Senior Manager of People Operations

CareerWise; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 74,000 - 97,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Group medical benefits

Dental & vision plans

401(k) with employer contribution

Flexible time off

Job summary

CareerWise in Denver or New York City offers a hybrid Senior Manager of People Operations role. You will run the HR operational ecosystem, architecting scalable processes and ensuring compliance across multi-state hubs with remote staff.

The candidate will own payroll, benefits, and leave management while shaping total rewards and employee lifecycle from onboarding to offboarding in a fast-paced, DEI-centered environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum 7 years of professional HR experience with leadership roles.
• Strong knowledge of US federal, state, and local labor laws.
• Experience with HRIS, payroll, ATS, and engagement platforms.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end HR operations across multi-state hubs.
• Oversee payroll, 401(k) compliance, and leave management.
• Develop SOPs and enforce policy consistency across locations.
• Drive DEI initiatives and employee relations with leadership.
• Analyze HR metrics and report to senior leadership.

Skills

HR operations

Policy design

Multi-state compliance

Payroll administration

HRIS & payroll systems

Data analytics

Employee engagement platforms

SOP development

Tools

ADP TotalSource

Monday.com

Job description

DENVER, CO, US or NEW YORK, NY (Hybrid, 3 days per week in office at either location)

Salary Range:$73,885.00 To $96,876.00 Annually

Who We Are:

At CareerWise, we believe every young person deserves a clear path to economic mobility and professional fulfillment. As a nationally recognized nonprofit, we transform that belief into action by building modern, student-centered youth apprenticeships that unite education and industry. Through a powerful blend of classroom learning and hands-on experience, we empower hundreds of apprentices to step confidently into the workplace and shape their own success. Our impact has sparked a national conversation. Education and workforce leaders look to CareerWise as a guiding light, allowing us to scale our model into multiple states through shared institutional wisdom, reliable technology, and a deeply supportive infrastructure.

Who We’re Looking For:

We are looking for a Senior Manager of People Operations who will run the entire HR operational ecosystem and create policies and practices that support employee growth, systems architecture, and distributed team success. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are core to who you are and you are intentional about embodying these values daily and embedding them in your work. We have an awesome team of smart, fun people who roll up our sleeves and get stuff done! You thrive in a high energy, dynamic team like ours. And we mean TEAM. We collaborate, engage in healthy debate, pivot quickly based on real-time learning, and jump in wherever our skills are needed.

Job Summary

Reporting to the Senior Director of Operations, the Senior Manager of People Operation will provide comprehensive operational leadership across all HR functions to ensure structural scalability and organizational alignment. This position operates as a hands-on architect of our People infrastructure, serving as a trusted partner to executive leadership on compliance, systems optimization, total rewards, and multi-state workplace strategy while delivering value-added support to staff across all operational regional hubs.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• HR DELIVERY & OPERATIONAL ALIGNMENT | Execute overarching People strategies by aligning HR policies, systems, and procedures across distributed hubs (Denver, CO, and New York City, NY) and remote staff. Support leadership and teams through change management processes with practical HR expertise. Implement technical workflows, such as time-tracking architectures tied to grant allocations and funding compliance.
• PROCESS ARCHITECTURE & SOPS | Design, develop, and implement rigorous Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all operational HR functions, ensuring scalability, efficiency, policy clarity, and consistency across continuous department lifecycles.
• HR TECHNOLOGY OWNERSHIP| Oversee the management, procurement, data integrity, and complete optimization of all People Operations technology platforms, including ADP TotalSource, Monday.com and employee engagement platforms.
• PAYROLL, 401(k), & LEAVE MANAGEMENT | Own the end-to-end administration of multi-state payroll processing, 401(k) plan compliance, and comprehensive leave management programs (including FMLA, PFL, and short/long-term disability), ensuring flawless execution, data accuracy, and timely employee support.
• MULTI-STATE COMPLIANCE & RISK MANAGEMENT | Maintain ownership of compliance monitoring, ensuring all HR policies, procedures, and handbook standards adhere fully to federal, local, and state employment laws with a strict emphasis on multi-state and remote work rules.
• TOTAL REWARDS, LIFECYCLE | Lead the administration and execution of competitive benefits enrollment, renewal cycles, and total rewards programs. Support, design, and spearhead robust strategies to effectively onboard, engage, and retain a high-performing multi-state remote workforce, owning the seamless employee lifecycle from pre-hire to offboarding.
• PERFORMANCE & DATA INSIGHTS | Drive continuous improvement of the performance management ecosystem, ensuring department-wide consistency, objectivity, and equity. Track, analyze, and present key people metrics, HR KPIs, and workforce data insights to the Chief of Staff and the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) to drive proactive, course-correcting decision-making.
• EMPLOYEE RELATIONS| Build deep trust across all structural layers of management and staff. Foster a vibrant, inclusive workplace culture promoting wellness and psychological safety. Act as a neutral consultant in navigating conflict, resolving employee relations issues, and executing unbiased workplace investigations.
• May perform other duties as assigned

Key competencies to be successful in this role:

• Ability to bridge Operations and HR functions, supporting processes across teams
• In depth understanding of state and federal employment laws (within and outside of Colorado and New York)
• Ability to quickly build trust with staff and management
• Maintains confidentiality and does not disclose personnel-related or confidential information without permission
• Excellent critical thinking skills
• Ability to remain flexible in a fast-paced environment and drive work with confidence within a hybrid environment
• Comfortable with managing conflict; knows how to conduct unbiased workplace investigations
• High level of emotional intelligence and diplomacy
• Demonstrates a commitment to the principles of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion)
• Lives out the CareerWise values and has a passion for the CareerWise mission and vision
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in a professional HR capacity (progressive leadership or operations Human Resources experience preferred)
• Experience with HRIS, Payroll, ATS, and/or employee engagement platforms
• Proficient in the Google Suite and Microsoft Office
• Experience and comfort working in a fast-paced, rapidly changing environment
• Ability to understand and interpret the multiple complexities of the evolving youth apprenticeship movement

The above statements are intended to describe the essential functions of the job being performed by employees assigned to this classification. The duties listed are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required. All employees may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed. With the evolution of the organization and this role, the responsibilities of this position may change at any time.

Location:

This role can be based in/near Denver, Colorado or New York, NY. CareerWise staff typically work a hybrid work schedule. This role will require working in person at our Denver Office office on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday with the option to work remotely on Monday and Friday.

Compensation:

The starting salary range for this role is: $73,885 - $96,876 annually; this role is not covered by the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the FLSA. CareerWise offers a generous benefits package including group medical, dental, and vision plans, short-term disability, 100% vested 401k plan with a 3% employer contribution, and flexible time off.

Working conditions and physical requirements:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Usual office environment with frequent sitting, walking and standing. Frequent use of eye, hand, and finger coordination for use of standard office equipment. Oral and auditory capacity required for interpersonal communication as well as communication through automated devices such as the telephone and online video conference platforms (like Google, Zoom, MS Teams, Webex, etc.)

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer that values diversity at all levels. All individuals are encouraged to apply. If you need assistance or accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at: [e-mail]