People Programs, M&A Lead

Key responsibilities

Program ownership & strategy

• Own the People-side M&A program end-to-end: strategy, operating model, standards, and outcomes across all deals, from earliest deal discussions through 90-day integration and retro
• Act as Corp Dev's strategic counterpart on People matters: inform deal structure, timelines, retention strategy, entity decisions, and people-cost implications early enough to shape outcomes
• Set the long term direction for the program: where we invest in infrastructure, what we standardize, and how the function should evolve

Leading the most complex deals

• Serve as the People-side DRI for largest and most complex acquisitions — multi-entity or international deals, larger teams, concurrent transactions, and situations with significant retention or sentiment risk
• Sequence interdependent workstreams (immigration, offers, entity setup, onboarding, benefits, internal comms) correctly under compressed timelines
• Anticipate downstream risk from upstream deal decisions and raise flags early — with options and trade-offs

Direction-setting and quality across the program

• Set the standards, templates, and decision frameworks that all People-side M&A work follows
• Build credibility and operating rhythms with senior stakeholders across Corp Dev, Legal, Finance, and People
• Level up the broader People team's ability to execute M&A confidently through documentation, retros, and coaching-by-doing

Systems & program infrastructure

• Build the infrastructure that doesn't exist yet — intake processes, diligence checklists, integration tracking, retention frameworks, post-close retros
• Identify recurring failure modes across deals and implement upstream fixes; institutionalize learnings
• Use Claude and automation thoughtfully to scale the program (tracking, drafting, checklist generation)

Minimum requirements

• Experience across program management, HR/People operations, and M&A integration, including direct ownership of People workstreams across multiple transactions
• Operated as a true partner to Corp Dev or a deal team: influenced deal structure, timing, or retention decisions
• Can hold a portfolio of work — multiple deals, multiple workstreams per deal — and sequence interdependencies correctly
• Know how to set direction and standards for work you don't personally execute
• Exceptionally organized and calm under pressure; communicate clearly and directly when timelines are tight
• Build programs and systems that outlast you — playbooks, frameworks, and processes that others adopt
• Comfortable operating with minimal oversight on long horizons

Preferred qualifications

• 10+ years of experience across program management, HR/People operations, and M&A integration
• Stood up an M&A People integration function or playbook from scratch at a fast-growing technology company
• Led People integration for international or multi-entity acquisitions, including immigration, employment legal, and entity-setup coordination
• Managed several concurrent transactions, or a deal pipeline
• Experience guiding or mentoring other program managers, or leading pods/working teams without formal management authority
• Worked closely enough with Corp Dev to be trusted in target-facing conversations

Compensation & benefits

• Annual Salary: $310,000—$370,000 USD