Executive Head: Human Capital

What will you do?

As Santam accelerates its digital transformation journey and strengthens its position as a client‑centric, high‑performance insurer, we are seeking a future‑fit Human Capital Executive who can architect a modern People ecosystem that is deeply integrated with digital, AI and data‑enabled ways of working.

This is enterprise leadership, shaping People Experience as a strategic differentiator and enabling a workforce that is agile, skilled for the future and ready to thrive in a rapidly evolving digital world.

What will make you successful in this role?

1. Enterprise People Strategy & Business Partnership

• Develop and execute an integrated Human Capital strategy aligned to Santam’s growth, transformation and digital ambitions.
• Partner with the CEO, COO and MANCO as a trusted advisor on workforce, capability, culture and future readiness.
• Embed people strategy into business planning, operational excellence and key transformation programmes.
• Enable workforce agility in a landscape shaped by digital disruption, emerging technologies and shifting regulatory contexts.

2. People Experience & Culture

• Architect an end‑to‑end People Experience that is intuitive, digital-first and human-centred across the employee lifecycle.
• Strengthen a culture of innovation, high performance, accountability and inclusion.
• Drive engagement and recognition strategies that elevate employee advocacy and organisational pride.
• Champion employee well-being, psychological safety and ethical leadership.

3. Talent & Workforce Transformation

• Lead a future-fit talent strategy encompassing workforce planning, leadership pipelines, scarce skills acquisition and succession.
• Position Santam as an employer of choice through a compelling EVP and strong employer brand.
• Oversee modern, capability‑rich talent acquisition practices enabled by digital platforms, data and AI.
• Drive digital fluency, data literacy and AI readiness across the workforce.

4. Organisational Effectiveness & Change

• Lead organisational design and effectiveness programmes aligned to strategy and digital modernisation.
• Drive large-scale transformation and enterprise change initiatives.
• Strengthen leadership capability across all levels to enable adaptability and strategic execution.
• Establish a performance‑driven environment supported by clear metrics and accountability.

5. Reward, Performance & Recognition

• Oversee competitive, equitable and performance-aligned reward frameworks.
• Lead differentiated rewards for critical, high‑impact talent segments.
• Ensure full governance and regulatory compliance in remuneration practices.

6. Transformation, Equity & ESG Alignment

• Drive Santam’s Employment Equity and transformation agenda with strategic clarity and purpose.
• Embed diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging into everyday culture and leadership behaviour.
• Align all Human Capital practices to ESG principles and responsible business commitments.

7. People Analytics, Digital & AI Enablement

• Use people analytics and workforce insights to enable strategic decision-making across the organisation.
• Drive the modernisation of HC systems, architecture and processes through digital solutions.
• Champion responsible AI adoption across the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, mobility, development and workforce planning.
• Build data fluency, AI literacy and digital adoption capability within the HC function and across the broader business.
• Serve as the leader who ensures the People portfolio “intercepts” the digital space, enabling workforce transformation, operational efficiency and future‑ready capability.

Leadership Scope

The Executive Head of Human Capital leads a multi-disciplinary team spanning:

• Culture, Change, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
• Organisational Effectiveness & Design
• Talent Acquisition & Employer Branding (People Experience)
• Learning, People & Leadership Development
• Reward & Recognition
• HC Business Partners & Employee Relations
• People Analytics, Future Skills & Special Projects

Qualifications & Experience

• Relevant postgraduate qualification in a field that supports strategic people leadership.
• Advanced postgraduate degree such as an MBA, MBL or equivalent will be an advantage.
• Professional HR accreditation (e.g., SABPP, HPCSA for Psychologists, or equivalent professional bodies) will be beneficial.
• 15+ years of progressive extensive business leadership experience with strong Human Capital expertise and exposure to Human Capital professional practise
• Human Capital leadership experience, with 5 – 8 years at executive level.
• Proven success in enterprise transformation, culture shifts, talent strategy execution and workforce digitalisation.
• Experience in financial services, insurance, telecommunications, retail or similar high intellectual‑capital industries advantageous.

Knowledge & Skills

• Strategic thinking
• Excellent English communication & writing skills
• Strong relationship, negotiating and networking skills
• Ability to influence

Personal Attributes

• Drive transformation in a purpose-led organisation.
• Be part of a respected brand with strong governance and market credibility.
• Strategic visionary with the ability to influence enterprise direction.
• Exceptional communication, negotiation and relationship‑building skills.
• Strong digital curiosity, tech enablement mindset and comfort navigating AI‑enabled environments.
• Passion for people, culture, performance and organisation-wide transformation.

Who we are:

Santam is the market leader in the general insurance industry in Southern Africa. We are a large, diversified, expanding and transforming company and whilst based in South Africa, we are rapidly moving into a number of emerging markets, both in Africa and Asia.

Our success is rooted in our passion for our clients and everything we do is centered on our delivery of Insurance Good and Proper. We’re about people. People drive our business so it follows that we want to recruit the best people possible whether they work for us permanently or for a short time as temporary employees.

We are also the number 2 Top Employer in south Africa and the number 1 top employer in Insurance

At Santam we are committed to transformation and embracing diversity. This commitment is what drives us to achieve a diverse workplace with employment equity as a key goal to create an inclusive workforce, representative of the demographics of our society. In achieving our employment equity goals we give preference to applicants from the designated groups in alignment with the Divisions Employment Equity targets.