HR Manager

Reinventing Short-Term Renting

SmartStay is a holiday homes company that offers luxury furnished apartments in prime locations like Downtown Dubai. At SmartStay, we pride ourselves on delivering exceptional service and reliability to our clients. As we continue to grow, we are looking for a dedicated and detail-oriented HR Manager to lead and oversee our HR & Admin team.

The Role: The HR Manager is responsible for leading the HR function at SmartStay, ensuring smooth day-to-day operations, compliance with UAE labor laws and free zone regulations, and fostering a strong and positive workplace culture. This role drives recruitment, training, performance management, employee administration and employee engagement, while maintaining a clear team structure and accountability across the organization.

Key Responsibilities:

The HR Manager is a hands-on role responsible for managing and executing SmartStay’s HR functions to ensure operational efficiency, workforce stability, and sustainable growth. This role combines HR leadership, workforce planning, and administration, ensuring business continuity, compliance, and structure across all entities. It drives recruitment, and onboarding, while strengthening employer branding to attract quality talent, and ensures smooth HR operations, full compliance with UAE Labor Law and Free Zone regulations, and strong employee engagement and retention. This position requires a proactive, independent individual capable of making decisions and executing them effectively in a fast-paced environment.

Job Description:

• Partner with the senior leadership team to align HR strategy with business goals, ensuring workforce planning, budgeting, and headcount forecasts support SmartStay’s growth and expansion.
• Act as a strategic advisor on organizational design, succession planning, talent retention, and maintaining a clear structure with defined roles, KPIs, and accountability frameworks.
• Develop and implement annual HR plans, budgets, and headcount forecasts in line with SmartStay’s strategic direction.
• Lead and execute as required end-to-end recruitment processes, elevate the candidate journey, and leverage employer branding (Workable, LinkedIn, social media) to build a strong, future-ready talent pool.
• Oversee onboarding and ensure smooth integration of new hires into the organization.
• Manage performance review processes, individual development plans, disciplinary proceedings and structured feedback systems to drive accountability and results.
• Ensure compliant and efficient HR administration across contracts, visas, payroll coordination, and full employee lifecycle management in line with UAE Labor Law and Free Zone regulations.
• Mitigate HR-related risks through up-to-date legal knowledge, data protection, and confidentiality practices.
• Drive employee engagement initiatives that support retention, motivation, and a high-performance culture.
• Coach managers on communication, conflict resolution, documentation, and effective people management practices.
• Ensure HR systems, SOPs, and policies are properly documented, implemented, and continuously improved.
• Stay updated with HR best practices, industry trends, and UAE regulatory updates to ensure ongoing compliance and competitiveness.
• Maintain a centralized contracts and compliance tracker, monitoring key dates and escalating risks proactively.

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• Minimum of 3 years of experience in HR Manager Role, preferably in the hospitality / holiday homes sectors.
• Strong understanding of UAE labor law and HR compliance requirements.
• Proven experience in recruitment, employee engagement, and performance management.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational, multitasking, and problem-solving abilities.
• Comfortable using digital tools and software for HR tasks, reporting, and team management; tech-savvy and computer-oriented.
• Ability to work under pressure and maintain confidentiality.
• Flexibility to participate in occasional weekend events or activities as required.
• Must be available to start immediately.

How