Director of People Operations

Chainguard

. Own and scale core employee lifecycle processes, including onboarding, offboarding, compliance training, promotions, and job changes .

Posted 9/15/2026full-timeRemote • United StatesLead💰 $204,000 - $240,000 per yearWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

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Demonstrates extensive experience in HR/People Operations, with a strong focus on managing the employee lifecycle, compliance, and international HR operations. Proven ability to lead teams, optimize HRIS strategies, and build scalable processes in high-growth environments.

Highest-signal resume keywords

HRIS Strategy OwnershipEmployee Lifecycle ManagementInternational HR CompliancePeople Operations LeadershipEmployer of Record Management

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

OnboardingOffboardingCompliance TrainingProcess DesignData IntegrityHR Compliance OperationsPolicy AdministrationAuditsHRIS ImplementationInternational Entity Setup

Soft Skills

Team DevelopmentComfort with AmbiguityProcess Improvement

Tools & Technologies

WorkdayRipplingADP

Industry Keywords

People OperationsSaaSHigh-Growth EnvironmentEMEA

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Own and scale core employee lifecycle processes, including onboarding, offboarding, compliance training, promotions, and job changes
Lead the People Operations team, currently one manager with two direct reports
Make HR Operations more visible and accessible to employees
Lead the operational work of opening new legal entities internationally, including the UK, Canada, Germany, and additional countries
Maintain HR operations and compliance across all countries where Chainguard operates
Partner with Finance and Legal on compliance, payroll, and legal requirements in new countries
Manage and expand the Employer of Record provider partnership for remote employees across approximately 19 countries
Build scalable People Operations processes, templates, and resources
Use AI to design more efficient People Operations processes and improve the employee experience

Requirements

What you’ll need

8–10+ years in HR/People Operations, including 3+ years in a leadership/management capacity
Proven ownership of HRIS strategy, including an implementation, migration, or major optimization using Workday, Rippling, ADP, or similar
Experience owning the full employee lifecycle: onboarding, offboarding, organizational changes, data integrity, and process design
Background managing HR compliance operations, including I-9s, leave administration, policy administration, and audits
Experience standing up or scaling a People Operations function in a high-growth SaaS or startup environment
International experience required, particularly across EMEA
Direct experience opening new international entities and establishing HR compliance and operations in new countries
Experience partnering with or managing an Employer of Record (EOR) for international employees
Strong track record managing and developing a team
Comfort operating with ambiguity and building processes where they do not yet exist

Benefits

Comp & perks

Flexible and remote-first culture
Team meetup opportunities
Bi-annual destination summits
Monthly stipend for coworking spaces, phone and internet costs
Stock options upon hire and promotion
Participation in secondary offerings
10 years to exercise stock options
100% covered health, vision, and dental insurance premiums for employee and dependents
Flexible time off
18 weeks paid parental leave for birthing parents and 12 weeks for non-birthing parents
Equal opportunity employment