Manager, People Operations

Job description

ABOUT AIRWALLEX Airwallex is the only unified payments and financial platform for global businesses. Powered by our unique combination of proprietary infrastructure and software, we empower over 250,000 businesses worldwide – including Brex, Navan, Qantas, SHEIN and many more – with fully integrated solutions to manage everything from business accounts, payments, spend management and treasury, to embedded finance at a global scale. Proudly founded in Melbourne, we have a team of over 2,300 of the brightest and most innovative people in tech across 27 offices around the globe. Valued at US$11 billion and backed by world-leading investors including T. Rowe Price, Visa, Mastercard, Robinhood Ventures, Sequoia, Salesforce Ventures, DST Global, and Lone Pine Capital, Airwallex is leading the charge in building the global payments and financial platform of the future. If you’re ready to do the most ambitious work of your career, join us. ATTRIBUTES WE VALUE We hire successful builders with founder-like energy who want real impact, accelerated learning, and true ownership. You bring strong role-related expertise and sharp thinking, and you’re motivated by our mission and operating principles https://www.airwallex.com/us/operating-principles. You move fast with good judgment, dig deep with curiosity, and make decisions from first principles, balancing speed and rigor. You're humble and collaborative; turn zero‑to‑one ideas into real products, and you “get stuff done” end-to-end. You use AI to work smarter and solve problems faster. Here, you’ll tackle complex, high‑visibility problems with exceptional teammates and grow your career as we build the future of global banking. If that sounds like you, let’s build what’s next. ABOUT THE TEAM The People & Talent team at Airwallex is dedicated to attracting and developing the brightest and most ambitious minds to drive our company forward. We are a global, vibrant, and dynamic team with a focus on creating a positive and inclusive work environment that fosters growth and innovation. Through innovative programs, strategic People & Talent initiatives, and a deep understanding of our organization’s needs, we cultivate a collaborative and engaging environment that fuels Airwallex's continued growth and success. WHAT YOU’LL DO This role will lead and scale the People Ops function for the Americas, building the systems, processes, and team that deliver a seamless employee experience from onboarding through offboarding while ensuring accuracy, compliance, and operational excellence across HRIS, payroll, benefits/LOA, immigration, and EOR workflows. You’ll be a hands-on builder and people leader who standardizes SOPs, elevates service quality, and partners closely with Payroll, IT, Compliance, Finance/AP, and our global People & Talent team to keep our operations tight, data-driven, and audit-ready. This hybrid role is based in San Francisco. WHAT YOU’LL DO - Lead and develop the regional People Operations function; own end-to-end employee lifecycle operations (onboarding/orientation, background checks, HRIS data integrity, payroll inputs/changes, benefits and leaves, offboarding) with a strong focus on delivery quality and compliance. - Drive operational excellence by codifying and maintaining regional SOPs, managing the PNT Jira helpdesk queue, and setting clear workflows and standards that are consistent with global guidance. - Partner cross-functionally with Payroll, IT, Compliance, and Finance/AP on accurate and timely transactions, audits, vendor coordination, invoicing/POs, and change control (e.g., Sequoia/PrismHR, Deel/Papaya). - Oversee immigration/global mobility processes and EOR transitions, aligning stakeholders and vendors to ensure compliant, on-time execution and a great employee experience. - Maintain regional compliance standards (e.g., I-9/E-Verify, ACA reporting, mandatory trainings), and proactively improve controls and documentation for audits and reviews. - Support our Americas expansion as we establish sites in Toronto, Mexico and Brazil. WHO YOU ARE We're looking for people who meet the minimum qualifications for this role. The preferred qualifications are great to have, but are not mandatory. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: - 6 or more years of People Operations experience with 2+ years leading or mentoring a team in a high-growth tech environment - Hands-on ownership across the employee lifecycle (onboarding/orientation, HRIS data integrity, payroll inputs, benefits and leaves, offboarding) with strong US compliance knowledge (I-9/E‑Verify, ACA, mandated trainings). - Proficiency with HRIS and ticketing; experience with BambooHR and managing a helpdesk queue/SLAs is a plus. - Vendor and program management experience with PEO/EOR and benefits/payroll partners (e.g., Sequoia/PrismHR, Deel, Papaya). - Clear, concise communication skills; ability to build SOPs, document processes, and enforce standards in a fast-moving, global environment. - Comfort working with cloud technologies such as Slack, Zoom, Google Suite, Confluence, and BambooHR. - Ability to be resilient, learn quickly and adapt to the organizational culture and ways of working in a dynamic environment. PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: - Experience scaling People Ops in a global fintech environment. - Experience successfully proposing new solutions across a landscape of diverse decision makers with determination. - Experience coordinating immigration/global mobility workflows and vendor partners (e.g., counsel, trackers, approvals) for the US. - Experience managing EOR transitions and cross-border onboarding in the Americas (US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil). APPLICANT SAFETY POLICY: FRAUD AND THIRD-PARTY RECRUITERS To protect you from recruitment scams, please be aware that Airwallex will not ask for bank details, sensitive ID numbers (i.e. passport), or any form of payment during the application or interview process. All official communication will come from an @airwallex.com http://airwallex.com email address. Please apply only through careers.airwallex.com http://careers.airwallex.com or our official LinkedIn page. Airwallex does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firms/recruiters. Airwallex will not pay any fees to search firms/recruiters if a candidate is submitted by a search firm/recruiter unless an agreement has been entered into with respect to specific open position(s). Search firms/recruiters submitting resumes to Airwallex on an unsolicited basis shall be deemed to accept this condition, regardless of any other provision to the contrary. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY Airwallex is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and anyone seeking employment at Airwallex is considered based on merit, qualifications, competence and talent. We don’t regard color, religion, race, national origin, sexual orientation, ancestry, citizenship, sex, marital or family status, disability, gender, or any other legally protected status when making our hiring decisions. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.