Human Resources Officer

Background

CIRM was created by the people of California to fund stem cell and gene therapy research with the goal of accelerating treatments for patients with unmet medical needs. With $5.5 billion in funding allocated through both Proposition 71 in 2004 and Proposition 14 in 2020, CIRM supports stem cell and gene therapy discoveries from inception through clinical trials, trains a workforce in California to fill jobs in the state’s thriving biotech and biomedical research industry, and creates infrastructure to make clinical trials accessible for people throughout California. All of CIRM’s research, workforce development, and infrastructure programs are designed to benefit the people of California, whose vision created the agency.

General Statement
Under the general supervision of the Senior Director, Human Resources, the Human Resources Manager provides analytical and strategic support while managing transaction operations. The manager serves as a key resource to the on a wide range of workforce and organizational matter and supports HR staff and stakeholders across CIRM.

The Manager exercises a high degree of initiative and sound judgment in fulfilling responsibilities and maintains broad, working knowledge across HR functions. The manager is informed and engaged in HR operations and is positioned to provide continuity and backup support to the HR team when needed.

Job Functions
In this position you will be accountable for a variety of responsibilities. Your duties will include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Recommend and lead the review and update of the Employee Handbook and HR policies to reflect

organizational changes, operational shifts, and best practices.

• Support legal and regulatory compliance by identifying policy gaps, coordinating with the HR Senior Director,

and implementing procedural revisions in alignment with applicable employment laws and standards, including but not limited to CA Government Codes, CA Labor Codes, FLSA, FEHA, and CIRM’s internal policies.
• Collaborate with the HR Senior Director to assess and communicate potential risk factors related to compliance, organizational HR risks, and operational integrity, and support the development of proactive mitigation strategies.
• Identify, recommend and implement improvements to HR processes, systems, and workflows to increase efficiency.
• Interpret and explain personnel policies, benefits, and procedures to employees, management, and

prospective applicants.
• Lead full-cycle recruitment processes, including drafting or editing job postings, verifying qualifications

against allocations, determining expected pay ranges, coordinating posting, managing applicant screening

criteria, and offer negotiations.
• Issue offer letters and coordinating with the Director of Finance, hiring manager, and HR staff to ensure

smooth onboarding logistics.
• Conduct off-boarding meetings with separating employees and ensure coordination with payroll, internal

programs (IT, Facilities), and management.
• Conduct classification reviews for appropriate allocations, assist with the job description updates with

involved parties, and develop new classifications and reallocation as needed.
• Develop job descriptions and ensure no duty overlaps, gaps, and appropriate level/grade for allocations. Create

new classifications and determine appropriate salary range.
• Manage classification and salary updates and ensure SCO pay scale is updated accordingly.
• Provide financial and budgetary context to hiring decisions, balancing CIRM’s resources with the need to attract

and retain qualified candidates.
• Collaborate with the Finance of the expected pay scale range for the for a position based on organizational

needs and budget.
• Analyze candidate qualifications and internal salary data to recommend equitable starting pay that aligns

with experience and avoids compensation disparities or pay compression within the classification.
• Maintain broad awareness of HR operations and activities to provide backup support and continuity if

team members are unavailable.
• Provide analytical support and insights to the HR Senior Director in support of HR strategy, planning,

compliance, and cross-functional initiatives impacting the organization.
• Analyze HR operational data, trends, or workloads to identify potential issues, inefficiencies, or opportunities

for improvement.
• Maintain personnel files and HR SharePoint databases, ensuring confidentiality and compliance with applicable

laws and internal policies.
• Lead CIRM’s classification studies and structure reviews, including the creation, revision, and reallocation

of classifications to ensure consistency, equity, and proper alignment across roles.
• Develop and maintain compensation structures aligned with internal equity and market trends.
• Conduct compensation analyses, pay equity and compression reviews, including salary benchmarking and

internal audits.
• Collaborate with hiring managers to develop and refine job descriptions that clearly define role scope

and responsibilities, ensuring proper allocation.
• Provide guidance and assistance to employees and HR team on HR procedures, policy interpretation, and

general inquiries.
• Contacts and coordinates with SCO and CalPERS to resolve personnel, payroll, retirement, and benefit issues.
• Assist with maintenance, assignment, and tracking of mandatory training when needed.
• Other duties may also be assigned.

Supervision Received
The Human Resources Manager reports to the Senior Director, Human Resources.

Supervision Exercised
None

Working Conditions
• Ability to operate standard office equipment.
• Being available to work outside of normal business hours.
• Being able to travel statewide, if necessary.
• Hybrid work environment, two physical days in the South San Francisco Office, and three days working remotely or one physical day in West Sacramento Office and one physical day in the South San Francisco Office.

Minimum Qualifications

• Human Resources Management
• Benefits Administration
• Performance Management
• Communication Processes
• Compensation, Wage structure, and Position Leveling

• Classifying employees
• Employment law
• Laws against sexual harassment

Working Conditions

• Hybrid environment, required to work two in-office days and three remote days per week. Sacramento area employees will split their in-office days between West Sacramento and South San Francisco, while others

may work both days in South San Francisco.
• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• Must be willing to work in a high-rise building.
• Ability to operate standard office equipment.
• Be available to work outside of normal business hours.

Attendance

Must maintain regular and acceptable attendance at such level as is determined at the Department’s sole discretion. Must be regularly available and willing to work the hours the Department determines are necessary or desirable to meet its business needs.

Compensation

This position is expected to pay $127, 308 - $148,488, which fits within the full salary range of $127,308 - $180,258 for the Human Resources Officer job classification. It is uncommon for an individual to be offered a salary close to the upper end of the full range for a position. Salary for this position will reflect the final candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, knowledge, relevant education, and certifications.

Benefits

https://benefits.calhr.ca.gov/state-employees/

Required Application Documents

Applicants must submit a resume and cover letter to be considered for this position.

Applicants requiring reasonable accommodations for the interview process should inform the interview scheduler at the time of scheduling.

For general questions regarding this position or inquiries specifically related to reasonable accommodations or Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), please contact jobs@cirm.ca.gov.

Additional EEO Contact Information

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice) TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The State of California is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.