Senior Human Resources Advisor (Reward and Governance)

Withers 

Job title:        Senior HR Advisor (Reward and Governance)

Location:       Singapore

About Withers KhattarWong LLP 

Withers KhattarWong LLP, a Singapore law practice, is a member of Withers, and one of Singapore's longest established and largest full-service leading law firms. As one of the largest international law firm in Singapore, clients have access to lawyers who are qualified to practice a wide range of jurisdictions including Singapore, Japan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, UK and U.S. amongst others. We work closely with our Hong Kong and Tokyo offices to cover the region. 

What are we looking for?

We are looking to recruit an experienced HR Advisor to join the Withers KhattarWong Human Resources team.  The role will at times be demanding and fast paced so you will need to be an efficient worker who is organized, meticulous, self-motivated, resourceful and can prioritise, multi-task and work effectively under pressure.  You will also need to be an excellent communicator, a team player and have integrity to handle highly confidential information appropriately.

Areas of focus and Key responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

The HR Advisor will provide broad-based HR operational, administrative and advisory support across the Singapore office, working closely with HR leadership, partners, managers, employees, Finance, external vendors and regulatory bodies. The role requires strong ownership of day-to-day HR activities, sound judgement in handling confidential matters, and the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced professional services environment.

Compensation and Benefits

• Administer employee benefit programmes, ensuring accurate enrolment, timely updates, clear employee communication and effective resolution of benefits-related enquiries.
• Manage employee insurance schemes, including medical, life, travel and other applicable coverage, and act as a key liaison with brokers, insurers, employees and internal stakeholders.
• Support annual insurance renewals and benefits reviews by preparing data, coordinating quotations, benchmarking market practices, tracking renewal timelines and implementing approved recommendations.
• Provide guidance to employees on claims processes, policy coverage, eligibility and required documentation, while ensuring sensitive personal information is handled appropriately.
• Coordinate employee recognition and engagement initiatives, including monthly birthday celebrations, long service awards, appreciation programmes, festive arrangements and other firm-wide activities.
• Lead the planning and administration of employee wellbeing initiatives, including Wellness Month activities, annual health screening programmes, wellbeing communications and vendor coordination.
• Coordinate gifts, hampers and other employee engagement arrangements for significant life events, employee milestones and business-led initiatives.
• Manage the sourcing, budgeting, approval, procurement and distribution of promotional and corporate gifts, ensuring quality, cost effectiveness and timely delivery.
• Contribute to benefits harmonisation and reward-related projects, supporting consistency, competitiveness and alignment with firm-wide policies across locations.

Leave Administration

• Manage end-to-end leave administration, including leave updates, approval workflows, balance monitoring, reporting, employee enquiries and exception handling.
• Ensure leave records are accurate, complete and maintained in accordance with firm policies, statutory requirements and internal audit standards.
• Monitor annual leave utilisation and coordinate reminder exercises to support effective workforce planning and reduce excessive carry-forward balances.
• Prepare childcare leave, family care leave and other leave-related documentation, claims information and reports required by Finance, management and statutory authorities.
• Advise employees and managers on leave policies, eligibility, supporting documentation and approval requirements, escalating complex cases where appropriate.
• Identify recurring leave administration issues and recommend process improvements to enhance accuracy, employee experience and compliance.

Payroll Administration and Governance

• Support monthly payroll processing by ensuring employee data, payroll inputs, allowances, deductions, leave adjustments and other payroll-related changes are accurate and submitted within agreed timelines.
• Partner with payroll vendors, Finance and internal stakeholders to resolve payroll queries, reconcile discrepancies and ensure timely follow-up on outstanding matters.
• Prepare and verify payroll-related documentation, including new joiner details, leaver information, salary changes, bonus inputs, benefits deductions and statutory contribution information.
• Maintain strict confidentiality and accuracy in handling payroll data, employee personal information and compensation-related records.
• Support payroll year-end activities, audit requests and statutory reporting by providing accurate employee information and supporting documentation.

Performance Management and Compensation Reviews

• Coordinate performance review cycles, including mid-year and year-end appraisal processes, timeline management, system administration, stakeholder communications and completion tracking.
• Support managers and employees with appraisal process queries, guidance materials, documentation requirements and follow-up actions.
• Support annual salary and bonus review exercises, including data preparation, compensation modelling support, meeting coordination, documentation, approvals tracking and communication of outcomes.
• Conduct salary benchmarking and market analysis to support compensation decisions, internal equity reviews, retention strategies and reward governance.
• Maintain accurate records of appraisal outcomes, compensation adjustments, bonus decisions and related approvals in accordance with confidentiality and audit requirements.
• Administer employee referral bonus programmes, ensuring eligibility checks, approval tracking, payment coordination and compliance with applicable guidelines.

HR Analytics and Reporting

• Prepare, analyse and maintain HR metrics, reports, trackers and dashboards to support business decision-making, workforce planning and HR leadership updates.
• Monitor key HR trends, including headcount movement, turnover, leave utilisation, compensation, benefits participation, employee engagement and other workforce indicators.
• Provide meaningful insights and commentary on HR data, highlighting risks, trends, exceptions and areas requiring management attention.
• Maintain accurate HR records and ensure data integrity across HR systems, trackers, reporting tools and employee files.
• Support HR reporting requirements for management meetings, audits, policy reviews, surveys, compensation exercises and regional HR projects.

Compliance and HR Governance

• Support HR compliance activities and ensure HR processes, employee records and internal practices align with employment legislation, statutory requirements, internal policies and firm governance standards.
• Coordinate annual external HR audits, including preparation of documentation, consolidation of responses, follow-up with stakeholders and tracking of audit actions through to closure.
• Assist with the review, development, implementation and communication of HR policies, procedures, employee handbook updates and process guidance materials.
• Prepare and submit statutory returns, government surveys, employment-related declarations and other compliance reports within required timelines.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory developments relevant to employment and HR operations, and support the assessment of policy, process and documentation implications.
• Maintain audit-ready HR records and support internal governance reviews by ensuring appropriate documentation, approvals and data retention practices are followed.

Legal legislation support

• Act as the HR contact for legal regulatory compliance matters involving LSRA, Law Society of Singapore, SAL, insurance brokers and other relevant bodies.
• Coordinate regulatory applications, renewals, amendments and filings for Singapore-qualified lawyers, Registered Foreign Lawyers and foreign-qualified partners.
• Prepare, review and submit applications, declarations, undertakings, supporting letters and other required documents through relevant regulatory portals.
• Manage annual Practising Certificate renewal processes, including insurance information, stakeholder communications and deadline tracking.
• Support Certificate of Registration / Renewal processes for Registered Foreign Lawyers, including verifying supporting documents and regulatory declarations.
• Coordinate Approval to Hold Interest applications for foreign-qualified partners, including documentation, signatures, submissions and post-approval tracking.
• Maintain regulatory trackers, compliance calendars and audit-ready records of submissions, approvals, certificates and renewal timelines.
• Monitor relevant regulatory developments, identify compliance risks and escalate key issues to HR leadership and management as appropriate.

Process Improvement and HR Projects

• Participate in HR transformation and process improvement initiatives aimed at enhancing operational efficiency, compliance, data accuracy and employee experience.
• Review existing HR processes, workflows, templates and trackers to identify opportunities for automation, standardisation, simplification and improved controls.
• Support the implementation of new HR programmes, systems, policy enhancements and process changes, including user testing, documentation, communications and post-implementation follow-up.
• Develop and maintain process notes, checklists, guidance materials and standard operating procedures to support consistency and business continuity.
• Work collaboratively with HR colleagues, Finance, IT, Office Management and other business services teams to deliver cross-functional HR projects and operational improvements.

Employee Records and Special Arrangements

• Maintain accurate and confidential records of bespoke employment arrangements, special contractual provisions, flexible work arrangements, secondments, career breaks and other employee-specific terms.
• Track and monitor exceptions, unique employment terms and employee-specific arrangements to ensure consistency, appropriate approvals, timely review and compliance with internal policies.
• Support managers and HR leadership with documentation, reporting and analysis relating to special employment arrangements, including renewal dates, conditions and business implications.
• Ensure employee records are kept up to date, securely stored and readily available for HR operations, audits, compliance checks and management reporting where required.
• Exercise sound judgement and discretion when managing sensitive employee information, escalating issues appropriately while maintaining confidentiality.

This list of duties and responsibilities is not exhaustive.  It is intended to describe the general content of, and requirements for the performance of this job, and as such, the role may also include the undertaking of additional tasks as required.

Technical skills and qualifications

• Strong knowledge of HR operations, compensation and benefits administration, and employment practices in a legal environment.
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Strong analytical and reporting capabilities with attention to detail and data accuracy.
• Effective stakeholder management and communication skills.
• High level of discretion when handling confidential employee information.
• Continuous improvement mindset with an interest in enhancing HR processes and employee experience.

About Withers 

A law firm focused on people, performance, and collaboration.

For the past 125 years, we have supported some of the world’s most remarkable people and organizations at defining moments in their lives.

As the global private client firm, we are trusted advisors to families, founders, fiduciaries and businesses – and more than this, to governments, charities and financial institutions.

We structure, grow and preserve capital. We protect reputations and relationships, ideas and innovations. We secure our clients’ legacies across generations.

We are united in our commitment to integrity, quality and collaboration. We have a culture of high performance and deliver excellent service consistently across the firm. We provide tailored solutions built on trust and partner with our clients to achieve their goals.

Many of our clients are shaping the future, and creating solutions to tackle many of the world’s problems. It makes for a fascinating and challenging practice.

Our role is to get to know each individual client, find out where they want to be, and help them to get there – whether they are building a business, buying a home or protecting and defending their interests.

To meet their unique needs we are exceptionally collaborative, working together across teams and time zones. And we are agile – focusing on strategy rather than rigid ideas and traditional hierarchy.

We are delighted that we have been awarded Mansfield Certification Plus in relation to our recruitment and leadership progression efforts in the US and UK. This certification is an encouraging milestone as we continue to champion diversity within our organization and in the wider legal sector.

Join us to be part of a team that is always looking to the future. Where initiative, big ideas and bold moves are always encouraged. Where you can truly be yourself.

Information for Recruitment Agencies

Withers endeavours to recruit and fill vacancies directly. However, when we do need to engage with agencies, Withers operates a preferred supplier list and will not be accepting unsolicited applications from non-PSL agencies for this role.

Equal Opportunities Employment Statement 

It is the policy of Withers to provide equal opportunities for all employees in relation to recruitment, training and promotion. Decisions in these areas will be made only by reference to the requirements of the job and shall not be influenced by any consideration of ethnic origin, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation or disability.

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