People Programs Lead

What you'll do

• Design and own AfterQuery’s total compensation strategy — philosophy, bands, leveling, refresh cadence, and equity framework — and refresh it annually against benchmarks and market signals.
• Build the career pathways and leveling rubric that lets early-career operators see, in writing, what excellence at the next level looks like and how to get there.
• Stand up a performance management cycle that is fast, written, and useful — calibrated across the company without becoming a tax on managers.
• Design learning & development programs for a high-agency, early-career workforce — onboarding, manager training, technical depth, and feedback culture.
• Own retention as a measurable outcome: define the leading indicators, build the sensing systems, and run programs (recognition, internal mobility, comp refreshes) that move the number.
• Partner with leadership and finance on org design, headcount planning, and the comp/burn tradeoffs that shape the next 12-24 months.
• Treat People programs as products — instrument them, measure adoption and outcomes, and iterate. Bring the same analytical rigor you would to a P&L.

What we're looking for

• 7-10+ years of experience across a combination of top-tier strategy consulting, analytical or strategy & operations roles, and core People / HR programs work.
• Time at companies known for strong People programs: Stripe, Block/Square, Netflix, Airbnb, Gusto, Bridgewater, or industry peers such as Mercor, Surge, or ScaleAI.
• Quantitative rigor that goes beyond comp benchmarks: model leveling decisions, attrition, comp band overlap, and equity refresh tradeoffs.
• A point of view: tell founders why they’re wrong about comp transparency or a leveling decision, backed by data and company values.
• Demonstrated ability to design programs from 0→1.
• Genuine interest in the AfterQuery thesis on human data for AI.
• High agency, low ego, written-first. Comfortable in a 5-day in-office SF environment that prizes speed and direct feedback.

Bonus

• Experience on the org-design side of an AI pivot or step-change in business model.
• Designed compensation programs for a workforce that includes both full-time employees and a significant expert/contractor population.