People & Culture Partner

Koala is a global furniture brand bringing Australian design and innovation to the world. We create forward-thinking products that solve problems for people and homes everywhere, driven by our purpose to make the world a more comfortable place.

We’ve always believed in doing things differently, whether in the way we develop products, how we do people and culture, or the way we bring the brand to life. That mindset has fuelled our growth, helping us disrupt categories in ways that are creative, bold and often unexpected. While we’re a household name in Australia, our journey on the global stage is only just beginning.

Since launching in 2015, our furniture has reached homes across Australia, Japan, the US and the UK. As a B Corp-certified, customer-obsessed, and data-led company, we’re committed to revolutionising furniture for generations to come through design, innovation, and meaningful sustainability.

Role Description

Koala's US team is small and growing, around 15 people today, with plans to grow toward 25. This role is the dedicated, on-the-ground People Operations presence for that team: the person who makes sure people get hired, paid, supported, and set up to do their best work, day to day.

This is a hands-on, fast moving, generalist role. You'll move between recruiting, onboarding, employee relations, compliance, and systems administration in the same week, sometimes the same day. You'll also be Koala's local partner for global People & Culture initiatives, taking programs and policies built at the global level and making them work in practice for the US team.

You'll have full ownership of People Operations for the US but you won't be doing it alone. Koala's global People & Culture team, based in Australia, includes dedicated recruitment and people operations specialists, and you'll have direct access to their expertise, tools, and established playbooks.

Key Responsibilities

Recruiting & Onboarding

• Own full-cycle recruiting for US roles: sourcing, screening, interview coordination, reference checks, and offers.

• Partner with hiring managers to build job descriptions, interview plans, and scorecards.

• Deliver an exceptional candidate experience across all stages of the hiring journey.

• Build and maintain external networks to strengthen employer brand visibility and future talent pipelines.

• Strategizing with Global P&C on employer branding, benefits, policies and programs to attract and retain best in class talent

• Run onboarding end to end including paperwork, equipment/IT coordination, first-week experience: so new hires land well.

HR Operations, Payroll & Compliance

• Administer the US employee lifecycle: new hires, changes, leave, and offboarding within our HRIS.

• Handle day-to-day payroll administration and employee payroll queries, working with our third-party payroll provider, which manages core processing.

• Own US employment law compliance across all states we employ in wage and hour, leave, classification, and required notices.

• Maintain and administer HR policies and the employee handbook, keeping them current with federal, state, and local law.

• Administer benefits enrollment and respond to employee benefits questions.

Culture, Engagement & Manager Support

• Be the first point of contact for US employees and managers on people questions, employee relations issues, and day-to-day HR needs.

• Coach managers on performance conversations, team issues, and basic people management practice.

• Run US-specific engagement and culture initiatives that keep a remote, distributed team connected.

Systems & Global Program Execution

• Own our core US HR systems and vendor relationships (HRIS, payroll platform, benefits administration).

• Keep employee records, data, and reporting accurate and audit-ready.

• Partner with the Global People & Culture team to roll out global programs, policies, and initiatives, adapting and implementing them for the US market.

How You'll be Supported

• Koala's global Recruitment team - sourcing support, ATS tooling, and market insight you can tap into for hard-to-fill roles.

• Koala's global People Operations team - established HR systems, policy frameworks, and payroll platform expertise, so you're adapting proven processes rather than building from a blank page.

• A wider global P&C community you can bring questions to - you're the only P&C person in the US day to day, but not the only one at Koala. Plus, we have had a couple years already in building the US people foundations, so you’re not starting from scratch by any means!
  

Ideal background

What You'll Bring

• 3–5 years of experience in a US HR/People Operations generalist role, preferably coming from a recruitment background, and ideally at a small start-up or scaling company.

• Comfort working across the full breadth of the role - recruiting one hour, payroll questions the next, policy work after that.

• Ongoing flexibility to partner with the global team based in Sydney on AEST timezones, and hence a preference for those based on the US West Coast.

• Working knowledge of US employment law across multiple states (no specific certification required).

• Experience with common HRIS/payroll platforms (e.g., Gusto, BambooHR, Tax Studio or similar).

• Strong judgment and comfort operating as the primary on-the-ground People presence in the US, drawing on global support where useful rather than needing it day-to-day.

• Appetite to adopt and deploy AI and automations to US people processes.

• Clear, warm communication style - you'll be a trusted point of contact for employees at every level.

• Vibe and energy - you’ll lead the cultural charge for our fully remote team through authentic and fun engagement initiatives both on and offline.

What Success Looks Like in the First Year

• US hiring runs smoothly, with a consistent, well-run candidate and onboarding experience.

• Payroll, compliance, and HR records are accurate, current, and give the business confidence nothing is falling through the cracks.

• Managers and employees know who to go to for people questions - and trust the answers they get.

• Global P&C initiatives land well locally, adapted sensibly for the US team rather than applied as a blunt copy-paste.

Treehouse Perks and Privileges

Koala is only great when its employees are happy - and we’re one happy bunch!

• Work From SofaBed (WFB) - Most of our team is located in LA and surrounding areas, but also happy for you to be fully remote.

• Take a break - Generous time off - Koala life leave, volunteer, parental, and more to help keep your work-life balance, balanced.

• Surprise & delight - The two-word combo at the core of everything we do. All Koalas can expect to enjoy free Koala products with ‘mates rates’ for your friends and fam.

• Support & wellbeing - Our employee experience respects and embraces all families, formed, found, and evolving. You’ll have access to our Employee Assistance Program, which includes unlimited sessions for financial, work, relationship, family or wellbeing support.

• Competitive 401k matching and comprehensive Anthem private health insurance plans.

• Accelerate your career - via our Learning Management platform, as well as individual and team growth budgets and dedicated days.

• Community & connection - We believe that simply doing ‘no harm’ isn’t good enough So, how are we doing our part? We believe that simply doing ‘no harm’ isn’t good enough So, how are we doing our part? BCorp Certified, WWF Partnership, volunteer days, a member of SoftLanding, 1%and so much more.

• All in all, the Koala Kommunity is a great place to hang out and belong to!

Koalities We Look For

At Koala, we do things a little differently and we don’t shy away from the fact that we expect a lot from our employees! We are ambitious. We are curious. We are selfless. We want you to challenge expectations, always look to make a difference and give us something different from the norm. We want people that bring great energy, that have a long-game focus and are always trying to find new angles and approaches to the way we work. We're a team full of entrepreneurial spirit and have a relentless focus on 'what's next' but while always reviewing 'what's been done' and learning, growing and adapting. We're confident, but NEVER arrogant and we adapt to change like Steve Smith under a short ball (Aussie cricket reference FYI). Honesty and empathy drive everything we do, as well as a total focus on exceeding our customers’ expectations. So if you feel like this could be you... well what the bloody hell are you waiting for? Drop us a line, and let's see what you've got! ;)

There’s no such thing as a ‘perfect’ candidate, Koala is a place where everyone has opportunity. So however you identify and whatever background you bring with you, please apply if this is a role that would make you excited to come into work every day. We’re an equal opportunity employer, and recognize that a diverse workforce is crucial to our success as a business.

To read more, check out our careers, LinkedIn, or the great work we do with Work180.