Head of People & Culture for Growth-Stage Startup

Saasventurecapital; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with 4% company match

HiveWatch Equity Incentive Plan

Job summary

HiveWatch is seeking a Director, People & Culture in El Segundo, CA to build and lead our People function end to end. This player-coach role covers total rewards, culture, and HR operations, while overseeing the recruiting team and talent function.

You will drive culture, design hybrid-friendly programs, ensure multi-state compliance, and partner with leadership to scale the People team as the company grows. Base salary $180,000–$200,000; equity participation included.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive People experience with ownership of total rewards, culture, and HR generalist duties.
• Experience with HRIS and benefits platforms (e.g., BambooHR, Ease, Rippling, Gusto, Warp, Justworks).
• Strong knowledge of California employment law and multi-state compliance.
• Experience supporting hourly, shift-based teams.
• Startup or high-growth background building People programs from the ground up.
• Player-coach mindset; comfortable both setting strategy and doing hands-on work.
• Experience partnering on hiring processes and talent strategy.
• Willingness to travel up to 25%.
• Excellent judgment and cross-level communication; hybrid/distributed workforce experience.

Responsibilities

• Shape HiveWatch culture as the company scales, translating values into practices, rituals, and policies.
• Design engagement, recognition, and internal communications for a hybrid team.
• Partner with leadership on org design and change management during growth.
• Lead employee listening efforts and translate insights into action.
• Own end-to-end benefits program design, renewals, and communications.
• Design compensation structures with pay bands, leveling, and merit cycles in partnership with finance.
• Benchmark pay and benefits against market data to stay competitive and equitable.
• Ensure total rewards compliance with federal, state (CA, TX) and local requirements.
• Support GSOC operations: scheduling, time card compliance, overtime, breaks, training, and hiring for sites.
• Partner with Finance on payroll, data, changes, and attendance inputs.
• Run full employee lifecycle: onboarding to offboarding; manage policy development and updates.
• Handle employee relations, investigations, leaves, and conflict resolution.
• Maintain HR policies and the employee handbook; scale processes with headcount.
• Coordinate with Legal on multi-state compliance; manage HRIS and reporting.
• Support training programs and state-mandated trainings as needed.

Skills

People leadership

HRIS proficiency

Californeia employment law

Multi-state experience

Startup/High-growth

Player-coach

Talent acquisition collaboration

Travel up to 25%

Hybrid/Distributed workforce

Tools

BambooHR

Ease

Rippling

Gusto

Justworks

Warp

Job description

HiveWatch is seeking a Director, People & Culture in El Segundo, CA to build and lead our People function end to end. This player-coach role covers total rewards, culture, and HR operations, while overseeing the recruiting team and talent function.

You will drive culture, design hybrid-friendly programs, ensure multi-state compliance, and partner with leadership to scale the People team as the company grows. Base salary $180,000–$200,000; equity participation included.