Senior Manager, People Operations

GiveDirectly has delivered more than $1B in cash directly to 2+ million people living in poverty across 15 countries since 2011. We believe cash transfers are one of the most scalable, cost-effective, and dignified forms of aid, with the research to back it up. Our work has been covered by The Economist , NPR , TED , and The Washington Post . We are one of Time100’s Most Influential Companies of 2026.

Our culture is candid, analytical, and non-hierarchical. We support high ownership and real professional growth. Curious about what it's really like to work here? Read our values and hear from the people who do . If they resonate, this could be a great fit!

About this Role

GiveDirectly's People Operations team owns global payroll, employee lifecycle, HR data, and total rewards delivery for a workforce spread across more than 20 countries. As the team has grown, so has the case for additional capacity at the leadership level to help own the operating engine that keeps payroll, service delivery, and people data running well every day. This role is that operating engine.

The Senior Manager, People Operations will manage a team of Associates and Coordinators (3 in total for now). You'll own end-to-end payroll delivery, the ticketing system and employee lifecycle (onboarding, offboarding, transfers), HRIS data quality, and execution of the annual compensation cycle and mobility transactions. You'll be the first point of contact for country HR teams on operational payroll, data, and ticketing matters, and you'll build depth across your team so critical knowledge doesn't sit with one person.

This is a hands-on, builder's role. You'll set the operating model for your areas (cadence, controls, service standards) and be accountable for the outcomes, not just for delivering against someone else's plan.

Job Type: Full-time

Reports to: Senior Manager, People Operations

Level: Senior Manager

Location: Remote, with a requirement to overlap with an East Africa timezone by at least 3 hours, and meaningful overlap with US Eastern hours. We can only employ people in certain places at the moment, so it's worth checking our current list of eligible countries to see if yours is included. If you're based elsewhere, it's not an automatic no, but do flag it early with your recruiter. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas in the U.S. or U.K. at this time.

Travel Requirements: Must be able to travel ~3-4 times per year to one of our countries of operation for team retreats and oversight.

What you'll do

Team leadership and delivery:

Lead, coach, and develop a team, setting clear priorities, standards of work, and ownership across payroll, service delivery, people data, and lifecycle operations

Build depth and cover across the team so critical knowledge is not concentrated in one person, and establish clear escalation paths for absences and peak periods

Define the operating model for your areas, including cadence, controls, service standards, and how work is prioritized against the function roadmap

Serve as the first point of contact for country HR teams on operational payroll, data, lifecycle, and ticketing matters

Global payroll:

Own end-to-end payroll delivery for all global staff across entities and employer of record arrangements, ensuring accurate and timely processing of salaries, benefits, and deductions

Own the payroll calendar, approvals, controls, and reconciliation, partnering with Finance on month-end, accruals, and people cost reporting

Manage payroll providers operationally, including service quality, issue resolution, invoicing, and migrations

Maintain current knowledge of payroll and statutory requirements across all operating locations, and drive the changes needed to stay compliant

Run annual bonus administration end to end, ensuring calculations are accurate and payments are made within designated timelines

People operations service delivery and employee lifecycle:

Own the ticketing system and its operating rhythm, including triage, assignment, SLA performance, and reporting

Own onboarding, offboarding, transfers, and role changes as designed processes rather than a series of transactions, and be accountable for the experience they produce

Analyze trends and root causes of recurring issues and deliver structural fixes rather than repeat workarounds

Drive the implementation of tools that improve functionality and user experience

Act as the escalation point for complex or high-priority tickets, providing direction and ensuring timely resolution

People data and systems:

Own HRIS operations and data quality, including the method for preventing inaccurate data entering the system at source

Own the people systems roadmap covering workflows, automation, integrations, and reporting infrastructure, partnering with IT and Finance on delivery

Run the audit and reporting cycle, and maintain reporting standards in practice

Produce the people reporting that leadership decisions rely on

Total rewards and mobility operations:

Execute annual compensation cycles, salary adjustments, and increase rollouts accurately and on time

Own benefits administration across all locations, including renewals, enrollments, and issue resolution

Produce the analysis behind compensation decisions, including benchmarking, compa ratio and cost modelling, and equity audits

Execute mobility transactions end to end, including payroll and entity transfers, contract issuance, location-based pay changes, work permit and employer of record administration, and the supporting trackers and records

Other tasks:

Participate in cross-functional initiatives and organizational projects, representing People Operations requirements

Perform all other duties that may be assigned to you from time to time by the Senior Manager, People Operations and stakeholders

What you'll bring:

6+ years of professional experience in People Operations, HR operations, or global payroll, including at least 2 years managing a team

Direct experience running multi-country payroll and people operations, ideally including Sub-Saharan Africa and employer of record arrangements

Demonstrated ownership of an HRIS, including an implementation, migration, or significant data quality turnaround

A systems and process mindset, with the ability to point to workflows you have automated, simplified, or eliminated

Working knowledge of employment and statutory requirements across multiple jurisdictions, with sound judgment on compliance risk and a clear sense of when to decide and when to escalate

Strong analytical skills, including comfort with compensation and cost modelling and advanced spreadsheet ability

Ability to liaise remotely with a wide range of people at all levels and across different cultures, and to act with credibility, tact, and diplomacy

Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to communicate technical people operations content to non-specialist audiences

Comfort operating with incomplete guidance and shifting priorities, and strong time management across competing deadlines

Professionally proficient in English

Experience in a global non-profit, international development organization, or mission-driven company with an Africa presence preferred

Familiarity with employer of record and contractor models across multiple countries (Oyster, Remote, or similar) preferred

Aptitude to learn new software tools such as Slack, BambooHR, Jira, and Asana, and comfort with AI-assisted tools to streamline people operations workflows

Exceptional alignment with GiveDirectly Values and active demonstration of our core competencies: emotional intelligence, problem solving, project management, follow-through, and fostering inclusivity. We welcome and strongly encourage applications from candidates who have personal or professional experience in the low-income and/or his