Dariana Finkel

Sole HR leader for the Middle East, overseeing all people strategy, operational continuity, and compliance across a fast-paced luxury fashion and tech environment. Partnered directly with global and regional leadership to align people strategy with commercial growth, enabling successful navigation through restructuring and transformation initiatives. Built and led full-cycle recruitment processes across IT, customer service, private client, retail, and marketing. Partnered with global tech leads to scale engineering, infrastructure, and IT operations teams. Reduced time-to-hire by 30% while improving candidate experience and employer brand positioning in highly competitive markets. Designed and implemented region-wide workforce planning strategies, ensuring resilience and scalability despite reduced resources. Led crisis management during periods of organizational instability, handling legal escalations, sensitive employee exits, and immigration/visa risks while ensuring business continuity. Increased employee trust, accountability, and retention during multi-year transformation through leadership alignment and engagement initiatives. Acted as a business partner, not only an HR advisor — contributing to decisions on headcount planning, commercial structuring, vendor management, and compliance. Leveraged workforce analytics to drive initiatives on talent mobility, succession planning, and internal equity aligned with both global and local needs. Trusted for independent judgment in the absence of a Managing Director or Legal team on the ground, operating beyond traditional HR scope.

Acted as sole People Partner for the Middle East region, supporting offices in Dubai and the wider GCC across luxury fashion, e-commerce, and technology. Partnered with global and regional leadership to design and deliver people strategy aligned with commercial goals, supporting both scaling and restructuring phases. Managed the full employee lifecycle: onboarding, employee relations, performance management, compensation reviews, and exit processes. Provided cross-functional support to global and local stakeholders (HR, Legal, Operations, Finance), ensuring compliance with UAE labor law and free zone regulations (TECOM, JAFZA). Drove talent planning and leadership development initiatives, improving retention and engagement during a period of organizational uncertainty. Handled complex ER and legal cases in the absence of a legal team, including investigations, visa/immigration risks, and sensitive employee exits. Supported culture and engagement programs, sustaining morale and employee trust despite downsizing and reduced resources. Leveraged data and workforce analytics to advise on succession planning, internal equity, and talent mobility for regional teams.

Specialized in sourcing highly niche and hard-to-fill technology roles across engineering, data science, DevOps, infrastructure, product, and cybersecurity, supporting global hiring needs across EMEA, APAC, Brazil, US, Mexico, and the Philippines. As a part of Farfetch’s Global Talent Acquisition team, partnered with business leaders and Talent Acquisition Partners to deliver end-to-end recruitment for critical roles in TECH, Marketing, Finance, and Operations, driving international team growth for Farfetch, Browns, Luxclusif, Stadium Goods, and Farfetch Solutions. Developed and executed advanced sourcing strategies using Boolean search, LinkedIn Recruiter, GitHub, StackOverflow, CSE, and talent intelligence platforms to build diverse pipelines and headhunt passive candidates. Conducted global market mapping and competitor research to identify scarce talent pools, while strengthening employer brand visibility in global tech and engineering communities. Acted as a trusted advisor to hiring managers, providing accurate market insights, data-driven recommendations, and innovative solutions to improve candidate engagement and attraction. Successfully reduced time-to-fill for critical hires, enabling continuity and growth in large-scale international platform expansion projects.

Led end-to-end recruitment across the Middle East, Russia, Europe, Brazil, US, Japan, China for luxury fashion, retail, customer service, and technology functions. Partnered with business leaders to define hiring needs, workforce planning, and talent strategies aligned to commercial goals. Successfully scaled IT, engineering, infrastructure, and support teams, enabling Farfetch’s regional tech operations and global platform expansion. Recruited senior leadership roles (Head of Retail, Private Client, IT Manager, Marketing Lead) while managing high-volume hiring for retail and customer service. Reduced average time-to-hire by 30% through process redesign, proactive talent pipeline building, and market mapping. Improved candidate experience and employer brand positioning, securing top talent from both luxury fashion and technology sectors. Partnered with People, Legal, and Finance teams to ensure compliant and cost-effective recruitment across multiple jurisdictions. Championed diversity and inclusion hiring initiatives, expanding representation across commercial, retail, and technical teams.

Acted as a hands-on HR partner in a fast-growing fitness and lifestyle business, driving people operations from recruitment to employee engagement. Focused on building a positive workplace culture while ensuring compliance and supporting rapid business growth. Scaled recruitment to support business expansion, cutting time-to-hire by 25% and attracting top fitness and wellness talent. Created a high-impact onboarding journey, boosting early-stage employee retention by 30% and strengthening cultural alignment. Resolved 90% of employee relations issues in-house, building trust and a collaborative team environment. Introduced workshops and upskilling programs, contributing to a 20% improvement in staff satisfaction and service quality. Partnered with management to design people practices and adapt HR policies to a growing workforce, ensuring agility and compliance.

I was responsible for establishing and managing the full HR function in a dynamic hospitality environment. I led all people-related processes across recruitment, employee relations, compliance, and performance — ensuring operational efficiency and a positive employee experience in line with hospitality standards. Key Responsibilities & Achievements: HR Leadership: Managed the end-to-end HR operations for all hotel departments, serving as a strategic partner to the General Manager and leadership team. Recruitment & Onboarding: Built staffing pipelines, conducted interviews, and designed onboarding experiences to ensure new hires integrated smoothly into the hotel culture. Employee Relations: Handled daily HR matters with discretion and empathy, resolving workplace issues, and maintaining a professional and supportive environment for staff. Compliance & Documentation: Oversaw employment contracts, payroll accuracy, and compliance with local labor regulations and hotel policies. Learning & Development: Supported department heads in identifying skill gaps and implementing training initiatives to enhance service quality and staff performance. Engagement & Retention: Organized internal communication and engagement initiatives that improved team morale and reduced turnover. Crisis Management: Took ownership of sensitive and urgent HR matters, ensuring continuity of operations and staff well-being during peak business and transitional periods. Key Impact: Built a reliable and efficient HR foundation that supported the hotel’s growth, improved team cohesion, and strengthened the overall employee experience in a high-service hospitality setting.