People Operations Lead - Scale Culture & HR

US Health Partners, LLC; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Kernel is hiring its first People team member: an experienced HR generalist to own HR and people operations end-to-end for a ~30-person team across San Francisco, New York, Cincinnati, and remote.

This hands-on IC role covers onboarding, payroll, benefits, compliance, policy development, and employee relations, partnering with recruiting on offers. You’ll build scalable systems as the company grows and shape culture across offices with smart use of automation.

Qualifications

• 4+ years in people operations or HR, ideally as an early HR hire at a high-growth startup.
• Hands-on experience running payroll, benefits, and an HRIS (Rippling a plus).
• Working knowledge of multi-state US employment compliance.
• Strong judgment and discretion with sensitive topics.
• A builder's mindset: you know when process helps and when it gets in the way.
• Startup experience: you've built fast, worn multiple hats, and figured things out without a playbook.

Responsibilities

• Own the employee lifecycle from signed offer to offboarding, including onboarding, I-9s, equipment, and policy acknowledgments.
• Run payroll and benefits administration in our HRIS and payroll systems, including our 401(k).
• Keep us compliant across states (CA, NY, OH, and anywhere remote teammates live) including registrations, state-mandated benefits, and required trainings.
• Build just enough playbooks and structure: handbook, leveling, comp bands, and a lightweight performance and feedback cycle.
• Be a trusted resource for employees and managers on policies, benefits, and employee relations.
• Help shape culture across offices: team rituals, offsites, and how we work as we grow.
• Use AI and automation to handle the busywork so you can focus on the work that needs a human.

Skills

Payroll administration

Benefits administration

HRIS Rippling

Multi-state compliance

Employee relations

Policy implementation

Culture building

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR/Business

Tools

Rippling HRIS

Job description

Kernel is hiring its first People team member: an experienced HR generalist to own HR and people operations end-to-end for a ~30-person team across San Francisco, New York, Cincinnati, and remote.

This hands-on IC role covers onboarding, payroll, benefits, compliance, policy development, and employee relations, partnering with recruiting on offers. You’ll build scalable systems as the company grows and shape culture across offices with smart use of automation.