Head of People Operations

Atomic Machines•Emeryville, CA

1d•$265,000 - $300,000•Hybrid

About The Position

As the Head of People Operations, you will be both a strategic architect and cultural steward, responsible for translating leadership’s vision into scalable systems that shape how we work and grow together. You will partner closely with the CEO and executive team to ensure the company’s strategy is reflected in our people practices—distilling it into clear pillars, annual and quarterly OKRs, team metrics, and individual scorecards that create transparency and alignment across the organization. You will embed our values and cultural behaviors into every stage of the employee lifecycle, from hiring and onboarding to performance, rewards, and communications—making sure every Atomizer feels connected to the mission and managers lead with consistency and fairness. You’ll develop career frameworks, leadership programs, and development pathways that unlock potential at every level, while also building systems that scale as the company grows. By creating and maintaining a unified playbook for managers, you will help establish clarity on “how we do things here” and ensure the employee experience is consistent, equitable, and inspiring. At the same time, you’ll be responsible for anticipating organizational health risks, bringing forward data-driven insights, and advising the executive team on strategic decisions that impact people and culture. Ultimately, your role is to raise the bar for people leadership company-wide—coaching managers, enabling executives, and delivering polished, scalable solutions that elevate the entire organization.

Requirements

Proven track record of operating as part of an executive leadership team and reporting directly to a CEO. Skilled at influencing strategy at the highest level and representing the People function as a business partner.
Deeply motivated by getting to know individuals, understanding their aspirations, and helping them succeed. Brings empathy, curiosity, and relationship-building as daily practices.
Strong understanding of CA labor laws, compliance, and startup-specific HR best practices.
Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills, with proficiency in spreadsheets and HR metrics. Comfortable using data to influence decisions and measure impact of people programs.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, including experience advising and influencing senior executives.
Strong organizational skills, with the ability to prioritize, work under pressure, and consistently deliver on deadlines.
Proven experience guiding organizations through transitions—including hypergrowth, restructures, and evolving organizational design—while ensuring alignment, stability, and employee engagement.
Direct management experience with HR/People teams. Skilled at unlocking potential, unblocking challenges, and coaching team members to grow and succeed.
Ability to work from our Emeryville daily, with periodic presence in our Santa Clara office (3-4 times per month).
Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Management, or a related field.

Responsibilities

Executive Team Experience: Proven track record of operating as part of an executive leadership team and reporting directly to a CEO. Skilled at influencing strategy at the highest level and representing the People function as a business partner.
Architect and lead the company-wide Learning & Development strategy—secure executive alignment, design career frameworks, and deliver scalable training programs (including manager curriculum and flagship workshops) that empower employees at all levels to thrive in a fast-changing, innovative environment.
Organizational Health & Engagement: Define survey methodology, set engagement metrics, analyze results, and present findings with actionable plans to leadership. Proactively identify systemic morale or retention risks.
Performance Management: Design and implement the performance framework (e.g., OKRs, reviews), train managers on evaluation practices, and roll out tools that make feedback equitable and efficient. Serve as an escalation point for complex performance cases.
Compliance & Risk: Ensure compliance with California labor laws and startup best practices. Partner with legal counsel as needed. Approve policy updates, lead executive-level risk reviews, and directly manage sensitive escalations (e.g., investigations, executive relations).
Team Leadership: Set the vision, annual goals, and priorities for the People team. Lead, coach, and develop direct reports, unblock challenges, make headcount/resource decisions, and model high standards across the function.
People Analytics: Define and track key people metrics, create quarterly reports for executives and the board, and synthesize insights into strategic recommendations.
Operate as a Core Executive Leader: Serve as a member of the executive team, reporting directly to the CEO. Provide strategic counsel on people, culture, and organizational health; shape company-wide decision-making; and act as the voice of Atomizers at the leadership table.