Senior HR Generalist - APAC

About the role

The Senior HR Generalist APAC is the local HR presence and operational backbone for the regional headquarters in Singapore and its growing APAC entities such as Japan, South Korea and China. The role combines hands-on HR operations with leadership advisory, serving as the central HR expert for local employees, managers and external authorities. It covers the full employee lifecycle, payroll preparation with outsourced providers, and coordination of regional HR data, tools and partners.

Key responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end employee lifecycle, including contract creation, onboarding to offboarding, and local payroll and benefits administration.
• Act as HR business partner for regional leads in Singapore, Japan, South Korea and China, advising on leadership inquiries, employee relations and team dynamics.
• Steer local performance management and ensure compliant procedures aligned with local requirements and German HQ.
• Prepare, validate and submit monthly pre-payroll data to external payroll providers, ensuring 100% payout accuracy.
• Serve as regional SME on Singapore labor law, supporting Japan, South Korea and China, and maintain audit readiness.
• Manage relationships with regional vendors, tool providers and authorities.
• Co-steer performance feedback, compensation and engagement survey cycles across APAC in line with German HQ.
• Act as the main liaison between local APAC leadership and Hamburg HQ to align global guidelines with local practice.
• Optimize local workflows, use HRIS capabilities and integrate AI tools to improve efficiency.

Required profile

• 5+ years of generalist HR activities as an HR Operations expert and/or HRBP, ideally in a fast-paced tech or growth environment in Singapore or APAC.
• Proven expertise in Singapore labor law and payroll preparation; knowledge of South Korea, Japan and China is a strong plus.
• Track record coordinating external HR partners and vendors (payroll, immigration, legal, advisory) and managing multi-cultural stakeholders.
• Structured, solution-oriented and empathetic working style.
• Business fluent in English; Mandarin, Japanese and/or Korean is a strong plus.

Required skills

• Proficiency in modern HRIS platforms and standard digital collaboration tools.
• Interest in using AI tools and tech integrations to optimize workflows.