People Operations & Culture Generalist

Cellanome • Foster City, CA

3d • Hybrid

About The Position

We are a well-funded start-up looking for a People Operations & Culture Generalist to join our growing team. This role offers the chance to wear many hats, experience exciting financial and career growth, and contribute to tackling major challenges in biology. We are building a world-class team of engineers, scientists, and problem solvers to develop next-generation technologies. This is a unique opportunity to be part of an exciting start-up surrounded by capable, humble, and down-to-earth individuals. Cellanome is scaling rapidly, and the People team is establishing the operational foundation to support approximately 150 employees across Foster City, San Diego, and Singapore. We are seeking a People Operations Generalist to support the core operational engine, ensure the Foster City office and its events run smoothly, and keep hiring on track. This is a hands-on role focused on building and improving processes, transforming manual tasks into clean, repeatable ones. You will have a keen eye for automation and efficiency, and you will have the opportunity to shape the People Operations function, collaborating with Finance, Legal, and our science and engineering teams. You will partner closely with People leadership on strategy while owning end-to-end execution. This is a genuine build opportunity for someone who wants to help design the operational core and curate the employee experience. The role is divided approximately into core operations (50%), workplace and events in Foster City (30%), and recruiting/people team coordination (20%), with flexibility to adapt to evolving needs.

Requirements

• 4 years in a People Operations, HR (People) Operations, or HR Generalist role, ideally in a fast-moving, venture-backed environment.
• Required hands-on experience across leave of absence administration, benefits, payroll, and multi-state HR compliance.
• California employment law experience strongly preferred.
• Proven ability to run onsite events and workplace programs from concept through flawless execution.
• Comfort owning vendor relationships around workplace and events and holding them accountable.
• Systems thinking: you can map a process end to end, find the friction, and redesign it to be simpler for everyone.
• Experience with ATS/HRIS (Greenhouse/Rippling a plus) and appetite for using AI and automation to optimize recurring work.
• Sound judgment on when to handle something directly and when to route it up.
• A confident, warm communicator who lands well with employees and managers at every level.
• Comfort juggling multiple priorities and shifting gears quickly without losing what matters most.
• Demonstrated ability to perform the Essential Duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodations.

Responsibilities

• Run the employee lifecycle end to end: onboarding, offboarding, and all lifecycle changes in Rippling, with accuracy and speed.
• Administer leave of absence programs across multiple states, coordinating with employees, managers, carriers, and payroll on eligibility, documentation, and return-to-work.
• Own day-to-day benefits administration, including employee questions, open enrollment logistics, carrier and broker coordination, and reconciliation.
• Support multi-state (and cross-border) payroll processing, resolving edge cases and partnering with Accounting on the payroll RACI.
• Keep compliance documentation audit-ready across every state and entity where we operate, flagging gaps proactively.
• Serve as a responsive first point of contact for employee questions, escalating anything sensitive or high-stakes to People leadership.
• Identify and implement automations that cut down manual work and turnaround time.
• Own the day-to-day employee experience at the Foster City office, creating a sense of belonging, community, and engagement that drives team connection and productivity.
• Plan and execute onsite events and celebrations, partnering with the local events committee, from All Hands meeting logistics to team milestones to holiday events.
• Manage office vendors and services (food, gifting platforms, supplies), holding them accountable on cost and quality.
• Serve as the go-to for onsite needs and help strengthen cross-site connection between our Foster City, San Diego, and Singapore offices.
• Coordinate interview scheduling and candidate logistics in partnership with Talent Acquisition, delivering a smooth, professional candidate experience.
• Support offer and pre-boarding logistics so new hires have a seamless path from offer to Day One.
• Keep recruiting workflows and systems clean and up to date.

Benefits

• competitive total compensation packages, including base pay, benefits, and equity
• generous stock options
• great individual, and family health plans
• a 401(k)
• flexibility to balance work and life

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed