People Operations

Thinking Machines Lab•San Francisco, CA

11h

About The Position

Thinking Machines is hiring a People Operations Generalist to build people systems that support employee focus, trust, compliance, and the company’s growth. The role supports the early employee lifecycle from offer acceptance through onboarding and new-hire training, while developing programs and infrastructure to preserve the company’s culture as it scales. The position calls for significant autonomy, sound judgment, and the ability to build systems from first principles in an early-stage environment. It reports to the Head of Operations and is based in San Francisco, California. The Generalist will manage onboarding, employment compliance, immigration case coordination, international hiring support, people programs, HR systems, benefits administration, documentation, and operational reporting. They will partner with finance, legal, IT, and hiring managers to maintain quality and compliance while supporting organizational velocity.

Requirements

Demonstrated experience in HR operations, people operations, or a related field.
Strong knowledge of employment compliance, including I-9 requirements, state and federal regulations, and recordkeeping best practices.
Experience supporting immigration processes in coordination with outside counsel.
Hands-on experience with HRIS platforms, such as Rippling, Workday, or SequoiaOne, and comfort evaluating new tools.
Meticulous attention to detail and an ability to design systems that fail gracefully and surface issues early.
Ability to operate amid ambiguity and make principled tradeoffs in fast-moving environments.
Clear, concise written communication skills and an ability to make complex policies accessible.
Sound judgment and discretion when handling sensitive employee information and complex situations.

Nice To Haves

Experience at a high-growth technology or AI company.
Background in benefits administration or total rewards.
Familiarity with leave management, workers’ compensation, or other compliance-heavy HR domains.
Experience building onboarding programs or improving employee experience touchpoints.
Experience with international employment, including employer-of-record arrangements or cross-border hiring.

Responsibilities

Own the onboarding experience from offer acceptance through completion of new-hire training.
Manage I-9 verification, employee eligibility documentation, background checks, and compliance training.
Monitor federal and state employment-law obligations and build practical compliance systems for employees and hiring managers.
Manage immigration cases with outside counsel across visa types, including H-1B, O-1A, EB-1A, PERM, and CPT/OPT; coordinate RFE responses and monitor policy changes.
Support international hiring and employer-of-record arrangements for employees outside the United States.
Help design and manage onboarding curricula, manager training, and executive or team coaching engagements; source coaches, coordinate workshops, and measure impact.
Develop playbooks and feedback loops to improve people programs over time.
Evaluate, implement, and maintain HRIS, payroll, and related systems, including platform migrations.
Administer benefits enrollment, answer employee questions, and coordinate with brokers and vendors during renewals.
Help employees understand and make use of health, fertility, mental health, retirement, and workers’ compensation benefits.
Create playbooks, decision trees, and self-service resources for employees and consistent team operations.
Maintain dashboards and trackers for onboarding, immigration, and program health to provide leadership visibility.
Partner with finance, legal, IT, and hiring managers on people operations.
Build the infrastructure, operations, and team needed to support the organization’s growth.