Skip to content

Head of People

Strategic executive leading all people functions including talent acquisition, compensation, performance, culture, and HR operations for a high-growth health tech company. Partners with CEO on organizational design and scaling, requiring 8+ years HR leadership in tech.

185k – 205kSan Diego, CAPeople OpsHybrid8+ YOE

About the role

Responsibilities

Shape and Execute People Strategy

  • Serve as a strategic thought partner to the CEO and leadership team on organizational design, workforce planning, and culture
  • Translate Faro's business priorities into a cohesive people strategy with clear goals, metrics, and milestones
  • Build and continuously refine the organizational structure to support current needs and scale for the future
  • Proactively identify people-related risks and opportunities and bring forward data-driven recommendations

Lead Talent Acquisition

  • Own full-cycle recruiting strategy and execution, partnering with leaders to define hiring needs and build high-performing teams
  • Develop and evolve Faro's employer brand to attract mission-aligned, top-tier talent
  • Manage relationships with external recruiters and agencies as needed
  • Build and train internal hiring teams on best practices for structured, equitable interviewing

Design Compensation Programs

  • Lead compensation philosophy and structure design, ensuring Faro remains competitive to attract and retain exceptional people
  • Oversee equity plan administration in partnership with Finance and Legal
  • Evaluate, implement, and manage comprehensive benefits programs including medical, wellness, disability, and 401(k)
  • Design and manage employee recognition programs that reinforce high performance and Faro's core values
  • Lead annual compensation planning processes

Drive Performance and Development

  • Design and lead a performance management system that provides timely feedback, drives accountability, and supports career growth
  • Define clear organizational levels and career frameworks that give employees visibility into growth opportunities
  • Collaborate with employees and managers on personalized development plans
  • Design and deliver leadership development programs that build capability at every level of the organization
  • Partner with team leaders to build highly effective, cohesive teams

Build and Sustain a Distinctive Culture

  • Champion and actively shape the cultural attributes that define how Faro operates and what makes it a great place to build
  • Partner with the executive team on internal communications strategy and ensure key messages land clearly across the organization
  • Own the end-to-end employee lifecycle experience from onboarding to offboarding, with the goal of sustaining high engagement
  • Lead employee relations, conflict resolution, and investigations consistent with Faro's values and legal requirements

Build and Run a Scalable HR Function

  • Manage and optimize the HRIS platform to ensure accurate, actionable employee data
  • Leverage HR metrics and analytics to monitor program effectiveness and guide continuous improvement
  • Ensure full compliance with state and federal labor laws across all Faro locations
  • Manage the people function budget strategically, maximizing impact relative to organizational priorities
  • Evaluate and implement HR tools, systems, and processes that scale with company growth

Requirements

  • 8+ years of progressive HR leadership experience, with at least 3 years in a senior people leader role within a high-growth software or technology company
  • Proven track record of building and scaling people functions from early-stage through growth
  • Strong executive presence and communication skills; comfortable advising and influencing at the C-suite and board level
  • Deep expertise across the full HR spectrum: talent acquisition, total rewards, performance management, L&D, HR operations, and compliance
  • Experience leading organizational design and change management in a dynamic environment
  • Demonstrated ability to build culture intentionally
  • Data-driven approach to people decisions with the ability to translate metrics into strategy
  • Located in San Diego, with availability to be in office 2–3 days per week

Skills and Competencies

  • Exceptional strategic thinking with the ability to connect people priorities to business outcomes
  • High emotional intelligence and the interpersonal presence to build trust quickly across all levels of the organization
  • Strong written and verbal communication, including executive-level presentations
  • Disciplined attention to detail and ability to manage competing priorities without losing focus
  • Entrepreneurial mindset – you build what doesn't exist and improve what does
  • Collaborative team player who can operate independently and adapt to shifting priorities
  • Genuine passion for people, culture, and building organizations where talented humans can do their best work

Compensation

Base Salary: $185,000 - $205,000

  • Performance-based bonus
  • Equity participation (higher-than-average for company size)
  • Comprehensive benefits: Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision), Retirement Plan (401k), Stock Option Plan, Life Insurance, Short Term and Long Term Disability, Paid Time Off (Flexible Vacation Policy, Sick & Public Holidays), Training & Development

Skills

HRISTalent AcquisitionTotal RewardsPerformance ManagementOrganizational DesignCompensation PlanningEquity AdministrationLeadership DevelopmentHr MetricsHr OperationsChange ManagementDeiEmployee RelationsEmployer BrandingHr Compliance

Similar roles

People Ops jobs

Head of Talent Management Programs and PMO

Lead Duolingo's talent management programs and PMO, architecting performance systems, succession planning, and manager enablement while driving operational excellence and data-driven insights. Requires 8+ years in talent and program management with strong PMO and analytics experience.

183k – 275kPittsburgh, PAPeople OpsOn-site8+ YOEPmoPMP

Head of People Ops

Owns the operational backbone of the people function, designing scalable HR systems, policies, and compliance processes for a global, hyper-growth tech company. Reports to the executive team and partners closely with finance, legal, and operations.

180k – 250kSan Francisco, CAPeople OpsOn-site8+ YOEHRISPayroll

Head of Talent

Build and own the full recruiting function from scratch at a fast-growing AI startup. Partner with founders and Finance on hiring strategy while executing full-cycle recruiting for engineering, product, AI, and GTM roles.

170k – 200kNew York, NYPeople OpsHybrid6+ YOEATSAshby

Head of People

Lead and scale Exa's People function, partnering with founders on strategy, talent acquisition, compensation, performance, culture, and organizational development at a high-growth AI startup.

200k – 300kSan Francisco, CAPeople OpsOn-site10+ YOEHr CompliancePeople Analytics

Head of People Operations

Leads People Operations team, driving HR strategy, scalable systems, compliance, and employee experience in a high-growth AI infrastructure company. Requires 8+ years in HR/People ops with executive advisory experience and tech startup background.

200k – 250kUnited StatesPeople OpsRemote8+ YOEHRISHr Metrics