Director of People & Culture (Japan)

About this role

Position Overview

Your role puts you in a unique position to work with the team based in Japan and to enable the implementation of policies, training, and documents that will help all EXO team members and our company to move forward together as One EXO.

Responsibilities

Big Picture Expectations

● Overseeing Human Resources processes and functions for EXO Travel Japan (150+ team members). Ensuring all employees have contracts, job descriptions and clear objectives and that HR processes and systems are fine tuned and fully optimized.

● Driving the use of EXO’s group-wide online platforms and other strategic tools to improve, streamline and modernize recruitment processes across the organization and ensure they are aligned with our values especially the promotion of diversity and accessibility.

● Act a focal point and support both team members and managers to manage Objectives settings that include financial performances as well as social and environmental goals.

● Develop further training development plans (hard and soft skills) for our people and to facilitate career development for all people working at EXO and ensure they understand their roles and involvement in our strategies especially towards responsible tourism.

● Work with the Chief Purpose Officer to integrate company values and purpose into destination documents, onboarding and Objectives to facilitate employee engagement and satisfaction measurement and use it as a decision making tool.

● Support GM to establish an action plan aiming at increasing people’s satisfaction in your destination based on our engagement survey’s results and to manage the company’s reputation on dedicated websites such as “Glassdoors” etc.

● Manage HR needs and administer contracts for EXO Japan employees. Prepare HR monthly reports and share with GM/MD. Realize, update and improve HR indicators (turnover, absenteeism, payroll, etc.) ensuring they help us to achieve our sustainability satisfaction and company’s goals.

Reporting Responsibilities

● You will head up a team in Japan (with 4- 5 support staff) which will be responsible for recruitment, training, administration, career development and provide continuous support for every person working for EXO Travel Japan.

● You will work closely with EXO Travel Japan General Manager and management team. You will report directly to the GM with responsibility to support the management team, and work closely with our Group Chief Purpose Officer who will set the People and Culture strategy and provide strategic guidance.

● You will work on multiple projects that will involve other departments and country offices and should be able to navigate across teams and work with different people and fit into different situations easily.

Talent Management

As the People and Culture Manager, you will be responsible for :

● Ensuring we recruit the right candidates for the positions we advertise on different recruitment channels: job board advertisement; LinkedIn; social media; and/or internal reference.

● Ensuring that the recruitment process enables us to recruit team members that are aligned with our values and company culture. The process must also ensure that we are a diverse and inclusive company.

● Helping managers identify talents within their teams and establish career development plans and individual training paths, in order to increase talent retention.

Performance Management

● Ensuring every employee has relevant Objectives and Key Results, directly connected to our company goals and contributing to achieving our company’s vision.

● Guiding the destination General Manager and managers to make the best use of the Performance management systems and to conduct successful performance management reviews and appraisals.

● Supporting managers to understand how to analyze dashboards and reports, in order to increase talent retention and the overall performance of the company towards the achievement of our goals.

Reporting & Communication

● Being the go to person to address grievances, resolve HR issues, set guidelines and manage HR for senior managers.

● Providing recommendations on Labor law & jurisdictions to advise the manager and the Leadership team when needed.

● Sharing information to the teams and ensuring we meet our sustainability certifications requirements (attrition, diversity, inclusion, benefits etc.).

● Ensuring HR documents and administrative/ employee files are maintained for each employee & that HR database is updated in accordance with HR procedures.

Engagement & Satisfaction

● Implementing EXO standards to ensure we provide a comfortable, friendly and fun work environment for EXO people managed in an eco-friendly way.

● Conducting regular engagement check-ins and satisfaction at work surveys that help to identify issues/ improvements.

● Setting up procedures to ensure we have clear yearly satisfaction improvements plans in place.

Training & Development

● Supporting needs identification and building the roadmap for EXO Training.

● Building a coaching and mentoring culture encouraging collaborative digital learning and the recognition of our internal experts.

General Expectations of your role

● You’re expected to find information and solve problems with others as much as possible and bring solutions to the table. Your position is all about building good, strong relationships across the company.

● In your role, you are expected to be an exceptionally well organized person able to manage projects from the highly complex to mundane and balance a variety of tasks. 

● Your focus is to help us build a culture that is centered on developing outstanding people skills with strong employee care focus and empathy.

● You will be expected to travel to our destinations when required and to be personally aligned with EXOs company purpose and values. Confidentiality is a key part of your role and it’s a good rule of thumb to consider all conversations and documents private to be safe. Building a culture of trust and confidentiality with team members will ensure success.

Qualifications

● Bachelor’s /Master’s degree in Management or HR or related field.

● Knowledge in sustainability is expected and experience in this field is a plus.

● Minimum 5 years of experience in a similar role.

● Experience of working in the country and understanding of labor law and immigration laws.

Skills

● Fluency in English (written & verbal) and in Japanese is expected.

● Agile learner with ability to see long term impact.

● Attention to detail, with a logical approach.

● Excellent interpersonal skills.

● People-first mindset aiming to empower and give people opportunities to grow within EXO.

EXO Leadership Behaviors

An EXO Leader sets the standards and cultural norms across our organization. As we know behavior drives culture drives performance and it is essential that every leader joining our organization is clear on what is expected and what good performance means.

Below are a list of 5-Behaviors our leadership team is committed to uphold at all times:

1. Accountability:

An EXO Leader is accountable for setting and pursuing clear goals and achieving the best possible result for the company. We take responsibility for our team’s performance and uphold team commitments. We are responsible for the well being of our staff and ourselves and do everything we can to keep our organization and teams healthy and happy.

2.Culture and Values:

An EXO Leader embodies the EXO culture and values by leading by example and making sure that their decisions and conduct reflect the company culture. We serve as role models by showing respect for all stakeholders, fostering a sense of belonging, ensuring psychological safety, championing sustainability, and promoting EXO’s purpose, mission and goals.

3. Communication:

An EXO Leader leader communicates with care and respect and understands the importance of effective communication in building strong relationships with staff, customers and suppliers. We are open and encourage feedback and value healthy opinion exchanges. We commit to creating a safe space so everyone can be heard and we are mindful of cultural and language barriers. We always try to listen carefully and respond constructively.

4. Solidarity and Synergy:

An EXO leader emphasizes interdependence and solidarity by prioritizing teamwork, relationships, and proactively fostering trust within teams. We embrace a ‘ONE-EXO’ mindset, while seeking group synergies, concentrating on cross-functional collaboration, sharing knowledge and supporting our colleagues throughout the group. We are proactive in building and fostering positive relationships and understand that it is sometimes necessary to put the interest of the wider Group ahead of the destination, department or segment.

5. Customer Focus:

An EXO leader demonstrates a customer-centric focus and inspires a customer focused mindset in their team. We strive to exceed client expectations while nurturing positive interactions across all stakeholder relationships. We allocate time to engage with agents directly, get to know their key-clients and work proactively to not only to maintain relationships but to improve them and even build new ones wherever possible.

Note: This job description is not intended to be all inclusive. Incumbents may perform other duties as negotiated to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.