Director, People Operations and Culture

Job Summary

The Director of People Operations & Culture serves as the head of HR for all Kiva companies, setting the strategic direction and operational foundation for how we attract, develop, support, and retain our people. This role leads the full People Operations function:
Talent Acquisition, HR Operations, Employee Relations, Performance Management, Total Rewards, Payroll & Benefits, Workers’ Compensation, Compliance, and Culture. Their work includes ensuring scalable systems, clear expectations, strong managerial accountability, and a consistent employee experience across the organization. This role partners closely with all internal functional teams and executive leadership to align people strategy with business priorities while maintaining a people‑forward, compliant, and high‑trust workplace.

MUST reside near the Bay area!

• You believe great companies are built through clarity, consistency, and care for people at every stage of their journey.
• You enjoy operating at both the strategic and hands‑on levels, setting direction while ensuring the fundamentals are executed exceptionally well.
• You are energized by building systems, teams, and processes that scale with growth and complexity.
• You are a trusted advisor to leaders and a steady, credible presence for employees.
• You take pride in creating structure without bureaucracy and culture without performative gestures.
• You are comfortable navigating gray areas, complex people issues, and fast‑moving business needs with sound judgment.
• You are comfortable leading a lean, hardworking team where the leader stays close to the work, and you build capacity deliberately as the business grows

• Set and execute the enterprise-wide People Operations strategy aligned with Kiva's business goals and growth plans.
• Build scalable people processes that support a multi-entity, multi-state organization operating in a highly regulated industry.
• Lead the people workstream in acquisitions, integrations, and organizational restructuring, including diligence, transition planning, and post-close harmonization of pay, benefits, and policy.
• Serve as the senior People Operations leader across all Kiva companies, ensuring alignment and consistency.

• Lead, develop, and mentor the People Operations team, setting clear expectations, priorities, and standards of excellence.
• Foster cross-functional collaboration between People Operations, Finance, Legal, Operations, and business leaders.
• Establish operating rhythms, metrics, and reporting that provide visibility into people performance and risks.

• Own the full-cycle talent acquisition function, including sourcing strategy, hiring process, candidate experience, and accountability for time-to-fill and quality of hire.
• Lead workforce planning in partnership with Finance and business leaders, including headcount forecasting and requisition governance.
• Own the onboarding experience end to end, including I-9 compliance, new hire documentation, and first-year integration.

• Own the design and continuous improvement of the performance management program, including goal setting, review cycles, and calibration.
• Own the engagement listening strategy, including survey design, results analysis, and manager-level action planning.
• Lead talent review and succession planning for critical roles, and build development and internal mobility pathways.
• Strengthen manager capability through clear guidance, tools, and training.

• Provide strategic oversight of employee relations,…