Senior HR Manager

The Senior HR Manager is accountable for solving SKO Systems' talent-acquisition capacity challenge at a strategic level: building durable sourcing relationships and talent-pool partnerships that bring the company's ~4-month time-to-fill down to a sustainable level, setting AI-enabled recruiting strategy and tooling, and owning compensation, workforce planning, HR technology, and policy governance. This role is intentionally scoped to handle these responsibilities — strategic HR leadership, career architecture, culture ownership, and multi-geography coordination across Pune and London. It directly manages the HR Recruitment Associate and works as a close peer partner to the HR Manager, with both roles reporting to the COO. Essential Functions / Deliverables Talent Pipeline & Sourcing Partnerships

• Build and maintain direct relationships with recruitment agencies, technical communities, coding bootcamps, engineering colleges, and passive-talent networks specific to SKO's scarce skills (Android, Angular, .NET, SQL/Oracle, DevOps, technical BA/PM).
• Reduce dependency on reactive job-board posting by developing a proactive, always-on talent pipeline.
• Own employer-branding efforts that materially shorten time-to-fill from the current ~4-month average. Recruitment Strategy, AI Tooling & Oversight
• Set end-to-end recruiting strategy and process design for the HR function.
• Select, implement, and continuously improve AI-assisted sourcing, screening, and interview-automation tools.
• Directly manage, coach, and review the HR Recruitment Associate's execution and pipeline metrics.
• Personally lead sourcing and closing conversations for senior or business-critical hires. Strategic HR Leadership, Workforce Planning & Career Architecture
• Partner with leadership on headcount and workforce planning aligned to the 3-year product roadmap.
• Design a dual-track (individual contributor / management) career-ladder framework to support technical talent retention.
• Coordinate HR practices and basic employment considerations across both the Pune and London offices, escalating multi-country complexity to external counsel or the COO as needed. Compensation & Benefits Strategy
• Design competitive, market-aligned pay bands for scarce technical skills.
• Lead annual compensation benchmarking and review cycles for leadership approval. HR Technology, Analytics & Digital Transformation
• Own the HRMS roadmap, including evaluation of the current platform against alternatives.
• Build recruiting and workforce analytics dashboards for leadership.
• Drive automation across HR processes, prioritizing AI-enabled recruiting workflows. Policy Governance, Compliance, Culture & Engagement
• Set HR policy direction and partner with the HR Manager on POSH and statutory compliance execution, ensuring governance standards are met.
• Own company-level culture, engagement, and DEI strategy and direction (day-to-day administration remains with the HR Manager). Team Leadership, Mentorship
• Manage, coach, and develop the HR Recruitment Associate.
• Partner collaboratively with the HR Manager on shared HR initiatives, mentoring one another in areas of respective strength.
• Build demonstrated capability across compensation strategy, HRMS transformation, and multi-geography coordination. Requirements Minimum Education : Bachelor's degree required; MBA/PGDM in Human Resources preferred Discipline/Major : Human Resources Management, Business Administration, or related field Required Certifications : SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP, HRCI, CIPD, or NHRD (India) — valued, not mandatory Required Years & Area of Experience : 8–14 years of progressive HR experience, including recruitment/talent acquisition leadership within a software, SaaS, or technology product company; demonstrated experience building sourcing partnerships/talent pipelines and deploying AI-enabled recruiting tools Critical Technical/Computer Skills : HRIS/ATS platforms (Zoho People/Recruit or similar); AI-assisted sourcing and screening tools (e.g., resume scoring, automated first-round interview platforms); people-analytics/dash boarding tools; compensation benchmarking tools Other Requirements (Key Competencies) : Relationship-building and networking; negotiation; data-driven decision making; coaching and team leadership; business acumen; adaptability; ethical judgment Preferred Education MBA/PGDM in Human Resources Preferred Experience : Experience in a technology/software product company with distributed or global operations; hands-on experience deploying AI tools in recruitment, such as automating first-round screening interviews; prior exposure to multi-country HR operations (e.g., UK or other international employment basics) is a plus given SKO's Pune and London footprint Knowledge, Skills & Abilities: Strong relationship-building and networking ability; data fluency; comfort partnering with engineering/technical leadership; AI-tool fluency for recruiting automation Growth Path : This role is deliberately structured as a stepping stone to HR Director. Demonstrated success in compensation strategy, HRMS transformation, workforce/career architecture, and multi-geography coordination will form the basis for evaluating elevation to HR Director; this is a development opportunity, not a guaranteed timeline. Ethics & Compliance : This position requires full commitment to fostering the highest standards, while promoting an ethical and compliant culture. This includes integrity, honesty, and respectful treatment of others, as well as a willingness to speak up when misconduct or concerning behaviors are evident or perceived.