About the Company
Apparel Group is a global fashion and lifestyle retail organization headquartered in the GCC, with an extensive portfolio of international and homegrown brands across multiple markets. The group operates across fashion, lifestyle, hospitality, and food & beverage, supported by a diverse workforce across its regional and international operations.
The organization focuses on building strong brands, delivering quality customer experiences, and creating opportunities for employees to develop their skills and careers.
Job Overview
The Manager – Learning & Development (L&D) will lead strategic learning, leadership development, and employee capability-building initiatives across the organization. The role will work closely with business and HR leaders to develop learning strategies that support business growth, operational performance, brand standards, and long-term talent development.
The successful candidate will help establish a strong learning culture by creating structured development programs, capability frameworks, learning academies, and measurable training solutions for frontline employees, corporate teams, and leadership populations.
Key Responsibilities
1. Learning Strategy and Academy Development
- Develop and implement an organization-wide Learning & Development strategy aligned with business priorities, growth plans, and organizational values.
- Establish structured learning academies focused on frontline excellence, corporate capabilities, leadership development, and professional growth.
- Develop academy governance frameworks covering curriculum structures, certification pathways, faculty models, and quality standards.
- Build scalable learning solutions that combine classroom training, digital learning, and practical workplace experiences.
- Ensure learning programs support operational excellence, employee performance, and consistent customer service standards.
2. Capability Framework and Skills Development
- Develop and maintain enterprise-wide capability frameworks for business-critical roles and future workforce requirements.
- Create and manage skills taxonomies to improve role clarity, workforce planning, and personalized employee learning pathways.
- Map skills and capabilities to career development, succession planning, and internal talent mobility.
- Work with HR and business leaders to identify capability gaps and create targeted employee development programs.
- Support workforce readiness by identifying current and future skills required across the organization.
3. Learning Design and Program Delivery
- Oversee the development and delivery of blended learning programs for retail, corporate, and leadership teams.
- Lead management and leadership development initiatives to strengthen people-management capabilities and build future leadership talent.
- Ensure learning content supports premium customer service, brand knowledge, customer experience, and operational excellence.
- Partner with internal teams, subject-matter experts, and external learning providers to deliver engaging training programs.
- Conduct training needs analysis to identify learning priorities across different functions and employee groups.
- Develop practical and engaging learning experiences based on adult learning principles and business requirements.
4. Learning Measurement and Continuous Improvement
- Establish evaluation methods to measure training effectiveness, employee capability development, and business impact.
- Analyze learner feedback, performance information, and learning analytics to improve training programs.
- Manage learning calendars, certification records, compliance documentation, and L&D reporting.
- Track key learning and development metrics and provide regular reports to relevant stakeholders.
- Benchmark L&D programs against current industry practices and emerging learning trends.
- Continuously improve learning content, delivery methods, and development programs based on measurable results.
5. Talent Development and Learning Culture
- Promote a culture of continuous learning, professional development, and career growth across the organization.
- Support talent development initiatives, including high-potential employee programs, succession planning, and career development frameworks.
- Partner with senior leaders to identify capability gaps, behavioral development needs, and workforce readiness priorities.
- Provide guidance to leaders on employee development and capability-building strategies.
- Develop initiatives that encourage employees to integrate learning into their everyday work.
- Support employee engagement through relevant learning and professional development opportunities.
Qualifications and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Learning & Development, Business Administration, Psychology, or a related discipline.
- 7–10 years of professional experience, including at least 7 years in Learning & Development, Talent Development, or a related field.
- Previous experience in the retail industry is mandatory, preferably within fashion, lifestyle, luxury, hospitality, or customer-focused retail environments.
- Experience working with Learning Management Systems (LMS), Learning Experience Platforms (LXP), and digital learning technologies.
- UAE or Middle East experience is preferred, particularly within diverse and multinational organizations.
- Proven experience designing, managing, and delivering learning programs for frontline employees, corporate teams, managers, and senior leaders.
- Experience working within multi-brand, multi-location, or regional organizations is highly desirable.
- Strong knowledge of adult learning principles, leadership development, capability frameworks, and talent development.
- Hands-on experience with training needs analysis, learning calendars, vendor management, and learning evaluation.
- Ability to translate business goals into practical, engaging, and measurable learning solutions.
- Excellent stakeholder management, communication, facilitation, presentation, and relationship-building skills.
- Strong commercial and operational understanding with a strategic and people-focused approach.
Key Competencies
- Learning strategy and workforce capability development
- Retail learning and customer experience
- Learning academy development and governance
- Curriculum and learning pathway design
- Capability frameworks and skills taxonomy
- Leadership and management development
- Talent development and succession planning
- Data-driven learning measurement
- Learning technology and digital development
- Vendor and program management
- Stakeholder engagement and executive partnership
- Change management and organizational transformation
- Cultural awareness in multinational workplaces
- Commercial and operational awareness