Nairobi County, Kenya, March 2025 – Habel Kamau has stepped into a new role as Senior Director People Operations at Sama, where he will lead strategic people initiatives across global operations, HR technology, crisis management, compensation, and workforce development. With over five years at Sama, Habel continues to play a pivotal role in building the organization’s people-first culture and operational excellence.
Prior to this elevation, Habel served as Director of People Operations for approximately three years. In this capacity, he led end-to-end HR service delivery, business continuity strategies, and large-scale people operations initiatives. His work included improving customer and job satisfaction through tech-enabled HR transformation and driving strategic alignment with business goals.
Earlier at Sama, he held multiple roles, including Acting People Operations Director, Senior People Operations Manager, and Senior Specialist for Recruitment, Compensation & Benefits and Employee Relations. These progressive responsibilities equipped him to lead diverse HR projects, introduce scalable systems, and refine compensation frameworks to support rapid growth and regional expansion.
Before joining Sama, Habel was a Senior HR Specialist at Samsung Electronics for over three years, where he operationalized HR systems like Workday across East Africa and led a major company-wide shift to role-specific grading and remuneration structures. He also managed a multi-country restructure with zero disputes, showcasing his expertise in change management and compliance.
Habel began his career at Haco Industries Kenya Ltd. as a Payroll and Benefits Administrator, where he played a crucial role in automating HR processes, implementing time and attendance systems, and developing long-term compensation strategies that elevated employee productivity and engagement.
About Sama
Sama is a global leader in ethical data annotation and model evaluation for AI applications such as computer vision and generative AI. Trusted by leading Fortune 50 companies like Microsoft, Google, GM, and Ford, Sama delivers best-in-class training data using a proprietary platform and a workforce of over 5,000 skilled data experts. As a Certified B-Corp, Sama is committed to responsible AI and has positively impacted more than 65,000 individuals by creating inclusive employment opportunities that help lift communities out of poverty.
Read Also : Entering 2025, TA Leaders’ Success Built on More than Just Hiring, Says The Josh Bersin Company
People Analytics Teams Still Struggle to Deliver Business Impact, Warns The Josh Bersin Company
ESG and Women’s Leadership: Driving Sustainability and Inclusion
Learning and Development Trends for 2025: Shaping the Future of Workplace Learning
