise management on restructuring, decentralization, branch expansion, role creation, role consolidation and workforce affordability.
• Establish productivity measures such as revenue per employee, staff cost as a percentage of revenue, span of control, staffing efficiency and workforce utilization.
• Lead organizational development and change management initiatives arising from growth, restructuring, digital transformation and new business models.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO, Senior Management Team and Board on workforce, organizational capability, leadership, culture and people-related risks.
• Partner with Commercial, Finance, Operations and Farmer Support leaders to diagnose organizational constraints and design people solutions that improve business performance.
• Contribute to strategy formulation, annual planning, budgeting, expansion decisions, organizational reviews and performance discussions.
• Provide workforce scenarios, cost implications, productivity analysis and organizational recommendations to support sound executive decision-making.
• Ensure people implications are considered in new branches, projects, partnerships, investments, products and operational changes.
• Prepare and contribute to Board and management reports on human capital, organizational performance, workforce risk and succession.
• Represent Omia on strategic people and organizational matters with regulators, professional bodies, universities, partners and other external stakeholders.
• Provide leadership, direction, coaching and mentorship to the People & Culture team.
• Set departmental priorities, service standards, budgets, work plans and performance expectations aligned to organizational needs.
• Ensure the People & Culture function is appropriately structured, skilled, resourced and responsive.
• Build the capacity of managers and supervisors to carry out their people-management responsibilities effectively.
• Promote collaboration, shared accountability and effective communication across departments, branches and project teams.
• Monitor the quality, timeliness and internal customer experience of HR services.
• Promote continuous improvement, professional ethics, confidentiality and service excellence within the function.
• Perform any other duties reasonably assigned by the CEO, provided they are consistent with the level, purpose and strategic nature of the role.

• People strategy formulation and execution.
• Business partnering and executive advisory.
• Workforce productivity and organizational analysis.
• Organizational design and job evaluation.
• Strategic workforce planning and talent management.
• Performance management and leadership development.
• HR analytics, dashboard development and data interpretation.
• HR technology implementation and process automation.
• Policy development, governance and compliance.
• Change leadership, facilitation, coaching and stakeholder management.
• Budgeting, workforce costing and report writing.

• Master’s degree in Human Resource Management, Organizational Development, Business Administration, Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Public Administration or a related field.
• A bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management, Industrial Psychology, or a related discipline.
• CIPD, CHRP or an equivalent recognized professional HR qualification is an added advantage.