People Manager

Low Earth orbit is open for business. Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules.Vardas W-Series vehicles are built designed and operated by Varda in-house including the pharmaceutical processing payloads the capsules the C-PICA heat shields and the satellite buses.

From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space. Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind.

Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from SpaceX Blue Origin major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley. Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures Lux Capital Founders Fund Caffeinated Capital General Catalyst and Also Capital.

Varda is headquartered in El Segundo California where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles equipment and materials are built integrated and tested. Varda also has offices in Washington DC and Huntsville AL.

Join Varda and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem.

Reporting to the People Director the People Manager will build and scale the infrastructure that supports Vardas principals people systems equity programs operational rigor and their assigned business unit people operations. This role is focused on creating clarity accountability and scalability across core People infrastructure while acting as a strategic People partner to assigned business leaders and teams.

This person will operate as both a systems and operational leader balancing process design compensation & benefit administration compliance people operations and performance management in a fast-scaling environment.

The role partners closely with People leadership Finance Legal Payroll Recruiting and business leaders across the company.

Strategic Business Partnership

• Serve as the primary People Business Partner for assigned business units.
• Build trusted relationships with leaders to understand business priorities and translate them into effective People strategies.
• Partner on organizational design workforce planning team effectiveness and organizational change.
• Coach managers on leadership effectiveness performance employee development and building high-performing teams.
• Provide practical guidance on talent decisions promotions organizational changes and manager effectiveness.
• Partner with leaders to anticipate organizational needs and proactively develop solutions that support business growth.

Talent & Organizational Effectiveness

• Lead annual talent processes including performance reviews talent calibration promotion discussions succession planning and development planning.
• Support leaders in identifying developing and retaining top talent.
• Help build leadership capability through coaching feedback and manager development.
• Drive consistency and accountability across People programs and leadership practices.

Compensation & People Programs

• Support managers with compensation recommendations and pay decisions that align with company philosophy and market practices.
• Lead the rollout and adoption of company-wide People initiatives including performance management leadership development engagement recognition and talent programs.
• Develop manager communications training and resources to ensure successful program implementation.
• Gather feedback and continuously improve People programs based on business needs.

People Operations & Operational Excellence

• Partner with Payroll Recruiting Finance and Legal to ensure seamless execution of core People processes throughout the employee lifecycle.
• Support organizational changes transfers promotions and workforce planning activities.
• Maintain accurate employee data and support workforce reporting metrics and organizational insights.
• Conduct periodic audits of People processes and data to ensure accuracy consistency and compliance.
• Ensure People programs and practices comply with federal state and local employment laws while helping simplify and scale operational processes.

• 8 years of progressive HR experience including HR Business Partner and/or People Operations experience in a high-growth technology or aerospace environment.
• Experience partnering directly with senior leaders on organizational strategy and talent management.
• Strong experience supporting compensation planning promotions and organizational design.
• Experience implementing and scaling People programs across a growing organization.
• Experience using People data and metrics to support workforce planning and business decisions.
• Working knowledge of HRIS systems compensation practices and equity administration.
• Strong understanding of California employment law and HR compliance.
• Excellent business acumen with the ability to balance strategic thinking and handson execution.

• People systems and operational processes are scalable accurate and efficient
• Leaders feel supported and challenged by a strong People partner
• Performance management processes are consistent clear and actionable across the organization
• Reporting and workforce data help drive better business decisions
• Processes become simpler faster and more effective as the company scales

• Salary Range: $148000 - $175000 per year
• This role ison-sitein El Segundo CA
• Leveling and base salary isdeterminedby job-related skills education level experience level and job performance
• You will be eligible for incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards

Varda like all employers must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items our policy is to only hire U.S. persons who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.

US person means: U.S. citizen U.S. lawful permanent resident or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (i.e. individual admitted to the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum).