HR Generalist

The Forum Company | Johannesburg

Are you ready to take ownership of an entire HR function?

At The Forum, we believe our people are one of our greatest assets. As we continue to grow, we are looking for an experienced HR professional who wants more than a traditional HR administration role.

We are looking for someone who will take ownership of the Human Resources function across our business, partnering with management to ensure that our people, policies, culture and compliance support the continued success of the company.

This is an opportunity for someone who enjoys being involved in every aspect of HR—from recruitment and employee engagement to labour relations, compliance and performance management—while still being hands-on when it comes to administration and day-to-day HR operations.

If you enjoy building structure, supporting managers, developing people and creating a professional employee experience, this could be the role for you.

About the Role

Reporting directly to senior management, you will be responsible for leading and managing the Human Resources function across The Forum.

You will oversee the full employee lifecycle, ensuring that our HR practices are compliant, consistent and aligned with the needs of a premium hospitality and events business.

While payroll processing is outsourced, you will own the payroll process from an HR perspective. This includes ensuring that all payroll information submitted to the external payroll provider is complete, accurate and submitted on time, as well as resolving employee payroll queries and maintaining the integrity of employee information.

More importantly, you will become a trusted advisor to management on all people-related matters, helping us attract, develop and retain exceptional employees while maintaining a positive and high-performing workplace culture.

This role will suit someone who:

• Enjoys taking ownership and accountability.
• Is equally comfortable with strategy and administration.
• Has excellent attention to detail.
• Can confidently advise managers on HR matters.
• Is approachable, professional and fair.
• Is comfortable dealing with difficult conversations when required.
• Understands South African labour legislation and HR best practice.
• Thrives in a busy operational environment where priorities can change quickly.
• Enjoys building relationships with employees at every level of the business.
• Wants to make a meaningful contribution to the growth of the organisation.

Your responsibilities will include:

HR Leadership

• Managing and developing the Human Resources function across the business.
• Advising management on all HR-related matters.
• Developing HR policies, procedures and best practices.
• Driving employee engagement initiatives and fostering a positive workplace culture.
• Supporting succession planning and workforce planning.
• Identifying training and development opportunities across the business.

Recruitment & Onboarding

• Managing the end-to-end recruitment process.
• Working closely with managers to identify staffing requirements.
• Screening candidates and coordinating interviews.
• Conducting reference and background checks.
• Managing employment offers and contracts.
• Overseeing onboarding and probation processes to ensure new employees are set up for success.

Employee Relations & Performance

• Supporting managers with performance management.
• Managing disciplinary and grievance processes.
• Assisting with poor performance counselling and improvement plans.
• Advising managers on labour relations matters.
• Maintaining accurate records of disciplinary and employee relations matters.
• Promoting fair and consistent people practices throughout the business.

HR Administration

• Maintaining complete and accurate employee records.
• Preparing employment contracts, letters and HR documentation.
• Managing leave administration and employee movements.
• Maintaining HR reports and management information.
• Ensuring confidentiality of employee information.

Payroll Oversight

Payroll processing is outsourced.

You will:

• Prepare and validate all payroll input before submission.
• Work closely with our outsourced payroll provider.
• Ensure payroll deadlines are met.
• Review payroll reports for accuracy.
• Resolve payroll queries with employees.
• Maintain payroll-related employee records.
• Previous experience using Sage 300 is highly desirable.

Compliance

• Ensure compliance with South African labour legislation.
• Manage Employment Equity processes.
• Support Skills Development and Workplace Skills Plan requirements.
• Ensure HR policies remain current and relevant.
• Maintain statutory HR records.
• Coordinate HR compliance audits where required.

Employee Experience

• Coordinate staff engagement initiatives and company events.
• Promote employee wellbeing and engagement.
• Support managers in creating high-performing teams.
• Help build and maintain The Forum’s culture and values.
• Champion initiatives that improve the employee experience.

What we’re looking for

You will likely have:

• 5+ years’ experience in a broad HR Generalist or HR Manager role.
• Experience managing the full employee lifecycle.
• Strong recruitment and employee relations experience.
• Practical knowledge of South African labour legislation.
• Experience overseeing payroll processes.
• Previous experience using Sage 300.
• Excellent administration and organisational skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• High levels of integrity and confidentiality.
• A relevant HR qualification.

Experience within hospitality, events, hotels, catering or another operational environment would be highly advantageous.

Why join The Forum?

The Forum is recognised for delivering exceptional hospitality and events. Behind every successful event is a dedicated team of people, and this role plays an important part in ensuring that our employees are supported, developed and able to perform at their best.

This is an opportunity to build a modern HR function within a growing business where your contribution will be valued and where you will have the opportunity to make a genuine impact on both our people and our organisation.