Vice President, People

Pursuit; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 175,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Unlimited PTO

Bonus potential

Full benefits package

All-Pursuit week-long holiday

Job summary

Pursuit is seeking a hands-on HR leader to build and own our people function as we scale. Reporting to the COO, this generalist role covers strategy and operations, partnering with leadership on recruiting, comp design, culture-building and performance management.

You’ll shape our people strategy from the ground up, balancing strategic planning with day-to-day people operations, mentoring leaders, and steering programs that attract and retain top talent in a fast-growing startup.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in HR, with generalist or HR leader experience at a growth-stage company.
• Proven ability to operate as a one-person department, balancing strategy and operations.
• Strong track record in compensation design, recruiting, and culture-building.
• Excellent judgment navigating ambiguous, sensitive situations with discretion.
• Aspiring to use AI to transform workforce development; strong interest is essential.

Responsibilities

• Drive full-cycle recruiting for open roles and scale sourcing as needed.
• Build and refine interview processes, rubrics, and candidate experience.
• Own employer branding and position Pursuit.AI as a top destination.
• Shape and protect company culture as we grow beyond initial team size.
• Design onboarding, engagement, and retention programs at scale.
• Oversee HR infrastructure: HRIS, benefits administration, payroll coordination, policies.
• Advise leadership on compensation strategy for offers, promotions, and retention.
• Coordinate with external counsel for employment law compliance across jurisdictions.

Skills

Generalist HR leadership

Talent strategy

Compensation design

Recruiting

Culture-building

Employee relations

Tools

HRIS

Job description

The Opportunity

Pursuit is looking for a hands‑on HR leader to build and own our people function as we scale. Reporting directly to the COO, this is a true generalist role for someone who thrives working solo, moves fluidly between strategic and tactical work, and wants to shape culture and talent strategy at a growing company from the ground up. You'll partner directly with leadership on everything from recruiting and comp design to culture‑building and performance management — with contingent recruiting support available to help you scale hiring volume. This is not a role for someone who wants to specialize in one lane. You'll move between a comp benchmarking exercise, a sensitive employee relations conversation, and a hiring strategy discussion in the same day — and do each one well.

Key Responsibilities

• Drive full-cycle recruiting for open roles, partnering with recruiters to scale sourcing and volume as needed
• Build and refine our interview process, hiring rubrics, and candidate experience
• Own employer branding and help position Pursuit.AI as a destination for top talent

Culture & Employee Experience

• Shape and protect company culture as we grow past initial team size
• Design onboarding, engagement, and retention programs that scale with headcount
• Serve as a trusted point of contact for employees on questions, concerns, and conflict resolution

Compensation & Incentive Design

• Build and maintain compensation bands, leveling frameworks, and market benchmarking
• Design incentive and equity programs aligned with company growth stage and goals
• Advise leadership on comp strategy for offers, promotions, and retention

HR Operations & Compliance

• Own core HR infrastructure: HRIS, benefits administration, payroll coordination, and policy documentation
• Ensure compliance with employment law across relevant jurisdictions (NY-specific and multi-state as needed), in partnership with external employment counsel as appropriate
• Manage leave administration, performance management cycles, and employee lifecycle processes end‑to‑end

Strategic Partnership

• Act as a thought partner to founders/leadership on org design, workforce planning, and scaling decisions
• Bring outside perspective and best practices from other growth-stage companies
• Build the people function's roadmap as the company scales past 100 employees

Experience and Competencies

• 10+ years in HR, with meaningful experience as a generalist or HR leader at a growth-stage company (startup or small company experience strongly preferred)
• Proven ability to operate as a "one-person department" — comfortable owning both strategic and operational work without a large team behind you
• Strong track record in compensation design, recruiting, and culture-building specifically (not just one of the three)
• Excellent judgment navigating ambiguous, sensitive situations with discretion
• Ability to context-switch quickly and prioritize across competing, high‑stakes topics
• Experience managing or coordinating with contingent/contract recruiters a plus
• Able to lead through ambiguity, identify opportunities, and execute with urgency in complex organizations.
• Excited by the role of AI in the future of workforce development and its potential for driving innovation and systems transformation (experience with AI not required but a strong interest is essential).

Where you’ll work:

Hybrid: 3 days a week in our HQ in Long Island City and 2 days wherever you work best.

Compensation:

$175,000 - $200,000 with 20% bonus contingent on achieving goals

The range above is for the expectations as laid out in the job description, however we are often open to a wide variety of profiles, and recognize that the person we hire may be less experienced (or more senior) than this job description as posted. If that ends up being the case, the updated salary range will be communicated with you as a candidate.

Pursuit offers:

• Great culture where transparency, respect, teamwork, and kindness are valued
• Competitive compensation in base, plus bonus and a full benefits package
• Unlimited PTO and an all-Pursuit week-long holiday the last week of December
• An opportunity to work at the intersection of tech and social impact, and make a direct impact on the communities of those we serve.

Our team has a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, and we value the richness that diversity brings to our organization. We welcome new perspectives and affirm that all employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, ancestry, religion, national origin, age, familial or marital status, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law. Pursuit is an equal opportunity employer.