People Systems Analyst

Benchling, Inc.; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 112,000 - 152,000; Full time

Job summary

Benchling, Inc. in San Francisco is seeking an HR Systems functional expert to join People Operations. You will manage our Workday configuration, refine HR processes, and own reporting to executives and partners.

You will collaborate with HR Business Partners, Payroll/Finance, IT, Security, Recruiting, and Legal to drive efficiency across HR, Finance, and Compliance. The role blends software configuration with process optimization and offers visibility across the company.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience using and configuring Workday, particularly HCM, Talent Optimization, and Time & Absence modules
• Strong experience with reporting in Workday and other BI/analytics tools (Tableau, Looker, advanced spreadsheets)
• Analytically minded, with a track record of solving problems and improving processes using available tools
• Strong cross-functional communication skills — comfortable working with HR Business Partners, departmental leaders, Security, IT, Legal, Recruiting, and Payroll/Finance
• Experience identifying project opportunities, designing solutions, and executing projects end-to-end

Responsibilities

• HRIS / Workday configuration — serve as primary point of contact for Workday configuration; refine business processes with IT to drive efficiency
• Performance & Talent Management — partner with HRBPs and leaders to refine performance reviews, talent reviews, and succession planning
• Time & Absence — own Time and Absence processes and configuration, coordinate with Payroll/Finance
• Reporting & Analytics — turn People data into insights and enable new reporting
• People Systems Ownership — act as point of contact for Culture Amp, Knoetic, and Pave
• Compliance — work with Security and Compliance for audits (SOC2, ISO, GxP, SOX) and data requests
• Support Field tickets related to People systems with timely resolution

Skills

Workday configuration

BI analytics tools

Process improvement

Cross-functional collaboration

Project management

Tools

Tableau

Looker

Advanced spreadsheets

Job description

We are rebuilding biotech for the AI era.

When a breakthrough is delayed, the world waits. Getting a molecule from discovery to patients, or a crop from lab to field, involves thousands of slow, manual, disconnected steps. AI has the potential to change this, compressing decades of R&D work into years. But that only happens when clean, structured scientific data and AI are built into how science gets done.

Benchling is the AI platform for biotech R&D. Scientists use Benchling to design experiments, capture structured data, and run AI agents and models directly in their workflows. Over 200,000 scientists around the world trust Benchling to power their most important work, from academic labs to Sanofi, Moderna, and more than half of the world's top 50 biopharma.

We’re building an AI scientist for our customers. We can’t do that if we haven’t built the muscle ourselves. AI fluency is the foundation we build on; it’s core to how we work, and we’re committed to helping every new hire integrate it into their day-to-day. As part of our interview process, you’ll complete a brief AI-focused exercise or discussion so we can understand how you think about and use AI to drive impact in your role. Feel free to reference any tools, platforms, or workflows you use today.

Role Overview

We're looking for an HR Systems functional expert to join our People Operations team. In this role, you’ll manage our People technology stack, find opportunities to refine and streamline our People processes, and own reporting for our HR data. You’ll partner closely with HR Business Partners, Payroll/Finance, Business Systems Analysts (IT), Security, Recruiting, and leaders across departments to drive positive business outcomes and make our People processes more efficient.

This is a great role for someone who enjoys being the go-to expert on a core business system, likes solving process problems as much as configuring software, and wants visibility across HR, Finance, IT, and Recruiting.

Responsibilities

• HRIS / Workday Configuration Serve as the primary point of contact for Workday configuration, refining business processes to meet the needs of a growing organization. Partner with a Business Systems Analyst (IT) to identify opportunities and execute process improvements that drive efficiency.
• Performance & Talent Management Partner with HR Business Partners and departmental leaders to refine performance management processes in Workday, including performance reviews, talent reviews, and succession planning.
• Time & Absence Own Time and Absence business processes and configuration in Workday, partnering with Payroll/Finance to ensure processes are scalable, accurate, and compliant.
• Reporting & Analytics Partner with HR Business Partners and departmental leaders to turn People data into insights that help them understand and address People challenges. Make configuration and process changes in Workday as needed to enable new types of reporting.
• People Systems Ownership Act as a point of contact for our broader People technology stack, including tools like Culture Amp (surveys), Knoetic (people analytics), and Pave (compensation).
• Compliance Work closely with Security and Compliance teams to produce materials or implement process changes required for audits, including SOC2, ISO, GxP, and SOX, as well as broader external and internal HR audit and compliance requests (e.g., EEO reporting, pay equity reviews, HR data requests from Legal or regulators).
• Support Field tickets related to People systems, providing excellent customer service and timely resolution for internal and external stakeholders.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience using and configuring Workday, particularly HCM, Talent Optimization, and Time & Absence modules
• Strong experience with reporting in Workday and other BI/analytics tools (Tableau, Looker, advanced spreadsheets)
• Analytically minded, with a track record of solving problems and improving processes using available tools
• Strong cross-functional communication skills — comfortable working with HR Business Partners, departmental leaders, Security, IT, Legal, Recruiting, and Payroll/Finance
• Experience identifying project opportunities, designing solutions, and executing projects end-to-end

Preferred

• Workday certifications in HCM, Talent Optimization, and/or Time & Absence
• Experience with other People software such as Culture Amp, Pave, Knoetic, ADP, or Ashby
• Experience supporting audits, particularly SOC2, ISO, GxP, and/or SOX
• Interest in growing into broader HR Operations work over time

How We Work

We offer a flexible hybrid work arrangement that prioritizes in-office collaboration. Employees are expected to be on-site 3 days per week (Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday).

#BI-Hybrid

Benchling welcomes everyone.

We believe diversity enriches our team so we hire people with a wide range of identities, backgrounds, and experiences.

We are an equal opportunity employer. That means we don’t discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We also consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.

Compensation Range: $112K - $152K