People · Operations · HR · Remote · Global

Your people deserve
your attention.
Let me take care
of the rest.

Your people and clients deserve your attention. I'd like to help take care of the rest.

I believe businesses run better when the people inside them have systems and support that help them breathe. I'd love to help you plan & build the operational foundations that clear the noise so your team can get back to the work that humans do best. Connection. Networking. Building Culture. Creative Problem-solving.

Automate & Document the transactional. Protect the human. Ironically, the right technology, systems and processes will make your workplace more human not less.

When a startup needs foundations set quickly HR, legal, IT, design, systems I know the right people. Each of us is independent, and each of us is genuinely good at what we do. No layers, no markup. Just the right person for the job, brought in when you actually need them.

Don't find who you're looking for here? I'll find you what you need.

Book a 30-minute discovery call Hourly · Day rate · Monthly retainer · Remote · Available globally
jc

Automate & Document the transactional. Protect the human.

Ironically, the right technology, systems and processes will make your workplace more human not less.

I show up.
I engage.
The next chapter
finds me.

How did I end up here? My brain is neurodivergent it runs fast, connects dots, and learns by doing, not by sitting still. Put me in front of a textbook or talking seminar, and I'd lose you in ten minutes. Put me in front of a real problem, with real people, and I'll find my way. I don't have a degree, a diploma or certificates. I never went the traditional route. Everything I know I taught myself through doing, through asking questions, through showing up in rooms I wasn't supposed to be in yet, and through never being willing to just stay in my lane. So I went straight into the workforce. Retail. A law firm. Then I did something a little crazy I packed a bag, bought a one-way ticket to London, and showed up on someone's couch with no job and no plan. Just fire. Two weeks later I was working for the London Borough of Lambeth. That's how my career has always moved. I show up, I engage, and somehow the next chapter finds me.

Here's what I figured out along the way: my favourite part of any role was never the admin. It was the humans.... the check-in that had nothing to do with KPIs the conversation about someone's kids, their ageing parent, the thing keeping them up at night. That's the work that actually builds a culture worth being part of. And the admin kept stealing it. I believe businesses run better when the people inside them have systems and support that help them breathe and be more human. That's why I do this. Not to file paperwork but to give humans their time back.

Over 20+ years I've worked across banking, legal, freight forwarding, government, FinTech, and consulting across South Africa, the UK, Australia and Vietnam. I find the gaps, ask the questions nobody else is asking, and build bridges between the systems and the humans inside them. At MFC Nedbank I walked in as a receptionist and left seven years later having supported 27 dealer relationship managers across four provinces and learned every corner of that business because I needed to understand the whole engine, not just my corner of it. I've also built and sold my own business, discovered remote work in Vietnam, and spent 5 years running HR, Operations, and people systems for a FinTech consultancy. The through-line: I'm at my best in service of something bigger than myself, working alongside people who actually give a damn.

I've also invested deeply in my own inner work through Mindvalley, meditation, nervous system regulation, and gut health, just to name a few and it has shaped everything about how I understand people. I'm trauma-informed, and I believe how we feel is inseparable from how we perform. That's baked into how I show up for every client. I understand nervous systems, not just org charts. These days I work from Kleinmond (for now), a small coastal village on the southern tip of South Africa, where I walk rescue dogs to the harbour in the mornings and know the librarian by name.

One more thing: I'm a co-pilot, not here to take over the show. And I want to talk to your people too not just you. Because the real pain points are often not making it up the chain. When your needs go beyond what I personally own, I have a small collective of trusted specialists behind me. You find me. We handle the rest.

Three ways I can help

I don't arrive with a pre-packaged solution. I arrive with questions. We figure out what you actually need, then we build it so it lasts.

01

HR & People Operations

Your people systems, set up properly and running the way they should. Employee lifecycle, onboarding and offboarding, leave management, performance coordination, HR records the infrastructure your team actually needs to function without chaos.

02

Systems & Documentation

The knowledge that lives in people's heads we get it out and into a system your whole team can use. SOPs, process guides, policy libraries, knowledge bases. So nobody's held hostage to the one person who knows how things work. When someone leaves, the knowledge stays.

03

Operations Support

The structural layer that keeps things moving when you're focused on leading. Coordinating projects, connecting people and systems, making sure nothing falls through the cracks. The operational backbone that lets you focus on what only you can do.

I work in a few different ways hourly for once-off help, day rates for bigger projects, or a monthly arrangement if you need someone around more regularly. Have a chat with me and we'll figure out what makes sense for you.

Book a discovery call →

You find us.
We'll handle the rest.

Automate & Document the transactional. Protect the human. Ironically, the right technology, systems and processes will make your workplace more human not less. When a startup needs foundations set quickly HR, legal, IT, design, systems I know the right people. Each of us is independent, and each of us is genuinely good at what we do. No layers, no markup. Just the right person for the job, brought in when you actually need them. Don't find who you're looking for here? I'll find you what you need.

Zinta Strydom

Zinta Strydom

Commercial & Labour Law Global

17 years of legal experience. ZS Attorneys Inc boutique global practice across Africa, Asia, Europe, Dubai and beyond. Named in the Legal 500 GC Powerlist SA 2024.

zsattorneysinc.com
Nasif Salaam

Nasif Salaam

AI Advisory

Helps organisations understand what AI means for their business and how to use it without creating risk they haven't spotted yet. Workshops, advisory, and governance sprints aligned to ISO 42001.

ai.nasifsalaam.com
Juan Prinsloo

Juan Prinsloo

IT & Systems End to End

SAP, cloud computing, SQL, HANA, SUSE Linux, Microsoft and ITIL-certified. The person you call when your systems need to actually work from startup basics to enterprise complexity.

Connect on LinkedIn
Lydia Erasmus Strydom

Lydia Erasmus Strydom

HR Strategy & Recruitment

19 years of HR and recruitment experience. Founder of Talent Tactics fully remote HR consultancy for startups and growing teams who need the strategic layer.

Connect on LinkedIn
Dolan Govender

Dolan Govender

HRIS & Zoho Implementation

Managing Director of Tektra, SA's Zoho implementation partner. 10+ years helping businesses automate and eliminate manual processes through the Zoho ecosystem.

tektra.co.za

Free resources.
Real talk.

Two corners. One for people building a remote career. One for founders building a team. Both written from the field, not from a textbook.

The Remote Corner

For South Africans going remote

Whether you've been a cashier, a call centre agent, a stay-at-home parent, or you've simply never worked online before this is your starting point.

Free

SA Remote Work Starter Kit

14 sections. SA-specific. No fluff. Everything you need to go from zero to online.

Download free →

Read

Remote Work

Articles coming soon

Resources

Ebook · Coming Soon

Land Your First Remote Job

Guide · Coming Soon

SA Remote Worker Tax & Payments Guide

The Founders Corner

For founders building a team

Real thinking on people, operations, and what it actually takes to build a workplace worth being part of. No corporate polish. No HR jargon.

Free

Business Health Check

A quick self-assessment for founders to spot the gaps before they become problems.

Coming soon

Read

People & HR

Human First. HR Second.

What a two-hour phone call taught me about what people actually need from the people function.

Resources

Toolkit · Coming Soon

HR Operating System in a Box

Templates · Coming Soon

SOP Starter Pack

The stack behind the work.

If you use something not on here, I'll learn it fast.

Tools Jax works with

14 LinkedIn recommendations.
Here are six.

"She was the soul of our culture, effortlessly balancing efficiency with deep empathy… Any team fortunate enough to recruit her will be gaining an exceptional human being."

DUMISA BANTU MGUDLWA

Business Development Manager

"HR can sometimes feel transactional. With Jackie, it feels human."

TYRA MAHMOOD

UX Designer

"In my 27 year career, I have never met anyone with such a passion for everything she does… you can give her any project and she will complete it successfully and on time."

MADELEINE BOLTON

Provincial Sales Manager, Nedbank · direct manager · 5 years

"Jax is an absolute asset to any company she is really there for each and every employee. Making them feel welcome and part of the family when onboarding, supporting them with emotional wellness, and assisting with any admin related needs promptly and efficiently."

MARIANKA CILLIERS

Product Design Lead, Platform45

"From my very first day, she made the onboarding process seamless and transparent, guiding me step by step until I was fully prepared to thrive independently. Her approach is supportive, professional, and always encouraging."

RONETE-JENNA VAN STADEN

Technical AI Program Manager · Six Sigma Black Belt

"She brings a calm, caring presence while still being efficient and dependable, which is such a strength in HR. I'd highly recommend Jackie to any team looking for someone who genuinely supports people and does her work with care and professionalism."

MATHU MCUBE

UX Designer · Finance & Health

Good questions.
Straight answers.

I've been based in Da Nang Vietnam, Kampot Cambodia, JHB South Africa, East London South Africa, and currently in Kleinmond, South Africa. I work fully remotely. My clients have been spread across the UK, USA, Australia, Asia and South Africa.

Yes, within reason. I work South African hours 6am to 9pm SAST. That gives me good overlap with the UK and Europe, and workable overlap with US East Coast. West Coast and Australia are generally outside my hours. If you're not sure whether your time zone fits, just ask on the discovery call.

Both, depending on what you need. For most engagements it's just me. But I have a small collective of trusted specialists legal, IT, HRIS, design who I bring in when a client's needs go beyond my lane. You always know who you're working with.

Both. Some clients need someone for a specific project an SOP overhaul, a Zoho setup, a chatbot build. Others want ongoing support. I work hourly, on day rates, or on a monthly arrangement. We figure out what makes sense on a discovery call.

My stack keeps growing here's where it stands.

HRIS: Zoho People (Super User / admin level) · BrioHR (evaluated) · PeopleForce (evaluated) · SAP (end user leave management and employee files)

Productivity & Ops: Microsoft 365 · Google Workspace · Notion · SharePoint · OneDrive · Dropbox · Calendly · Tally · Plutio

Project Management: Asana · Trello · Slack · Microsoft Teams

AI Tools: Claude · Gemini · ChatGPT

Design & Marketing: Canva · MailerLite

Automation: Make.com · Zapier

Social Media Scheduling: Metricool

Video & Communication: Zoom · Google Meet · Microsoft Teams

Social Media: LinkedIn · Instagram · Facebook · TikTok · RedNote · WeChat · WhatsApp Business

Finance & Payments: Wise · Payoneer · PayPal

Crypto & Web3: Social Hub (SocialFi on Polygon) · MetaMask · Luno · Binance

Recruitment: LinkedIn Recruiter

Legal & Specialist: LegalEASE (deceased estate admin) · Nedbank/MFC internal vehicle asset finance systems

If you use something not on this list, I'll learn it fast.

Yes I'm a co-pilot, not a bulldozer. I learn how you work, slot in, and make things run better without creating chaos in the process.

Book a 30-minute discovery call. We talk about what you need, I ask the annoying questions nobody else asks, and we figure out if we're a good fit. No hard sell, no pressure. If it makes sense, we go from there.

Yes happy to share on request. I've worked with founders, HR leads, and executives across multiple industries and countries. References available for serious enquiries.