Human Resources Lead

HR Lead

Build and lead the HR function of a growing international medtech company

LOCATION

Türkiye or UAE, Remote

LANGUAGES

Fluent in Turkish and English

About Oculera

Oculera builds VR-based diagnostic technology for eye health. Our Visual Field Analyzer is used in 650+ hospitals across 40 countries. Founded in Ankara, we are a lean, fully remote international team with entities in Türkiye, the US and the UAE, bringing together engineers, clinicians and commercial professionals.

We are a growing Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) company developing medical software for hospitals, clinics and healthcare professionals. Our solutions include CE Class IIa and FDA listed medical products, and our portfolio continues to expand as we develop new diagnostic technologies in eye health.

Our mission is to improve patient outcomes and shape the future of digital healthcare.

The Role

As Oculera expands into new markets, we expect to grow our team across technical, commercial and other business roles. To support this growth, we are hiring our first dedicated HR lead. You will build and own the HR function from the ground up and help shape how a remote, international company works, hires and grows.

You will partner directly with the founders and work closely with Finance and functional leaders on workforce planning, organizational decisions and people practices. Our team is mostly software and engineering professionals, alongside sales, marketing, clinical and operations colleagues across Türkiye and international markets.

The challenge is to build a healthy, accountable and high-performing culture without slowing the business down with bureaucracy. This is a hands-on role, initially without a dedicated HR team, combining strategic input with day-to-day execution. You will prioritize what matters most, work within agreed budgets and use external specialists where needed.

What You'll Own

• Workforce planning and talent acquisition: Partner with Finance and functional leaders to identify skills gaps, map critical talent needs and agree hiring priorities within approved headcount plans and budgets. Lead recruitment, with a focus on software and engineering roles alongside other business needs. Own employer branding, role definition, sourcing and the interview process, supporting managers in making effective hiring decisions.

• Performance and growth: Build practical goal-setting, performance review, feedback and development processes linked to business priorities. Coach managers on setting expectations, recognizing contributions and addressing underperformance. Identify priority learning needs and introduce appropriate career development frameworks as we grow.

• Culture and engagement: Work with founders and managers to translate company values into everyday behaviours. Strengthen trust, accountability, communication and belonging across a remote team. Provide a trusted point of contact for employee concerns, handle sensitive matters with discretion, and turn employee feedback into meaningful action.

• Compensation and benefits: Partner with Finance and the founders to develop practical salary ranges, market benchmarks and a consistent approach to pay reviews, promotions and benefits. Balance talent attraction and retention with internal fairness and company affordability.

• Organizational design: Help define clear roles, responsibilities, reporting relationships and ways of working across functions. Build proportionate HR policies and support managers as the organization evolves.

• People operations: Establish reliable onboarding, offboarding, employee records and documentation. Coordinate accurate payroll inputs and benefits administration, with clear handoffs between HR, Finance, managers and external providers. Maintain concise reporting on headcount, hiring progress, turnover and other relevant people indicators.

• International expansion: Coordinate people operations as we hire in new countries. Assess local requirements and employment options with Finance and legal advisers, support management decisions and implement approved arrangements with EOR, payroll and other partners.

• Türkiye operations: Oversee HR compliance and coordinate with Teknokent and relevant institutions, working with Finance and specialist advisers on applicable personnel documentation, incentives and SGK processes.

• Employee experience: Create a consistent experience from onboarding through development and departure. Coordinate team activities and support conference and travel arrangements through vendors and administrative support where available, keeping these activities proportionate to core HR priorities.

What success looks like in your first year

Priorities will be agreed with the founders following an initial assessment and delivered in phases:

✓ A workforce and hiring plan aligned with business priorities and budget, supported by a repeatable process for attracting and hiring strong candidates.

✓ Reliable people operations, consistent onboarding, and clear HR policies and documentation for Türkiye and international hires.

✓ A practical performance and feedback cycle, with managers better equipped to set expectations, develop their teams and address issues.

✓ Clear compensation principles and a consistent, affordable approach to pay reviews and promotions.

✓ An established engagement and retention baseline, with focused actions to improve the employee experience and address key risks.

What We're Looking For

• 8+ years in HR or People Operations, including leadership responsibility and independent ownership of a broad HR remit.

• Strong hands-on recruitment experience for technology teams.

• Practical experience in performance management, compensation reviews, employee relations and coaching managers.

• Business and financial awareness, with the ability to balance people priorities and budget constraints.

• Sound judgment, discretion and the confidence to advise and constructively challenge senior leaders.

• Willingness to execute personally, prioritize effectively and work with external specialists when needed.

• Fluency in Turkish and excellent English.

• Comfort with remote collaboration tools and responsible use of AI, including care for confidential employee information.

• Resourcefulness in navigating unfamiliar requirements and international providers.

Nice to Have

• Experience in a structured corporate environment, with the judgment to adapt those practices to a smaller company.

• A track record of building practical HR processes from scratch in a startup, scale-up or similarly lean environment.

• Knowledge of Teknokent R&D personnel incentives and SGK processes.

• Experience in medtech or other regulated industries, including ISO 13485 training and competency records.

• Experience with international hiring through EOR providers.

• Residency in the UAE and HR experience in the UAE.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary.

• A founding role with direct influence on company direction.

• The opportunity to establish Oculera’s HR function, with direct access to the founders and meaningful influence on how the company works and grows.

• Fully remote work, with occasional presence in Ankara or Dubai.

• • Meaningful work: technology that helps detect vision loss earlier and improves patient outcomes.