People Lead

River AI•Palo Alto, CA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

We are hiring River AI’s first People Lead to own the human resources function and the related systems that keep the company running: HR, payroll, benefits, insurance, and operations. You'll set them up, run them day to day, and keep improving them as we grow. The role has unusual reach. You will shape nearly everyone's experience here, from a new hire's first day to the environment every employee works in, and you will be trusted with the judgment calls that come with that. We are a team that is genuinely interested in working smarter. You will have real room to deploy AI to take the repetitive or tedious parts of operations off your plate, so your time goes to meaningful work.

Requirements

At least 7 years of experience in HR and have run HR/People operations at a startup or scale-up
Know HR platforms like Rippling (required).
Handle sensitive situations and information discreetly and build trust across the company.
Genuinely enthusiastic about technology and AI, with a habit of finding tools that make work faster and better.
Communicate clearly in writing and in person.
Strong organizational judgment: you can hold many small threads at once and know which one matters most right now.
Take a practical, hands-on approach to issues — comfortable troubleshooting on the spot and knowing when to call in a specialist.
Fluent with modern software and AI tooling and are quick to evaluate and adopt new systems.
Able to work full-time on-site to support a fast-growing start-up’s needs.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with equity management platforms (e.g. Carta).
IT training or background.

Responsibilities

Own HR operations end-to-end: HRIS administration (Rippling), onboarding and offboarding, benefits administration, and employee records.
Run payroll operations end-to-end, including benefits–payroll integration; review benefits charges and invoices for accuracy.
Own company insurance and benefits programs — health, wellness, and business — sourcing providers and comparing quotes as needs change.
Coordinate closely with Legal and IT on compliance activities.
Engage and manage the implementation of EORs, contractors, and consultants.
Build employee training — including policies and norms for an AI-native workplace (acceptable use, data handling).
Handle sensitive employee matters and information with professionalism and sound judgment.
Own workspace and commercial real estate: lease administration and negotiations, workspace and equipment setup, utilities, physical security, and vendors for networking, deliveries, and the cafeteria program.
Support office events and team meetings.
Identify recurring problems, put better processes (and AI tooling) in place, and drive issues to resolution.