Chief HR Officer

Studocu was founded on the principle that equal access to study notes reduces inequality between students. Today, we make it easy for more than 45+ million students to share notes monthly and use cutting-edge AI learning tools (like Quizzes, AI Chat, and Ask-AI) to help them ace their study goals. The product was a rocket ship from day one and has shown strong product-market fit on every continent with enviable YoY growth, making us a key player in the exploding EdTech space.

The CHRO challenge

At StuDocu, we hold one fundamental belief: our people are our greatest asset. As our new CHRO, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of our organization (currently 160+ FTE). Together with the People team, you will lead one of the most critical elements of our success—attracting, onboarding, developing, and retaining exceptional team members while fostering happiness, engagement, and productivity across the company.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone passionate about talent development (building high-performing teams), who thrives on action, and has the ambition to create one of Europe’s most admired workplaces. You will be part of the management team reporting to the CEO, Reynald Fasciaux, and you will inspire and manage your team, which is currently 6fte. With our (growth) plans, we expect you to build out this team further over time to meet the organisation's needs.

Your role as CHRO will be both strategic and hands-on, with a focus on:

• Organizational Leadership: Working closely with the CEO and other executives to shape and execute the company’s business strategy.

• Culture and Talent strategy: Shaping a strong, unified culture while driving initiatives to attract, retain, and develop top talent.

• Scaling and Process Optimization: Ensuring efficient alignment between people strategies and business goals to drive sustainable growth.

• Development and Growth: Enable individuals, teams and managers to achieve outstanding company-wide results.

Key responsibilities:

People & Culture Vision and Strategy

• Set the overarching vision and strategy for the People team, aligned with company goals.

• Define and execute quarterly OKRs for the People team, ensuring cross-departmental alignment.

• Build and nurture an inclusive, caring, and unique company culture ("Gezellig & One Love") that reflects our values and supports our growth.

Team Leadership and Management

• Leading the People team. You hire, coach and manage the People Business Partner(s), People Ops Specialist, Recruiter(s) and Office manager in your team.

• Mentoring your team members and amplifying their impact by investing time and effort in their career development plans.

• Foster a collaborative and high-performing team environment, ensuring everyone is motivated and equipped to contribute effectively.

Development and Growth

• Being a sparring partner for the wider management team on talent-related topics.

• Drive the peer review and performance appraisal process to keep teams productive, engaged, and aligned as we scale.

• Initiate and drive employee engagement and retention initiatives to create a thriving workplace.

Scaling and Process Optimization

• Establish and oversee all key HR metrics, including hiring, on and off-boarding, engagement, and retention, ensuring they align with company goals.

• Scale and optimize workflows across the People function, removing bottlenecks and preparing for the following stages of growth.

• Continuously improve hiring and onboarding processes to attract top talent and ensure a seamless employee experience.

Day to Day running of HR

• On a day-to-day basis, you will (with your team) ensure the running of all aspects of HR and Office Management. Whilst your role is strategic, you have to be comfortable with ensuring our employees and managers have everything they need to do their best work. This includes payroll, employee questions, and office management and events, etc.

• The people team members all have individual expertise, and you have overall expertise and can help / guide them on any topic. In case of sickness or emergency, you can step in and show your fixer skills!

💜 Why you will love it here

This role is not for a standard HR professional; we are looking for someone to take a strategic seat on our management team. We are with five leaders (including yourself) in the MT, and together, we set the direction for the company and make big and small decisions. We get involved in each other's business and expect you to immerse yourself in the broader business - and help us make the right choices.

It’s a fun, warm, and friendly environment, and at the same time, we are also passionate and highly driven. Our culture is unique. And we know everyone says that… you’ll have to meet us to experience it.

Experience and mindset we are looking for:

• Master’s degree (or higher) in Human Resources Management, Psychology, Business, or equivalent.

• 10+ years of relevant experience, of which at least 5+ years leading the overall People team in a scaling international organisation.

• Solid track record in optimizing People operations and driving strategic workforce initiatives.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English; Dutch is a plus.

• Empathetic personality with strong organizational awareness and ability to navigate company culture.

• Team player with peer influence skills, able to serve as a credible and trusted partner across all areas of the business.

• Highly organized, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and execute efficiently.

• Ownership mindset: proactive in identifying solutions to business challenges.

Leadership in high-growth environments

• Extensive track record of scaling international tech companies, thriving in fast-moving, dynamic environments.

• Experience in driving organizations through critical growth phases, such as expanding from 100 to 1000+ employees, while maintaining and enhancing company culture.

• Expertise in leading complex organizational changes, including mergers, acquisitions, and integrations - is considered a big plus.

Strategic Communication and Stakeholder Management

• Strong communication skills with the ability to persuade and align a diverse group of leaders and stakeholders behind your vision and plans.

• Exceptional stakeholder management: adept at gathering input from multiple perspectives and distilling it into clear, actionable strategies that gain buy-in from all parties.

• Confidence built on experience to set direction, push back when necessary, and navigate complex or uncomfortable conversations to drive progress.

Hands-On Execution and Agility

• Bias toward execution: a results-oriented approach to delivering on goals, overcoming obstacles, and persevering to achieve success.

• Comfort in agile, fast-changing environments with the ability to adjust plans as needed to align with evolving business priorities.

• Hands-on mentality: willing to engage actively with tasks and collaborate closely with the team to achieve objectives.