HR Business Partner Japan & South Korea

As part of an ongoing transformation, Polène is looking for an HR Business Partner to support the growth of our local teams in Japan and South Korea, ensuring alignment between global HR policies, local labor regulations, and business priorities.

As part of the People & Culture Team and reporting to our Retail HR Partner in Paris, you will play a key role in supporting employees and managers throughout the employee lifecycle, while contributing to organizational growth, performance, and talent development.

Acting as a key HR point of contact for our local teams, you will provide guidance on HR policies and employee relations, oversee HR administration and payroll, support talent acquisition and onboarding, and ensure close collaboration between our Japanese teams and Paris HQ.

You will thrive in this role if you enjoy:

1. Partnering with employees and managers

• Act as the primary HR point of contact for employees, providing guidance and support on HR policies, procedures, and employee relations.

• Collaborate with managers and foster a positive workplace culture and ensure alignment with company values.

• Address employee concerns and mediate conflicts as needed.

1. Supporting performance and talent development

• Support managers in performance reviews, goal setting, and development plans.

• Provide coaching and feedback to managers on HR-related matters.

1. Managing payroll and HR administration

• Coordinate payroll processes with external payroll providers to ensure accuracy and compliance.

• Validate payroll data, including timesheets, bonuses, and deductions.

• Address payroll-related inquiries and resolve discrepancies in a timely manner.

• Manage employee records, ensuring accuracy and confidentiality of personal and professional information.

• Oversee employment documentation, including contracts, amendments, and terminations.

• Support visa and work authorization processes when required.

1. Supporting talent acquisition and onboarding

• Act as a partner to the local Talent Acquisition team, providing HR guidance and ensuring recruitment decisions reflect company values and cultural fit.

• Validate shortlisted candidates for office and retail positions, maintaining alignment with HQ expectations and hiring standards.

• Share local market insights and feedback to support efficient and high-quality recruitment processes.

• Oversee onboarding processes to ensure a smooth integration for new hires.

• Develop initiatives to enhance employee engagement and retention.

1. Ensuring HR compliance and supporting local operations

• Ensure compliance with local labor laws and internal HR policies.

• Maintain accurate HR records and prepare HR reports as required.

• Oversee day-to-day office management and general services, ensuring a seamless and efficient working environment.

• Plan and coordinate events and initiatives that foster collaboration, celebrate key milestones, and enhance the employee experience.

1. Building strong connections with HQ

• Maintain regular and transparent communication with the Paris HQ HR teams, ensuring alignment on HR policies, processes, and people decisions.

• Proactively share local HR insights, challenges, and best practices with HQ to contribute to global HR consistency and informed decision-making.

• Act as a bridge between the local team and HQ, ensuring strong information flow, visibility, and coherence across regions.

You will excel in this role if:

• You have at least 6 years of HR experience in Japan, ideally within the luxury or high-end retail sector.

• You hold a bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field.

• You have a strong understanding of payroll processes and experience coordinating with external payroll providers.

• You have solid knowledge of local employment law, employee relations best practices, recruiting practices, and HR processes.

• You are able to manage multiple priorities, navigate ambiguity, and adapt to a fast-paced and evolving environment.

• You demonstrate strong relationship-building, communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills.

• You are comfortable traveling domestically when required.

• You are fluent in both English and Japanese; Korean would be a plus.

• You enjoy working in an international and multicultural environment and are able to build strong relationships across teams and cultures.

The recruitment process

1. Meet with Talent Acquisition: Discover the Maison, our values, and share your background and ambitions.

2. Interview with your future manager: Explore the role, its responsibilities and the team’s key challenges, and understand the impact you can have on a daily basis.

3. Case study: Step into the role through a practical exercise designed to showcase your creativity, methodology and approach to real-life challenges.

4. Final interview with the Head of People: Take a step back to discuss the Maison’s vision and strategy, and explore your long-term development opportunities at Polène.

By joining Polène, you will have the opportunity to:

• Be part of a Maison with a unique business project and an ambitious development plan spanning its entire value chain.

• Grow in an ever-evolving environment where innovation and the pursuit of excellence are at the heart of everything we do.

• Thrive in an environment where people are at the heart of the project, and where the attention we give to our employees is a true differentiating factor.

Joining Polène also means benefiting from a range of benefits and initiatives designed with you in mind:

• A 100% on-site employee experience, based in our Tokyo offices.

• A ClassPass sports and wellness membership.

What you may not know yet about Polène:

Born in Paris in 2016, crafted in Ubrique and open to the world, Polène is much more than a leather goods Maison: it is a culture, a way of being and a way of creating. Each of our creations reflects the meeting point between technical precision and the poetry of form.

Today, Polène brings together 1,500 employees, including 900 exceptional artisans based in Ubrique, Spain, and operates across 3 continents, with an ambitious expansion plan of 7 new boutique openings per year.

Polène is committed to promoting an inclusive, ethical and equitable culture throughout its recruitment process. We welcome you as you are, with your talents, your energy and your desire to contribute.