Founding People Operations Director - AI Lab - Up to $300k base + Meaningful equity
Founding People Operations Director
Palo Alto (Hybrid) · Up to $300k base + Meaningful equity
Series B AI Research Lab. Our client is 40+ people, backed by top-tier investors. They are about to grow significantly. And the people infrastructure needs to be ready before we do, not after.
That's where you come in.
The Role:
This is the founding people operations hire. Not a seat on an existing team. Not inheriting someone else's stack. You'll be the person who defines what good looks like here — from how someone's first day feels to how performance cycles run to how we stay compliant as we scale across states and borders.
You'll run Rippling like it's your instrument. You'll build onboarding that people actually remember. You'll design performance and comp programs that hold up at 40 people and at 200. You'll partner directly with leadership, move fast, and own the outcome.
What you'll own
- People systems — Rippling, Ashby, 15Five, Checkr, Oyster. Data integrity, automation, reporting, and integrations.
- Performance programs — Review cycles end-to-end, calibration, levelling, and feedback.
- Onboarding & offboarding — Structured, compliant, and genuinely welcoming.
- Comp & benefits ops — Variable pay, benchmarking, pay equity, open enrolment.
- Compliance — Multi-state, international, I-9, required trainings, audits.
You're likely a fit if:
- You have 7+ years in People Ops or HR Operations at a tech company — ideally one growing faster than it was ready for
- You're a Rippling power user, not just an admin
- You've built a performance cycle from scratch and know what to cut, not just what to add
- You're data-driven, calm under ambiguity, and genuinely care about the experience
- You've worked with AI tools in your actual workflow and have opinions on what works
We're at the stage where what you build will matter. If that's what you're looking for, we'd like to meet you.
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