Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO)
Location: Singapore
Compensation: SGD 250,000 300,000 base + bonus + equity
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Company Size: <4,000 employees
Industry: Contract Research Organization (CRO)
Role Overview
The Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) will serve as a strategic advisor and business partner to the CEO and executive leadership team, leading the global HR function for a midsize CRO with operations across multiple continents. This role will drive the organization's people strategy, enabling sustainable growth, operational excellence, and a highperformance culture within a regulated, sciencedriven environment.
The ideal candidate must bring direct CRO experience, with strong familiarity in managing the unique workforce, compliance landscape, and global talent dynamics across clinical, medical, regulatory, and scientific functions.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
- Develop and execute a global people strategy aligned to business growth and operational excellence.
- Act as a senior advisor to the CEO on organizational design, workforce planning, and global expansion.
- Build a scalable, datadriven HR function tailored to the demands of the CRO environment.
Talent Acquisition & Workforce Planning
- Lead global hiring strategies across clinical operations, project management, regulatory, medical, and scientific roles.
- Design proactive workforce planning frameworks to support multiple global clinical programs.
- Oversee senior leadership hiring, succession planning, and executive capability development.
Organizational Culture & Change Management
- Shape a culture built on accountability, collaboration, scientific rigor, and operational discipline.
- Lead organizational change related to growth, digital transformation, and process optimization.
- Drive global diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives relevant to clinical operations.
Compensation, Benefits & Total Rewards
- Oversee competitive global compensation structures tailored to the CRO market.
- Lead the design of performancelinked bonus and equity programs.
- Ensure reward structures comply with regulatory requirements across all operating countries.
HR Operations & Compliance
- Strengthen HR operations, HRIS platforms, and global data governance.
- Ensure global HR policies meet local regulatory requirements.
- Lead bestpractice approaches in employee relations, performance management, and operational integrity.
Leadership & Team Development
- Build and manage a highperforming global HR team.
- Implement leadership development, management training, and learning frameworks essential to clinical excellence.
Candidate Requirements
Professional Experience
- Mandatory: Prior experience within the CRO industry.
- Minimum 15+ years of progressive HR leadership experience, with at least 5+ years in a senior HR/head of HR capacity.
- Experience supporting global operations with up to 4,000 employees.
- Strong understanding of clinical workforce models, including functions such as clinical monitoring, clinical project management, biostatistics, data management, regulatory affairs, and medical affairs.
- Experience operating in highgrowth, multicountry environments.
Leadership Competencies
- Strategic, commercially minded, and able to influence at the executive level.
- Handson, adaptable, and effective in a mid-size, entrepreneurial environment.
- Strong communication, stakeholder management, and change leadership skills.
Preferred Attributes
- Experience working in APAC, Europe, or North America.
- Track record in building global HR systems, talent programs, and scalable processes.
- Able to navigate diverse cultures and fastpaced operational environments.
What This Role Offers
- Full ownership of global people strategy for a growing CRO.
- Direct partnership with the CEO and executive leadership team.
- Ability to shape culture, structure, and leadership talent globally.
- Competitive compensation package with long-term equity upside.
