Director of Human Resources

Location: Gurugram, India
Type: Full-time | On-site | Leadership Role
Role Summary
The Director – Human Resources will lead the people strategy for the University’s India Campus from its launch onwards. The role will build a high-performing, inclusive, and mission-aligned culture across faculty, academic-support, administrative, and operations teams, with local execution aligned to the University’s standards, policies and processes.
This role is both strategic and operational requiring a deep understanding of HR practices in academic environments, compliance with Indian employment laws, and alignment with global university standards. This role will lead a team focused on service excellence, communication, organisational development, employee wellbeing and culture, supporting the establishment of a high-performing and inclusive campus community.
Key Responsibilities
Talent Strategy & Workforce Planning
L ead workforce planning and organisational design activities to ensure that the campus has the talent, capability and leadership capacity required to support sustainable growth.
Lead the academic workforce strategy for the campus, including faculty workforce planning, academic career pathways, succession planning and talent development, in partnership with the Provost and academic leadership team.
Lead end-to-end recruitment for faculty, administrative, and leadership roles.
Establish a robust onboarding and orientation program for a diverse, multicultural workforce.
Performance, Engagement & Learning
Develop and manage performance appraisal frameworks that balance academic and operational outcomes.
Drive employee engagement initiatives, assessments, and well-being programs to foster a vibrant campus culture.
Design and implement professional development pathways, and training modules for staff and faculty.
Build and maintain learning and development programs that provide professional growth and skill building for all employees that align with operational and strategic goals.
Policy, Governance & Compliance
Create, implement, and continuously improve HR policies in line with applicable Indian employment requirements, policies and systems, and the needs of an international campus.
Ensure compliance with applicable diversity, equity, inclusion, prevention of sexual harassment (POSH), safeguarding, accessibility, workplace conduct, and other statutory and institutional frameworks.
Ensure compliance with relevant immigration legislation and policies.
Manage employee relations, grievance redressal, and disciplinary processes with sensitivity and fairness.
Leadership & People Operations
Lead the delivery of HR operations, including payroll, benefits, pension, leave administration, contracts and employee lifecycle processes, ensuring an efficient, compliant and high-quality service.
Provide strategic HR advice to the Provost and senior leadership team on workforce planning, organisational development, employee relations and talent management.
Collaborate with stakeholders on global HR alignment, faculty appointments, visiting faculty and exchange arrangements, cross-border hiring, mobility, and employee experience.
Oversee international mobility, immigration and employment arrangements for staff, ensuring compliance with applicable legal, regulatory and institutional requirements.
Qualifications & Experience
Master’s degree, or equivalent directly relevant experience, in Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field
Significant senior HR leadership experience within higher education, an international organisation or similarly complex environment.
Deep knowledge of Indian labour law, employee lifecycle management, and faculty-specific HR practices
Experience of strategic workforce planning, organisational design and talent management in support of organisational growth and change
Knowledge of equality, diversity and inclusion practices within higher education or similarly complex organisations.
Knowledge of international employment considerations, including mobility, immigration and cross-border working arrangements.
Experience of leading complex employee relations matters, workplace investigations and organisational change programmes.
Experience of supporting the establishment, growth or transformation of a higher education institution, international campus or comparable organisation.
Strong interpersonal, negotiation, and crisis management skills.
Experience with HRMS systems, workforce analytics, and reporting.

Work arrangement
No