Senior HR Business Partner

Senior HR Business Partner

Based in Amsterdam (hybrid), starting a.s.a.p.—latest January 1st 2026. Final date to receive applications: 11 November 2025.

Wakuli. Impacting the world with exciting coffee.

While consumers pay too much for low‑quality coffee, farmers earn too little to sustain their livelihoods. We sell the best coffee—both in taste and in fair pay for farmers. Our beans are traceable to the farm, poured by us, or delivered fresh to your home. We are an ambitious start‑up with a profound mission: impacting the world with exciting coffee.

We are building the new coffee brand of the 21st century with a team of like‑minded origin partners, innovators, and investors from around the world. We operate a European e‑commerce business and 20 retail bars (and counting) across 8 cities in the Netherlands.

This role combines classic HR with strategic thinking, data insights, and cultural leadership in a startup environment. In the past 3 years we opened 20 physical stores, adding to our e‑commerce business. Growth means our retail barista team (120+) needs focused HR support. You report directly to the leadership team.

Our baristas are the ambassadors of our business and have a big impact on customer satisfaction. You will track and improve their working experience and play a key part in company growth.

• Shape and safeguard an inclusive, high‑impact retail culture, balancing people‑first thinking with business realities.
• Ensure full HR compliance for our flex workforce, and co‑create a sustainable retail workforce strategy with our Head of Retail Operations.
• Make data‑informed decisions to increase barista retention, improve team wellbeing, and build a place people want to work.
• Contribute to a healthy P&L through smart people strategy and workforce cost insights.

• You’ll work at one of the fastest‑growing consumer start‑ups in the Netherlands, aiming to change the coffee industry for millions of farmers worldwide.
• The retail part of the company is still early‑stage—you’ll design and build a vision from scratch.
• You’ll collaborate across departments, directly impacting customer experience and company growth.
• There’s lots of room for growth, especially as we expand internationally.
• You report directly to our leadership team.

• Monitor and analyse barista‑related cost structures (wages, training, sick leave).
• Support the Head of Retail Operations with cost projections and staffing strategies.
• Use data to identify trends (churn, absenteeism) and drive smart interventions.
• Build and sustain an inclusive, positive work culture across all retail locations.
• Ensure baristas feel safe, supported, and proud to be part of Wakuli.
• Own and evolve the Retail HR learning platform.
• Design scalable onboarding and training programs.
• Partner with Store Managers, Product, Impact and Design teams to create clear learning paths.
• Lead and coach the HR Generalist, expanding the team as needed.
• Maintain cultural consistency across markets while adapting to local needs.

• A self‑starter who wants to create a solid HR strategy and implement it.
• 5+ years of relevant experience.
• Experience working with temporary or flexible contracts in the Netherlands.
• Experience with HR systems, preferably Sympa & Nmbrs.
• Ideally fluent in Dutch;
  German is a strong plus.
• Strong analytical skills: comfortable with reporting, projections, and turning insights into action.

• A starting salary of €4,500–€5,500 (40 h/week) with steep growth opportunities.
• Opportunity to make a difference—see our latest Impact report.
• Pioneering role, high responsibility, steep learning curve.
• Best coffee and access to all relevant information.
• Talented international, impact‑driven colleagues (160+ people, 22+ countries) with great team spirit.

Ready for a new adventure?