Report to: Country Director

Relationship with: Regional HR Business Partner

Location: Goma

Coordinates with: Deputy National Director in charge of Operations and Finance

About Us

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a private, nonprofit U.S. organization founded in 1895. Its mission is to preserve wildlife and wild places by understanding critical issues, developing science-based solutions, and taking conservation action that benefits nature and humanity. With more than a century of experience, long-term commitments in dozens of landscapes, a presence in more than 60 countries, and experience in creating more than 150 protected areas around the world, WCS has accumulated the biological knowledge, cultural understanding, and partnerships necessary to ensure that wild places and wildlife thrive alongside local communities. Working with local communities and organizations, this knowledge is applied to address species, habitat, and ecosystem management issues that are critical to improving the quality of life for poor rural people whose livelihoods depend on the direct use of natural resources.

WCS has been working in the Democratic Republic of Congo with government, community and private sector partners to deliver conservation in multiple landscapes across the country for over three decades. In partnership with our government partner ICCN (Institute Congolaise pour la Conservation de la Nature), WCS manages a portfolio of three site-based program in the east of the country that encompass some of the DRC’s most important protected areas and habitats for elephants and great apes (Okapi Wildlife Reserve, Kahuzi-Biega National Park and Kabobo Wildlife Reserve).

The program also addresses a number of key threats to biodiversity and forests at national or sub-national level, including climate change, the loss of intact forests and urban bushmeat consumption.

Purpose of the position :

The Human Resources Manager will lead and facilitate the development of a strategic and highly effective HR function to ensure that WCS DRC has the structure, culture and talent in place to achieve programme objectives and serve workers effectively.

Main responsibilities:

• Develop the strategic direction of the DRC’s HR function, ensuring that it is fully aligned with the overall HR strategy.
• Advise the WCS DRC management team and help define the company’s direction, HR strategy and objectives, aligning country HR strategies to form an essential part of these strategies and objectives and deliver positive results within this framework.
• Collaborate with the WCS Africa Human Resources Director to ensure that the reforms undertaken within the organization and the new initiatives in the field of human resources are implemented in a coherent manner in the DRC Programmes.
• Oversee executive and management development, strategic workforce planning and recruitment initiatives, talent management and retention.
• Design and activate a distinct leadership brand to develop leadership behaviors that support cultural transformation and accelerate leadership development at WCS DRC.
• Leading on succession planning issues (workforce planning), shaping and facilitating the effective implementation of the organizational people agenda to ensure the sustainability of the organization.
• Ensuring the integration and ongoing coaching of new managers.
• Develop and implement the talent management and retention strategy and plans to acquire, develop and retain the capabilities we need to ensure future success, including identifying talent development programmes to prepare our high potentials.
• To manage staff training and apprenticeship programmes with a view to promoting future talent.
• Drive organizational development to align strategy, design and structure, and corporate culture, with a focus on building a high-performance culture at WCS DRC.
• Develop harmonized human resources processes and formal procedures in line with those of head office.
• Ensuring compliance with local employment law and global organizational policies and procedures, including a harmonized disciplinary procedure.
• Advising on and implementing staff recognition and reward programmes, as well as robust performance management programmes.
• Contribute to the benchmarking of total remuneration and pay against similar roles and grades in the conservation and NGO sector, working with the global remuneration team.
• Managing the implementation and optimisation of HR management systems.
• Managing relations with employees and staff representatives.
• Define indicators and reporting methods to measure the effectiveness of local human resources programmes in terms of organizational performance
• Participating in compliance audits and ethical investigations to maintain the standards expected of the organization.
• Ensuring full compliance with changes in employment legislation.
• Keeping abreast of contemporary theories and methods of human resources management, and providing appropriate interpretation to managers, the local human resources team and employees within the organization.
• Technically supervise the work of the Human Resources Managers of the other WCS DRC Projects and provide them with the necessary support. Check, correct and approve the content of all employment contracts. Support Site Directors and Project Managers in deciding on: promotion, modification, career management and termination of staff contracts, taking into account the legal bases and standard rules of WCS DRC.
• Support the Administrative Director and the Legal Affairs Officer of the WCS-RDC Programme in managing social litigation before administrative institutions (Labour Inspectorate) and judicial institutions, in collaboration with the project managers concerned;
• Support the Administrative Director in managing relations with social organisations (labour inspectorate, CNSS, ONEM, etc.)

Qualification Requirements

• • Master’s degree in human resources, work psychology or law. - 7 or more years’ experience in the same position. - Leadership and team management skills - Good communication skills - Ability to convey information effectively and clearly, both orally and in writing. - Results-oriented - Demonstrating ingenuity and initiative in finding solutions, seeking out opportunities for learning and development, and contributing creative and innovative ideas. - Resilient and able to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, with a sense of urgency and the ability to deliver results under pressure. - Results-based approach to planning, prioritizing and executing HR activities. - Ability to speak and write in French and English - Excellent command of MS Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint. - Carry out any other task related to the WCS mission at the request of National Management

How to apply

Interested candidates, who meet the above qualifications, skills and experience, should apply through this link before September 6, 2023.

WCS is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to hiring and supporting a diverse workforce. We are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment and look for future team members who share that same value.