Founding People Operations Manager

Transluce; San Francisco, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Transluce, a nonprofit AI research lab in San Francisco, is seeking a People Operations Manager to own the people function from day one. You will shape hiring, onboarding, payroll, benefits, and HRIS while embedding our culture as we grow from 20 to 40+ employees.

This role reports to the Chief of Staff and requires hands-on leadership, strong communication, and a passion for thoughtful people operations. We sponsor visas for exceptional candidates and maintain a collaborative, impact-driven

Qualifications

• Has owned hiring rounds end to end alongside hiring managers.
• Has owned core people operations (payroll, benefits, onboarding, visas).
• Strong interpersonal skills with discretion.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Build and optimize hiring process end-to-end.
• Design and manage onboarding, benefits, payroll, and HRIS.
• Develop culture policies and drive feedback programs.
• Advise managers on sensitive people situations.
• Own federal and multi-state employment compliance.

Skills

HR fundamentals

Payroll

Benefits management

Onboarding

Interpersonal skills

Communication

Tools

HRIS

Payroll software

Job description

Transluce, a nonprofit AI research lab in San Francisco, is seeking a People Operations Manager to own the people function from day one. You will shape hiring, onboarding, payroll, benefits, and HRIS while embedding our culture as we grow from 20 to 40+ employees.

This role reports to the Chief of Staff and requires hands-on leadership, strong communication, and a passion for thoughtful people operations. We sponsor visas for exceptional candidates and maintain a collaborative, impact-driven