Business & People Operations Manager

Athlete to Athlete•Santa Monica, CA

9d•$85,000 - $105,000•Onsite

About The Position

About Athlete To Athlete At Athlete To Athlete, we are building a more connected future for athlete development. We believe athletes grow best when they are supported by meaningful relationships, experienced mentorship, and communities that genuinely care about their success. Athlete To Athlete is a human-first, tech-forward platform that connects young athletes with accomplished college athletes who are actively living the journey themselves. Since launching four years ago, we have worked with more than 35,000 athletes, grown more than 100% every year, and are on track to facilitate more than 100,000 mentorship sessions this year. Why this role, why now We have grown quickly, and the systems that support our team now need a dedicated owner. You will be our first dedicated Business and People Operations hire. You will own the employee lifecycle, payroll, and our core People programs, keep our Santa Monica office running smoothly, and improve how all of it works as we grow. A single week might include a benefits renewal, a difficult employee conversation, a broken printer, and someone's birthday. None of them get dropped. You will report directly to the COO and work closely with both founders.

Requirements

4+ years across People Operations, HR, or business operations, with hands-on ownership rather than support of someone else's processes
Direct experience running payroll. You have processed cycles yourself, caught errors before they became problems, and know how to troubleshoot when something goes wrong.
Working knowledge of California employment compliance, including required trainings and notices, leave administration, and wage-and-hour basics
Discretion and judgment. You will handle compensation, performance issues, and personal circumstances, and you know how to protect sensitive information and when something needs to go further.
Clear writing and reliable follow-through. Much of this job is explaining things to employees and managers so they land the first time, with several unrelated priorities moving at once.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with a PEO, particularly Insperity
Experience as the first dedicated People or Operations hire at a company
Startup experience at a company that grew quickly
Experience with recruiting coordination, benefits administration, or workplace operations

Responsibilities

Offer letters and offer packages for every candidate, including answering questions about offer terms and benefits
Onboarding end to end: pre-start coordination, first-day logistics, documentation, our buddy program, and follow-up through each employee's first weeks
Accurate and current employee records across our HR systems and internal files
Partnering with Insperity on annual benefits review and renewal, open enrollment, and 401(k) administration, while owning the internal project management, employee communications, and follow-through
Leaves of absence and accommodation requests, coordinated with Insperity
Performance review cycles, policy rollouts, required training, employee surveys, and the communications that go with each
Serving as the first point of contact for employees and managers on benefits, policies, and performance conversations, and knowing when to handle something directly, escalate it to the COO, or bring in Insperity or outside counsel
Offboarding, including documentation, exit interviews for voluntary departures, and identifying recurring themes worth acting on
Recruiting coordination during hiring ramps: interview scheduling, candidate communication, offer coordination, and a strong candidate experience throughout
Employee experience and team rituals, including company events, celebrations, recognition, and the small details that make the office a good place to work
Owning semi-monthly payroll processing and timekeeping in Insperity, accurate and on time every cycle
Reviewing payroll inputs and catching discrepancies before payroll is submitted, then resolving anything that does come up quickly
Maintaining accurate payroll records and coordinating changes across employees, managers, and Insperity
Acting as the first point of contact for office needs, coordinating with vendors, building management, and internal teams
Managing office supplies, equipment, services, and day-to-day workplace needs
Setting up new hires with desks, badges, parking, and equipment so they are productive on day one
Managing office security, access, visitor management, and workplace safety programs, including our Workplace Violence Prevention Plan and its required training
Tracking office expenses, vendor contracts, insurance policies, and service agreements for cost, renewal dates, and compliance
Maintaining organized People and business-operations records in Drive, with appropriate access and permissions
Finding and fixing the operational issues that slow the team down, and taking on ad hoc projects from the CEO and COO