Job Description

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Aldar Education is seeking an exceptional Head - Talent (School Recruitment) for our HQ office based in Abu Dhabi.
Aldar Education, Abu Dhabi's largest and most established education group and one of the top key players in the UAE education sector, is looking to expand its team to support its growing network.
Since its inception in 2007 with just 250 students, Aldar Education has grown into a highly sought-after education provider, with more than 25 owned and managed premium and super-premium schools and academies- in partnership with some of the world's most prestigious institutions including Rugby School, King's College Wimbledon, and Cranleigh. The Group now serves over 38,000 students through 5,000 educators from more than 100 nationalities to deliver world-class education across a broad range of curricula and learning pathways from nursery through to K12.
At Aldar Education, our impact goes far beyond the classroom: we are proud to contribute to the UAE's vision for a sustainable, knowledge-based economy through premium education. With this in mind, we hire educators and insustry professionals who not only embody our values and cultural ethos but also bring a genuine passion for education-qualities central to our mission of shaping the leaders of tomorrow.
If you are passionate about excellence and ready to make a meaningful impact, we invite you to apply and be part of our journey.
We are seeking to appoint a Head - Talent (School Recruitment) to lead and develop a newly centralised recruitment function for our network of all Operated Schools and to support the successful launch of new school openings. The role will lead, embed, and optimise the transition to a centralised Talent Acquisition model, delivering high-quality recruitment, workforce planning, and talent pipeline development in alignment with Aldar Education's strategic growth and localisation agenda.
This is a critical change management role, requiring leadership, stakeholder engagement, and operational excellence to bring school-based HR teams into a group-wide model of best practice.
Reporting into the Associate Director - Talent, the successful candidate will drive excellence across end-to-end recruitment, manage and develop a distributed team, and embed a consistent, data-led, and candidate-focused experience with quality at its heart. A key part of the role is to partner closely with stakeholders across the People & Culture function to realise organisational ambitions, support future growth, and position Aldar Education as an employer of choice in the region
Responsibilities:
Main Duties:

• Lead the development and execution of a centralised School' Talent Acquisition strategy aligned with Aldar Education's business-as-usual recruitment, growth plans, and Emiratisation agenda.
• Design and deliver proactive workforce planning solutions for academic and non-academic talent ensuring Aldar Education has sustainable pipelines to meet future needs
• Establish annual sourcing plan with suggested inhouse or external careers fairs, recruitment trips, job board usage etc.
• Oversee end-to-end recruitment for schools, ensuring consistency, speed, and quality of hire.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with Principals, senior stakeholders, support functions, and external partners.
• Partner with P&C Managers and the wider People & Culture function to ensure talent activities align with organisational strategy, policies, and values.
• Drive employer branding initiatives to position Aldar Education as an employer of choice in the UAE education sector.
• Act as a change leader, embedding a centralised structure and operating model across 13 operated schools and new school openings.
• Embed Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) principles by ensuring diverse talent pipelines, using objective and bias-free selection methods, and supporting Aldar Education's Emiratisation and representation goals.
• Ensure positive candidate experience and timely communication throughout the recruitment process.

Specific Duties:

• Manage, coach, and develop the newly formed central team of Talent Officers (School Recruitment).
• Drive and embed best practice in Talent Acquisition, ensuring all recruitment processes are standardised, transparent, and aligned with Aldar Education's strategic priorities.
• Use data, analytics, and reporting to track recruitment performance and provide regular insights to senior leadership for decision-making.
• Set KPIs for recruitment team and track recruitment metrics (time-to-fill, source effectiveness, pipeline health) and provide monthly reports.
• Ensure schools are fully prepared ahead of each academic year, with clear workforce plans, hiring timelines, and pipelines of talent in place.
• Ensure diversity targets per school are set togther with Director - Educations and Head - P&C, communicated to the Principals and recruited towards.
• Provide training, guidance, and support to transitioning HR teams during the move to a centralised TA model, ensuring adoption of consistent tools, frameworks, and systems.
• Introduce and maintain recruitment technology, systems, and frameworks (e.g., ATS, psychometric assessment, structured interview guides) to improve efficiency and candidate experience.
• Establish annual recruitment source report to analyse cost per hire and efficiency of contrcated platforms, agencies etc.
• Ensure compliance with safeguarding standards, UAE labour regulations, and ADEK/MOHRE requirements in all recruitment activities.
• Partner with P&C Managers and Principals to forecast talent needs, build diverse and sustainable talent pipelines, and contribute to long-term workforce planning.
• Contribute to continuous improvement by adopting innovative sourcing strategies, market insights, and digital tools to optimise cost per hire.

Qualifications:
Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Education, or related field.
• CIPD or equivalent HR/Talent professional certification desirable.

Minimum Experience:

• Minimum 10 years of progressive Talent Acquisition, including leadership of recruitment teams.
• Proven track record of delivering recruitment transformation or change programmes in complex organisations.
• Proven experience of successfully delivering high volume recruitment campaigns.
• Experience in the education sector or large, multi-site organisations preferred.

Job Specific Knowledge & Skills:

• Expert knowledge of end-to-end Talent Acquisition processes, from workforce planning and sourcing to selection, onboarding, and evaluation of quality of hire.
• Strong understanding of UAE labour law, MOHRE requirements, and ADEK regulatory frameworks relevant to school staffing.
• Proven ability to design and implement centralised recruitment operating models across multi-site organisations.
• Capability in workforce planning, forecasting, and talent pipelining to ensure school readiness and timely hiring.
• Demonstrated expertise in using recruitment technology (e.g. ATS, LinkedIn Recruiter) and optimising digital tools for efficiency and candidate experience.
• Proficiency in using data, metrics, and analytics to drive continuous improvement, support evidence-based decision making, and report recruitment performance to leadership.
• Strong knowledge of diverse sourcing strategies, including international teacher recruitment, local talent markets, Emiratisation, and hard-to-fill role attraction.
• Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to gain buy-in for change and lead through ambiguity.
• Skilled in developing and embedding best practice frameworks such as structured interviews, assessment methodologies, and competency/skills-based hiring.
• Ability to balance strategic leadership with hands-on delivery in a fast-paced and high-volume recruitment environment.
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills, with the ability to represent Aldar Education's employer brand at external events, universities, and professional bodies.
• Commitment to safeguarding, ethical recruitment, and ensuring fairness, transparency, and inclusivity in all TA activities.

What we offer
Aldar Education offers an attractive remuneration package including medical & life insurance, flights, and education benefits. Our employees have access to a wide network of professionals and opportunities to lead and contribute to training others as well as developing themselves.
Aldar Education is keen to hear from like-minded, forward-thinking leaders who would welcome the challenges and opportunities that we have to offer.
This job description is not all-inclusive. Aldar Education reserves the right to amend this job description at any time. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to a diverse and inclusive work environment. We are also mindful of our national development strategy and encourage UAE Nationals to join our company.
Aldar Education is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share this commitment. Offers of appointment are subject to satisfactory references and police clearance.

Skills Required