HR / General Manager - India Operations

About Opalus and OPAL

Opalus Investments Limited is developing OPAL, an AI-powered SaaS business operating platform for SMEs. OPAL places accounting at the core and connects finance, customers, people, projects, documents and workflow in one secure operating environment. We are establishing our software development team and office in Kochi, Kerala.

The opportunity

Lead the establishment, recruitment and day-to-day management of Opalus’s new India operation in Kochi. This is a senior people and business-operations role for someone who can build the local organisation, create dependable office and HR processes, and help a multidisciplinary technology team perform at its best.

What you’ll do

• Lead the establishment and day-to-day operation of the Opalus office in Kochi, including premises, workplace services, suppliers, equipment and local operating procedures.
• Build and run the recruitment process for the initial product and technology team, covering job advertising, sourcing partners, candidate screening, interview coordination, offers and onboarding.
• Partner with Opalus leadership and functional leads on workforce planning, role priorities, hiring schedules and team capacity.
• Own practical people operations across the employee life cycle, including onboarding, employee records, attendance and leave processes, performance cycles, learning, engagement and offboarding.
• Manage, support and organise the Kochi team, setting clear expectations and creating a professional, accountable and collaborative workplace culture.
• Coordinate payroll, benefits, employment documentation and statutory-compliance activities with the company’s appointed professional advisers and service providers.
• Manage local operating budgets, procurement, vendor relationships, contracts, office assets and management reporting.
• Oversee technology assets, user access, joiner–mover–leaver processes and basic cybersecurity hygiene in coordination with the technical leadership team.
• Maintain clear operational policies, risk and issue registers, management information and escalation processes.
• Act as the principal operational link between the Kochi team, Opalus leadership and relevant external advisers or suppliers.

Company description

Opalus Investments Limited is developing OPAL, an AI-powered SaaS business operating platform for small and medium-sized businesses. With accounting at its core, OPAL is designed to connect finance, banking, customers, people, recruitment, projects, documents, workflow and reporting in one secure operating environment. A permissioned AI layer is being designed across the connected business record to help users understand information, prepare work and take controlled action with appropriate approvals and audit trails.

The company has completed a high-fidelity working prototype and is building the production-grade platform for an initial Australian release. Opalus is now establishing a software development office and multidisciplinary product team in Kochi, Kerala, to help take OPAL through engineering, testing, release and ongoing product development.

What you bring

• At least 10 years of progressive experience across human resources, talent acquisition, people operations or general management, including substantial responsibility within an HR function.
• Demonstrated, hands-on responsibility within an HR or recruitment function for hiring software engineers and other technology professionals, including product, QA, DevOps and related roles.
• Experience reviewing technology CVs, conducting initial candidate assessments, coordinating technical interviews, managing offers and completing onboarding.
• Proven ability to establish or substantially improve an office, operating function or growing team in India.
• Strong people-management capability, sound judgement and confidence handling performance, employee-relations and workplace matters.
• Working knowledge of Indian employment practices, payroll administration, employee records and statutory-compliance coordination.
• High digital fluency and confidence using recruitment, HR, collaboration, productivity, project-management and reporting systems.
• Ability to manage budgets, vendors, facilities, procurement and multiple operational priorities with disciplined follow-through.
• Excellent written and spoken English, strong stakeholder communication and the ability to work effectively with an international leadership team.
• An established professional network in Kochi or the wider Kerala technology and recruitment market.
• Experience setting up a new office or scaling a team from an early stage.
• Experience working with cross-border teams, outsourced professional advisers and senior technical leaders.

Preferred experience

• Experience in a SaaS, software product, FinTech, technology-services or other technology-led organisation.

Location requirement

This position is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. Applicants must already be based in Kochi or be willing to relocate to Kochi.