New Director of People Services Jacqui Brits joins Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates

With a career in the human resources industry spanning 12 years, almost a decade of which has been spent in the hospitality business, Jacqui Brits joins the HR team at Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates as its new Director of People Services. 

In her new role, the South African national will focus on the management of the People Services function in order to meet the strategic business objectives of Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates through planning, attracting, developing and directing human resources resulting in more efficient performance, retention, drive and passion for the business. 

With her strong background in Recruitment & Selection, Learning & Development, Employee Relations, Compensation & Benefits and Government Relations, Brits is expected to make a strong contribution to the Kempinski team. The team is expected in particular to reap the rewards of Brits' experience in performance management and motivational techniques aimed at creating a satisfied and driven team of industry professionals. 

“Brits has an incredibly strong foundation in every aspect of the field of human resource development, recruitment and mentoring and her training background considerably adds to her skills and experience in this regard," says Alejandro Bernabé, General Manager, Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates. "The hospitality industry is a people industry and recruiting and retaining the right talent plays a key role in its long-term success. We are very fortunate to have Brits bring this level of insight to the management of our team." 

Brits moves to Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates from retail giant Azadea's Dubai operation where she led an HR team of 45 people as Human Resources Manager, overseeing a staff strength of 2400 employees. Brits earlier served as Director of Human Resources at F1-X Theme Park, Union Properties, moving there from the Jumeirah Group. Brits joined the Jumeirah Group in 1999 as a Human Resources, Training & Quality Manager at the Jumeirah Wild Wadi Water Park. Within the group, Brits worked as a Resort Training Manager at Madinat Jumeirah and then as Recruitment Manager Regional - Middle East, facilitating the recruitment of suitable team members for 6 properties, before being promoted to the post of Director of Human Resources - Corporate. 

Commenting on her move to Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates, Brits said: “I am very excited to be returning to the hospitality field, as for someone working in HR it is an industry that is challenging for all the right reasons. Kempinski is a very people-focused brand which makes structuring and planning its HR policies a task I am looking forward to being a part of. 

Brits holds a Human Resource Management Certificate and Specialist Certificate in Training Management from Damelin College, Cape Town, South Africa. 

Fluent in English and Afrikaans, Brits has been based in Dubai for the past 12 years. When not working, she is a keen photographer and enjoys cooking and travelling.