People & Talent Operations Manager

People and Talent Operation Manager

Build and scale a modern, automated People function at Nexford University

📌 Position Title: People & Talent Operations Manager
🌍 Work: 100% Remote
💰 Salary: $40,000/year
⏰ Working Rhythm: Monday – Friday, 0900 – 1800, with flexibility needed for global time zones and growth initiatives.
📝 Contract Type: Full-Time, Contractor
🤝 Reporting To: Chief Financial Officer
📅 Start Date: As soon as Possible

Role Impact 🚀 

Nexford University is a VC-backed, tech-enabled startup university on a mission to make high-quality, affordable education accessible globally. We operate with a fully distributed team and a strong bias toward automation, data, and continuous improvement.

We are looking for a next-generation HR Manager who sees People Operations as a product, not a back office. This role is ideal for someone who has worked in high-growth tech startups and wants to design scalable, automated people systems from the ground up.

This is not a policy-heavy role🚫📚.

It’s an execution-driven, systems-focused role with real ownership, impact, and influence across the business 💥🤝. You’ll help shape how our people experience Nexford — from hiring to onboarding to daily operations — with speed, precision, and innovation ⚡📈.

What You’ll Be Owning 🎯

🔧 Build and automate the People stack

• Own and continuously optimise Nexford’s HRIS and people tooling (e.g. BambooHR, payroll providers, contractor platforms)
• Design automated workflows for onboarding, offboarding, compensation changes, reviews, and compliance
• Reduce manual work through systems, integrations, templates, and self-service tooling

🌍 Talent & hiring at scale

• Build scalable, tech-enabled recruitment processes for a global, remote workforce
• Partner with hiring managers on role design, hiring strategy, and structured decision-making
• Introduce tools, assessments, and data-driven screening methods to improve hiring quality and speed 

📈 Performance, compensation & engagement

• Own performance management cycles and ensure they are lightweight, measurable, and actionable
• Support compensation reviews with clear data, benchmarking, and structured frameworks
• Work with Finance and leadership on salary bands, incentives, and equity-linked programs 

🌐 Global compliance, pragmatically applied

• Ensure employment and contractor compliance across multiple jurisdictions (US, UK, EMEA, Africa)
• Manage relationships with external payroll, tax, and employment vendors
• Balance legal requirements with startup speed and simplicity

👥 Manager enablement & culture

• Equip managers with simple tools and guidance to manage teams effectively
• Act as a trusted advisor to leadership on people, structure, and scaling challenges
• Help shape a high-performance, low-bureaucracy culture aligned with Nexford’s mission

What We’re Looking For 🔍

• Strong experience (minimum 5 years) in tech startups or high‑growth, VC‑backed environments 🚀
• A proven track record of building and automating HR processes — not just maintaining existing ones ⚙️🤖
• Deep comfort with HR systems, data, and tooling — you actually enjoy configuring software, optimizing workflows, and making tools work smarter 💻🔧
• Ability to operate independently with high ownership, low supervision, and strong execution discipline 🎯💼
• A commercial mindset, with confidence partnering cross-functionally with Finance, Leadership, and Exec teams 💸🤝
• A clear, confident communicator who can influence without relying on hierarchy or formal authority 🗣️✨
• Someone who thrives in modern, fast-moving People Ops —

➤ This role is not suitable for someone seeking a traditional HR or policy-first position ❌📚

Why Nexford University? 🎓

• Work in a mission-driven, tech-enabled organisation tackling real-world education challenges.
• Real ownership to build a modern People function end-to-end
• A global, remote-first team with strong mission alignment
• An environment where experimentation and automation are encouraged
• Close exposure to leadership and strategic decision-making
• Opportunity to shape how HR works in a next-generation education platform
• 33 days paid time off 

• Optional Access to professional development, after 3 months of engagement.
• 50% discounted tuition on all Nexford courses and degrees for you + your family

This position classification has been defined as exempt and is not subject to the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

About Nexford University 🎓🌍

Nexford University’s mission is to become a leading end‑to‑end education‑to‑employment platform, preparing and placing talent globally into both local and remote roles. We are a fast‑growing, next‑generation university focused on dramatically expanding access to industry‑aligned education at a fraction of the cost of traditional higher education 💡📘.  Based in Washington, DC, Nexford delivers a 100% online, competency‑based learning model designed around real‑world workplace skills. Our programs emphasize mastery of practical, future‑ready competencies, supported by a global network of faculty, advisors, and industry experts 🌐👩‍🏫👨‍🏫.

Nexford offers Associate, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees, along with a growing portfolio of undergraduate and graduate certificates across business and technology disciplines. Learners experience a technology-enabled, data-driven academic journey enhanced by modern learning tools, including the strategic use of AI to support both academic and professional success 🤖📊.

Ready to Transform Education? Apply Now! 

For more information, visit www.nexford.edu 

Equal Opportunities Statement 🤝

Nexford University is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and mission‑driven team that reflects the learners we serve globally 🌍💙.

Compensation$40,000/annum