Employee Relations Senior Specialist

Who We Are

Boston Consulting Group partners with leaders in business and society to tackle their most important challenges and capture their greatest opportunities. BCG was the pioneer in business strategy when it was founded in 1963. Today, we help clients with total transformation-inspiring complex change, enabling organizations to grow, building competitive advantage, and driving bottom-line impact.

To succeed, organizations must blend digital and human capabilities. Our diverse, global teams bring deep industry and functional expertise and a range of perspectives to spark change. BCG delivers solutions through leading-edge management consulting along with technology and design, corporate and digital ventures—and business purpose. We work in a uniquely collaborative model across the firm and throughout all levels of the client organization, generating results that allow our clients to thrive.

About BCG Platinion

BCG Platinion’s presence spans across the globe, with offices in Asia, Europe, and South and North America. We achieve digital excellence for clients with sustained solutions to the most complex and time-sensitive challenge. We guide clients into the future to push the status quo, overcome tech limitations, and enable our clients to go further in their digital journeys than what has ever been possible in the past. At BCG Platinion, we deliver business value through the innovative use of technology at a rapid pace. We roll up our sleeves to transform business, revolutionize approaches, satisfy customers, and change the game through Architecture, Cybersecurity, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Application and Risk functions. We balance vision with a pragmatic path to change transforming strategies into leading-edge tech platforms, at scale.

What You’ll Do

Key Responsibilities:

Including but not limited to:

• 
  Own end-to-end ER/IR case management and administration (core delivery + strong admin)
  

• Manage ER matters from intake to closure, ensuring timely triage, investigation planning, documentation, and closure.
• Maintain complete, audit-ready case files (case summaries, chronologies, evidence logs, interview notes, hearing packs, outcomes, appeal documentation) and secure records management.
• Drive day-to-day case administration: scheduling, stakeholder coordination, action tracking, deadline management, and documentation quality control.
• Apply early dispute resolution techniques to de-escalate issues and reduce escalation risk.
• 
  Provide trusted ER/IR advisory support to leaders and HR (Johannesburg base; Africa input as needed)
  

• Provide pragmatic guidance to People Managers and HR on process, policy, risk, and documentation to ensure fair and consistent outcomes.
• Partner with HR and leadership to plan and script difficult conversations (performance, conduct, attendance, wellbeing, conflict) and advise on appropriate interventions.
• From Johannesburg, provide ER/IR input across Africa where required. supporting HR and leadership with case strategy, document review, precedent/consistency checks, and escalation guidance.
• 
  Lead investigations and support discipline, incapacity and grievance processes
  

• Lead/coordinate investigations: define scope, evidence plan, interviews, documentation, findings summaries, and recommendations in consultation with the global ER team.
• Support and/or coordinate disciplinary and grievance processes: prepare packs, brief stakeholders, advise on outcomes/sanction consistency, with the global ER team.
• Support incapacity processes (poor performance/ill health) with structured documentation, timelines, and manager coaching.
• 
  Manage South African labour forum processes and external dispute readiness Commented [RH1]: Would the ER Senior Specialist also be responsible to partner with external counsel for Labour Court/Labour Appeal Court disputes, if any? (CCMA)
  

• Prepare and coordinate matters for the CCMA: bundles, chronologies, evidence packs, witness preparation, and stakeholder briefing.
• Partner with Legal and/or external counsel as required to ensure strong readiness for conciliation/arbitration and aligned case strategy.
• Track outcomes and learnings from forum matters and feed insights into prevention, training, and policy/process improvement.
• 
  Partner with Global ER and senior HR leadership on complex and high-risk matters
  

• Serve as a key South Africa/Africa point of contact, partnering with Global ER leadership and senior HR stakeholders to align on approach, risk posture, and precedent.
• Produce senior-ready case updates (key facts, risks, recommended path, decision points) to enable high-quality decisions and consistent handling.
• Contribute local context (South African labour environment and practical implications) into global ER discussions and guidance.
• Policy, office governance, and contracting alignment (ownership + maintenance)

• Own and maintain local office people policies, guidance and procedures (draft, review, update,communicate), ensuring alignment to global standards and local legal requirements.
• Support periodic reviews/audits of ER/HR practices and controls to strengthen compliance, consistency, and quality.
  • Partner with People Team colleagues, Legal/Compliance, and relevant operational stakeholders to ensure contracting and documentation alignment
    
• (templates/clauses/addenda and ER-related documentation practices), supporting dispute readiness and risk mitigation.
• Keep ER/IR practices current: legislation monitoring + continuous learning communication

• Monitor and interpret changes in South African employment and labour legislation, relevant case law/trends, and labour forum practices and translate these into practical implications for BCG, i.e. ensuring local office people policies, guidance documents, and procedures are updated when necessary.
• Provide continuous learning through concise updates, guidance notes, and briefings to relevant stakeholders (HR, People Managers, and other Centers Of Excellence (COE)), ensuring local practices remain current and consistent.
• Partner with Global ER and Legal/Compliance to align local implementation with global standards and risk posture.
• Insights, reporting, and continuous improvement (strategic problem solving)

• Maintain reliable case data and produce reporting (themes, cycle times, outcomes, risk flags) to inform leadership decisions and strengthen employment risk management.
• Identify patterns/root causes and propose preventative actions (training, manager guidance, policy clarification, process improvements) to reduce repeat issues and improve employee experience.
• Contribute to ER capability and consistency across the region by sharing best practices, templates, and lessons learned.
• 
  Capability building and enablement (including leader training on discipline/incapacity/grievances)
  

• Design and deliver ER/IR training for leaders and HR colleagues, including disciplinary, incapacity and grievance process training for line leaders (e.g., investigations, recordkeeping, procedural and substantive fairness, documentation quality, chairing preparation, outcome writing standards).
• Build and continuously improve ER toolkits, guides, and playbooks (templates, checklists, scripts, investigation packs) that enable consistent, high-quality handling of ER matters.
• Coach leaders and HR in-the-moment on “how to” execute ER steps effectively, reducing avoidable escalations and repeat issues.
• Stakeholder leadership (global + Africa scope)

• Build trusted relationships with HR colleagues and leaders to anticipate and respond to ER needs.
• Advise on serious/high-risk/complex matters where reputational, PR, or litigation risk may exist if mishandled.
• Partner closely with ER global, Legal and Compliance as critical stakeholders, acting as a credible counterpart.

What You’ll Bring

Qualifications (minimum)

• Minimum 4-year qualification in Human Resources or Law (or equivalent relevant 4-year degree).
• 
  Desirable – Master’s degree (e.g., Labour Law, Labour Relations, HR/Industrial Psychology, Employment Law) is a strong advantage.

Boston Consulting Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity / expression, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under national, provincial, or local law, where applicable, and those with criminal histories will be considered in a manner consistent with applicable state and local laws.