People Operations Lead

We're hiring a People Operations Lead to own and strengthen our People function, spanning recruiting, employee experience, and people operations. This is a senior, hands-on individual contributor role with substantial autonomy and the opportunity to build scalable systems as our young, mission-driven organization grows. You'll combine strong HR fundamentals with an entrepreneurial approach, working closely with leadership and Operations colleagues. While the role has no direct reports today, there may be opportunities to build and manage a small team in the future.

About us

Founded in 2024, the Mirror Biology Dialogues Fund (MBDF) is a small, growing nonprofit working to understand and avert future risks from “mirror life”—synthetic organisms built from mirror-image versions of the molecules that make up natural life. Our team works with scientists, policymakers, and civil society to support informed international dialogue and prevent potentially unprecedented ecological and health risks.

We support conferences, workshops, and other initiatives that bring together experts and decision-makers around this emerging challenge. As our organization grows, we are developing more mature operational infrastructure while preserving the flexibility and ambition of a young, mission-driven team.

For further background, see The original Science article, the Mirror Life FAQ, our 2025 Year in Review, and our Events Page. Selected press coverage includes The Economist, Nature, Financial Times, Le Monde, New York Times, Die Zeit, USA Today.

About the Role

You'll report to our Deputy Director and work closely with our Director of Business Operations. You'll lead the People function as a senior individual contributor, supported by colleagues on the Operations team for execution where appropriate. This is a hands-on role with broad ownership, not a people-management position today; as the organization grows, there may be opportunities to manage a small team.

People Operations & Organizational Development (40%)

• Build and improve scalable people policies, systems, and processes, helping MBDF move from informal early-stage practices toward clear, reliable, well-documented operations without unnecessary bureaucracy.
• Develop and run performance review cycles, career development and progression frameworks, compensation policies, and other practices that help a growing team succeed.
• Own employee lifecycle operations, including onboarding, employee experience, benefits administration, and ongoing employee support.
• Bring practical expertise in US employment practices and employee benefits, especially health insurance; coordinate benefits and payroll administration with external partners.
• Maintain up-to-date HR documentation, employment policies, and compliance practices, working with legal and specialist advisers where needed and coordinating with PEO/EOR providers.

Talent Acquisition & Recruiting (40%)

• Lead hiring rounds from start to finish: define roles with hiring managers, source high-caliber talent, design rigorous evaluation processes, manage candidate pipelines, and close hires.
• Deliver a clear, respectful candidate experience and establish documented, repeatable recruiting processes that scale with the team.

Events & Cross-Functional Operations (20%)

• Own coordination of quarterly internal team retreats as part of the employee experience, with support from Operations colleagues.
• Oversee selected external events, workshops, and stakeholder gatherings, coordinating with the people responsible for day-to-day event execution and external vendors.
• Take ownership of occasional cross-functional operational projects as capacity and organizational needs evolve.

What We're Looking For

We're looking for a versatile, hands-on People Operations professional who combines strong HR fundamentals with the adaptability and initiative to help a growing organization thrive.

What you'll bring

• Strong hands-on US People Operations experience, including health insurance and employee benefits administration, employment policies, and HR compliance.
• Experience introducing or scaling practical HR infrastructure, including performance reviews, career progression, compensation practices, documentation, and employee lifecycle processes.
• Experience owning end-to-end recruiting, from role definition and sourcing to assessment, candidate communication, and successful hires.
• An entrepreneurial approach grounded in sound HR practices: you can work in a scrappy, ambiguous environment and know when and how to introduce structure.
• High ownership and strong execution: you manage multiple workstreams, prioritize intelligently, follow through, and build systems that others can use.
• Clear written communication, strong stakeholder judgment, and comfort working with senior leaders and external partners.
• Genuine motivation to contribute to MBDF’s mission, whether through existing familiarity with biosecurity and global catastrophic risk reduction or curiosity and readiness to learn.

Nice to have / Bonus points

• Experience in nonprofits, research, policy, Effective Altruism, biosecurity, AI safety, or other mission-driven settings.
• Experience with PEO/EOR providers and internationally distributed teams.
• Experience organizing internal retreats or offsites and coordinating complex cross-functional logistics.
• Experience mentoring colleagues or managing a small team; people-management experience is not required for this role.

We don't want to miss candidates who could do great things at MBDF. Every application is read by a member of our team who considers the whole picture of your background and potential. If you're on the fence because you don't meet every preferred qualification, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Logistics & Practical Details

• Compensation: $120–160k USD + generous benefits and perks; exact offer will reflect experience and fit.
• Location: Remote, US-based. We may consider exceptional candidates outside the US with strong knowledge of US employment practices and benefits administration.
• Working hours: Must be available during core hours (10am–2pm ET) for overlap with team members across time zones.
• Travel: Approximately 10–15%.
• Ideal Start date: As soon as practical; applications reviewed on a rolling basis.
• Reports to: Deputy Director.

Hiring Process

1. Application: We'll review your application and invite selected candidates to an initial conversation.
2. Screening interview: A short conversation to learn more about your background, experience, and interest in the role.
3. Paid work test: A practical assignment designed to give us a better understanding of how you approach work relevant to the role.
4. Hiring manager interview: A deeper conversation about your experience, skills, and approach to the role.
5. Team interviews: Conversations with other members of MBDF to explore mutual fit, collaboration, and alignment with our mission and values.
6. References and offer: We'll conduct reference checks before finalizing an offer.

We'll keep you informed about next steps and what to expect as you move through the process.

Inclusion & Equal Opportunity

MBDF is committed to providing equal employment opportunities and building an inclusive team. We welcome applicants from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, and we assess candidates on their qualifications, potential, and ability to contribute to our mission. If you need reasonable accommodations during the hiring process, please let us know.

Applicant Data & Privacy

We use the information you provide during recruitment to review your application, communicate with you, and manage our hiring process. Your information may be accessed by MBDF and recruitment partners supporting this search, and by service providers used to administer recruitment, subject to applicable privacy requirements. For details about how applicant data is handled, retained, and how to exercise applicable privacy rights, please refer to https://www.mbdialogues.org/privacy-policy