People Operations Specialist

About HappyRobot

HappyRobot is the infrastructure for enterprises to build and orchestrate AI workforces. Our AI workers dont just communicate - they make decisions take action and run operations autonomously across voice email and enterprise systems. Born in Y Combinator (S23) and backed by a16z and Base10 with over $60M raised we power critical operations for global enterprises worldwide.

Our platform is battle-tested in the most demanding environments - where AI has real consequences. We started in logistics built our own voice stack models and orchestration layer from the ground up and are now bringing that infrastructure to every enterprise that runs the real economy. Learn more about our vision in our manifesto.

About the role

As our People Operations Specialist your mission is to own the operational complexity that keeps our people function running coordinating our immigration program managing the vendor relationships that underpin our US and international workforce and executing the day-to-day HR operations that employees depend on. Youll be the second dedicated People Operations hire at HappyRobot joining a small team that is building the people function from the ground up. That means real ownership from day one no bureaucracy between you and meaningful work and genuine room to grow as the team and company scale. Youll work closely with or People Operations Lead and partner directly with our Head of People on the operational priorities that matter most.

Responsibilities

• Own our immigration program. We have a high volume of active immigration cases and this is some of the most time-sensitive employee-facing work on the team. Youll be the primary point of contact for employees navigating visa sponsorship manage our relationship with outside immigration counsel track all case milestones and deadlines and make sure nothing falls through the cracks. Youll also build the tracking systems and automations that make this program scalable.

• Coordinate our US people operations through our PEO. We use a PEO for our US population so youre not running payroll from scratch but you are the owner of that relationship and of payroll administration. Youll be the go-to for employee questions on benefits payroll and coverage manage exceptions and escalations and make sure the PEO relationship is working as hard as it should for our team.

• Support our international employees across multiple countries. We have employees in France Spain Switzerland and beyond. Youll coordinate with our EOR partners and local counsel to make sure our international employees are well-supported handling operational questions managing onboarding and offboarding logistics and flagging compliance considerations before they become problems.

• Keep our HRIS clean and running. Youll own day-to-day operations data integrity and record management in Rippling employee records status changes employment eligibility payroll and supporting broader HRIS workflows as we build them out. Clean data is the foundation everything else is built on.

• Handle HR administration with care. Background checks via Checkr I-9 compliance onboarding logistics the operational tasks that underpin the employee lifecycle. You take pride in these being done right not just done.

• Build automations that eliminate manual work. Youre always looking for the process underneath the task. Youll partner with our People Operations lead to identify where manual steps are slowing things down and build smarter using AI tools Rippling workflows and whatever gets the job done sustainably.

Must Have

• 35 years in HR operations or people operations at a tech company or fast-scaling startup. Youve owned real operational surface area not just supported someone elses work and you know what it feels like to be the person things depend on.

• HRIS proficiency (Rippling preferred) and comfort being an end-to-end HRIS admin

• Immigration coordination experience. Youve managed immigration cases H-1B L-1 O-1 green card processes and you know how to work with outside counsel track deadlines and communicate with employees who are depending on you. This doesnt have to be your entire background but it cant be your first rodeo either.

• Comfort with international HR complexity. Youve worked with employees or contractors across multiple countries and know how to navigate that complexity whether through EOR partners local counsel or your own experience with international employment frameworks. You know what you dont know and you know who to call.

• Strong vendor coordination instincts. A lot of what makes this role work is managing the relationships and systems that surround you PEO EOR immigration counsel HRIS support. Youre someone who keeps vendors accountable knows when to escalate and doesnt let things stall because youre waiting on someone else.

• AI-native and automation-oriented. You reach for automation before doing something manually for the third time. Youve built workflows in your HRIS automate tasks using tools like chat GPT or Claude and youre genuinely excited about using AI to work smarter. This is a real part of how you operate not a checkbox.

• High ownership high precision low ego. You take deep satisfaction in closing loops and keeping things clean. Youre energized by being the person your teammates can count on. The details matter to you and youre comfortable doing the unsexy work that holds everything together.

• Startup orientation. Youve thrived where the playbook wasnt fully written. Youre comfortable with ambiguity resourceful when you dont have all the answers and you see a ground-floor people function as an opportunity not a risk.

Why join us

• Opportunity to work at a high-growth AI startup backed by top investors.

• Rapidly growing and backed by top investors including a16z Y Combinator and Base10.

• Ownership & Autonomy - Take full ownership of projects and ship fast.

• Work With the Best - Join a world-class team of engineers and builders.

Our Operating Principles

Extreme Ownership

We take full responsibility for our work outcomes and team success. No excuses no blame-shifting if something needs fixing we own it and make it better. This means stepping up even when its not your job. If a ball is dropped we pick it up. If a customer is unhappy we fix it. If a process is broken we redesign it. We dont wait for someone else to solve it we lead with accountability and expect the same from those around us.

Craftsmanship

Putting care and intention into every task striving for excellence and taking deep ownership of the quality and outcome of your work. Craftsmanship means never settling for just fine. We sweat the details because details compound. Whether its a product feature an internal doc or a sales call we treat it as a reflection of our standards. We aim to deliver jaw-dropping customer experiences by being curious meticulous and proud of what we build even when nobodys watching.

We are majos
Be friendly & have fun with your coworkers. Always be genuine & honest but kind. Majo is our way of saying: be a good human. Be approachable helpful and warm. Were building something ambitious and its easier (and more fun) when we enjoy the ride together. We give feedback with kindness challenge each other with respect and celebrate wins together without ego.

Urgency with Focus
Create the highest impact in the shortest amount of time. Move fast but in the right direction. We operate with speed because time is our most limited resource. But speed without focus is chaos. We prioritize ruthlessly act decisively and stay aligned. We aim for high leverage: the biggest results from the simplest smartest actions. Were running a high-speed marathon not a sprint with no strategy.

Talent Density and Meritocracy
Hire only people who can raise the average; exceptional performance is the passing grade. Ability trumps seniority. We believe the best teams are built on talent density every hire should raise the bar. We reward contribution not titles or tenure. We give ownership to those who earn it and we all hold each other to a high standard. A-players want to work with other A-players thats how we win.

First-Principles Thinking
Strip a problem to physics-level facts ignore industry dogma rebuild the solution from scratch. We dont copy-paste solutions. We go back to basics ask why things are the way they are and rebuild from the ground up if needed. This mindset pushes us to innovate challenge stale assumptions and move faster than incumbents. Its how we build what others think is impossible.

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Required Experience:

IC