About the role
Profound is on a mission to help companies understand and control their AI presence. As we scale rapidly, we are hiring a People Operations Manager to own people operations and the employee experience, from onboarding and manager enablement to performance conversations,
benefits, and compliance. This is a hands-on, builder role for someone who wants to be close to the business, help leaders and employees day to day, and build lightweight people processes that actually work at a fast-growing startup. What you’ll do Own and evolve people operations end to end, including onboarding, performance processes,
compensation cycles,
benefits, and compliance Serve as the primary point of contact for employees and managers on people-related questions Support managers with feedback, performance conversations, and difficult moments including exits and terminations Help ensure a consistent, thoughtful employee experience as the company scales across teams and offices Partner with Operations to build and iterate on onboarding, ensuring new hires feel oriented, supported, and effective quickly Help design and roll out lightweight performance review processes that give clarity without unnecessary bureaucracy Support managers in setting expectations, giving feedback, and growing their teams Create simple templates, guidance, and norms that make people management easier rather than heavier Manage and optimize Rippling across payroll,
benefits, devices, and system access Oversee offer letters, commission agreements, and employment documentation Work directly with legal partners on contracts, immigration, and compliance matters Own
benefits administration, renewals, and open enrollment Bring people operations work currently handled by external partners in-house
Who you are 4 to 7 or more years of experience in people operations, HR, or a generalist people role at a fast-growing startup Warm, pragmatic, and approachable, with employees and managers trusting you and coming to you early Comfortable handling sensitive conversations with judgment and empathy Strong operator who can build systems and knows when not to overbuild Fluent in HR systems, ideally Rippling, and comfortable working with recruiters, finance, and legal partners Low ego and high ownership, with a deep care for getting things right and helping the company scale well Excited to be hands-on and close to the work rather than operating a policy-first or overly corporate function Location This is an on-site role based in our Union Square, NYC office, designed for builders who thrive on speed, iteration, and meaningful impact. For this role, the expected base salary range is $130,000 to $190,000. Profound’s total