Senior Manager, People Operations

Summary

Join Bird, a company revolutionizing urban transportation, as a Senior Manager, People Operations. You will lead and develop global People Operations and Payroll teams, ensuring efficient and compliant processes. This role requires extensive experience in HR, payroll, and people management, with a proven ability to scale systems in a fast-paced environment. You will oversee core HR functions, manage employee lifecycle workflows, and partner with various departments. The ideal candidate is a collaborative leader passionate about people, systems, and process improvement. Bird offers a comprehensive benefits package, including time off, a work-from-home stipend, employer-paid healthcare, and Bird ride credits.

Requirements

• 10+ years of progressive experience in People Operations, HR, and Payroll functions, including 3+ years in a people management role
• Experience at both large-scale public companies and smaller-scale start-up private environments required
• Experience leading cross-functional and cross-regional teams
• Deep understanding of HR systems, tools, and data—especially BambooHR, Dayforce, ADP, Greenhouse, and Lattice
• Proven ability to build and scale processes in fast-paced, high-growth, and global environments
• Knowledge of employment compliance across North America and EMEA regions
• Strong analytical mindset with experience building dashboards and leveraging people data to drive decisions
• Excellent communication and project management skills
• A passion for people, process improvement, and building great internal experiences

Responsibilities

• Lead and evolve the global People Operations function, ensuring exceptional employee experience from onboarding to offboarding
• Own and continuously improve core HR processes, systems, and policies that support Bird’s global employee base
• Manage employee lifecycle workflows (onboarding, offboarding, employment verification, contractor support) with a strong focus on efficiency and compliance
• Ensure timely and accurate handling of People-related queries through Zendesk and functional mailboxes (e.g. payroll@, talent@)
• Lead and support the Global Payroll function to ensure timely, accurate, and compliant payroll processing across all regions
• Manage and improve payroll operations across multiple systems including ADP, Dayforce, and localized tools
• Oversee timekeeping systems and processes to support hourly and salaried populations globally
• Partner with Finance and Legal to ensure alignment on payroll, tax, and compliance matters
• Partner with internal stakeholders to ensure data accuracy and integrity across systems and integrations
• Build and deliver people analytics dashboards and reporting that support strategic workforce decisions
• Lead efforts around automation, data flow, and process documentation
• Own the HR tech stack and drive system optimization across tools: HRIS & People Systems: BambooHR, ADP, Ceridian Dayforce Compensation & Benchmarking: Radford, Pave Recruiting & Performance: Greenhouse, Lattice Service & Knowledge Management: Zendesk, Confluence Collaboration & Analytics: Google Suite (Sheets, Slides, Docs), custom dashboards and reporting tools
• Maintain and evolve global HR policies to ensure consistency, compliance, and clarity across all regions
• Continuously assess and improve People Operations processes to enhance efficiency, scalability, and the employee experience—particularly across onboarding, offboarding, data management, and contractor support
• Lead training initiatives related to Payroll and People Operations to ensure People Managers and employees are well-versed in key processes, systems, timelines, and responsibilities
• Coordinate compliance-related training and documentation across all geographies
• Own communication and change management efforts for People Operations and Payroll programs—ensuring transparency, consistency, and adoption of new or updated initiatives
• Partner with Legal to ensure continuous adherence to local labor laws, documentation requirements, and data privacy regulations
• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team with a culture of accountability, service, and continuous learning
• Collaborate closely with Legal, Finance, and IT to ensure seamless execution of People programs
• Act as a strategic partner to the VP, People and People Business Partners, aligning operational strategy with business needs

Benefits

• Plenty of time off to relax and recharge
• Work-from-home stipend
• Employer-paid healthcare package
• Bird ride credits