People Operations Lead

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end payroll operations — accuracy, timeliness, and compliance, including coordination with finance on payroll funding and reporting.
• Administer employee benefits programs — plan selection, open enrollment, vendor management, and day-to-day employee support.
• Serve as the company’s HR compliance lead — employment law (CA and any additional jurisdictions as we grow), visa sponsorship program management, leave administration, I-9 and recordkeeping, policy documentation, and audit readiness.
• Be the first point of contact for employee relations — conflict resolution, performance concerns, and workplace investigations — handled with empathy, discretion, and sound judgment.
• Build and maintain HR policies and the employee handbook, keeping them current with the law and reflective of AfterQuery’s culture.
• Own the accuracy and integrity of HR and payroll systems (HRIS, payroll, benefits platforms) as the single source of truth for people data.
• Champion HR/People's role within the company — proactively communicating what the function does, why it matters, and how to engage with it, so employees see People Ops as a resource.
• Treat People Operations as a service function — fast, accurate, and low-friction — without cutting corners on compliance.

Requirements

• 5–8+ years in HR generalist, HRBP, or HR operations roles, with direct, hands-on ownership of payroll, benefits, and compliance — not just oversight of vendors.
• Deep working knowledge of California employment law and wage-and-hour rules; comfortable getting up to speed on additional states as the company grows.
• Demonstrated judgment handling sensitive employee relations matters — you can hold both the company’s interests and an individual employee’s perspective at the same time.
• Genuine empathy paired with discretion: people trust you with hard conversations because you listen first and act with fairness.
• High ownership instincts; you’ve built or meaningfully rebuilt HR infrastructure at a small or fast-growing company, not just operated within an existing one.
• Track record of leading change management for new policies, systems, or programs — you know how to build buy-in and drive adoption without over-engineering.
• Clear, calm, written-first communicator who can document decisions and policies without unnecessary process.
• Thrives in a fast-paced, high-growth environment where priorities shift quickly.
• Prior experience working at a startup.
• Comfortable in a 5-day in-office SF environment that prizes speed and direct feedback.

Nice-to-Haves

• Experience supporting HR compliance for a workforce that includes both full-time employees and contractor/expert population.
• SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP or PHR/SPHR certification.