Head of People / Recruiting Lead

About the Role A fast-growing, AI-native commercial insurance brokerage is hiring a Head of People / Recruiting Lead as a foundational, on-site hire in San Francisco. This is a critical leadership role for someone who thrives in high-growth startup environments and wants to shape team culture, talent strategy, and people operations from the ground up during a pivotal scaling phase. What You'll Do Own full-cycle recruiting — sourcing, interviewing, and closing candidates across technical, go-to-market, and operational functions. Build people operations from scratch — including onboarding, performance management, compensation frameworks, culture programs, and scalable HR systems. Develop and execute hiring strategies — attract top-tier talent for a rapidly expanding team in both technical and go-to-market disciplines. Partner directly with founders and executive leadership — define roles, org structure, and workforce growth plans at the highest level. Build employer brand and candidate experience — craft a recruiting presence that reflects a fast-moving, differentiated company culture. What We're Looking For Must-haves (dealbreakers): 10+ years of progressive HR/People experience, with at least 5 years in a startup or scale-up leadership role (e.g., Head of People, VP HR). Demonstrated experience building and leading HR operations in a high-growth environment — scaling teams and implementing scalable processes. Required: Proven ability to design and execute end-to-end HR strategy: recruiting, performance management, compensation & benefits, learning & development, and employee relations. Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; comfortable partnering with executive leadership and cross-functional teams. Nice to have: Experience in the insurance industry or other regulated industries. Strong knowledge of compensation philosophy, market benchmarking, payroll compliance, equity administration, and benefits design. Compensation & Benefits Salary: $150,000 – $185,000 USD annually Visa sponsorship is available Location This is a fully on-site role based in San Francisco, CA, United States . Remote or hybrid arrangements are not available for this position.