Shaun Barnes
21st Century Group Director,
Remuneration and Diagnostic Services
BA (Legal)
(University of Witwatersrand, SA)
Bachelor of Business Administration (Honours)
(University of Stellenbosch, SA)
Hay Master Level Job Evaluation Expert
Hay Group International Executive Reward Practitioner
Hay Group International Corporate Governance Expert
A Group Director at 21st Century, Shaun has led client delivery and has built the firm’s Analytics capability, translating remuneration survey data into benchmarking, strategic workforce planning, and decision-ready insights. He directs complex, multi-service consulting engagements across reward, engagement, and remuneration surveys, job evaluation, executive reward, and organisational design, and contributes to executive leadership and brand-building through publications and conference speaking.
Shaun has held senior regional leadership roles in global consulting, leading reward and organisational design practices, serving as a subject matter expert, delivering training, and driving Africa strategy and hub expansion. His earlier background includes consulting, entrepreneurship, HR management, executive support roles, and diplomatic service with an international secondment – bringing broad cross-industry and multi-country experience across Africa, the Middle East, and beyond.
Areas of Expertise:
- Corporate Governance
- Equal Pay Analysis and Audits
- EVP Design
- Executive Reward
- Job Evaluation
- Job Family Design
- Long-term Incentives
- Non-Executive Directors
- Operating Models
- Organisational Design
- Pay Structures
- People Analytics
- Policies and Practices
- RACE and Accountability Matrices
- Recognition Schemes
- Remuneration Committees
- Remuneration Surveys
- Retention
- Reward Audits
- Reward Communication
- Reward Management
- Short-term Incentives
- Strategic Reward Reviews
- Strategic Workforce Planning Structures
- Strategy Decodes
- Total Reward