HR People Ops, North America

Mistral•Palo Alto, CA

About The Position

About Mistral Mistral provides full-stack AI solutions: from frontier models to developer tools, applications, and compute. We partner with enterprises tackling the hardest problems—across high-stakes industries like finance, manufacturing, defense, healthcare, and the public sector—co-creating customized AI systems that they can run on their terms. We are a dynamic, collaborative team passionate about AI and its potential to transform society. Our diverse workforce thrives in competitive environments and is committed to driving innovation. Our teams are distributed between Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East. We are creative, low-ego and team-spirited. The Role As a Senior People Operations Manager on the People team, you will build, scale, and manage the operational infrastructure that supports our team in North America and drives our international expansion. This role exists to ensure our regional HR operations run seamlessly, keeping the company fully compliant while executing a high-touch, reliable support system for our growing team. You will lead the end-to-end employee lifecycle operations for the region, managing everything from North American payroll and local benefits to complex global mobility and visa tracking. Your impact will be felt directly through your ability to establish compliant HR frameworks in entirely new countries and streamline our internal operational workflows. This position requires a balance of strategic process engineering and hands-on administrative execution. You will own the operational foundation—ensuring data integrity across our HRIS software, building scalable vendor partnerships, and addressing daily employee inquiries with a strong service-oriented approach.

Requirements

8 to 15 years of progressive HR experience, ideally within a high-growth environment, alongside a degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field.
Strong knowledge of US employment laws, compliance regulations, and a deep understanding of regional and international payroll and tax regulations.
Proven experience managing the full employee lifecycle and successfully deploying benefits and HR compliance structures in new international regions.
High technical proficiency with modern HRIS systems, automated payroll platforms, and operational data tracking tools.
A dedicated internal service mindset with the communication and interpersonal skills required to navigate sensitive employee situations and vendor negotiations.
Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a track record of turning complex regulatory requirements into clear internal procedures.
A practical, hands-on execution style combined with a builder mindset—you enjoy creating order out of ambiguity and actively executing daily operational tasks.

Responsibilities

Manage and process payroll for all employees across the North America region, partnering with local providers and internal Finance teams to ensure precise, on-time execution.
Launch HR operations in new countries, deploying localized employee benefits programs, setting up compliant entities, and establishing local operational policies.
Own the onboarding and lifecycle documentation, formalizing labor contracts, amendments, and internal status changes securely within our HRIS.
Coordinate global mobility and immigration, directly managing visas for new hires and navigating compliance requirements for international team work trips.
Resolve daily employee inquiries regarding benefits enrollment, policy clarifications, and routine payroll changes with clear and timely communication.
Audit and optimize internal HR workflows, identifying opportunities for software automation and benchmarking external vendors to maximize administrative efficiency.
Maintain core compliance frameworks, keeping employee handbooks up to date and monitoring regional shifts in employment regulations to protect the company.