Head of People Partnership

About Varda

Low Earth orbit is open for business. Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules. Vardas W-Series vehicles are built designed and operated by Varda in-house including the pharmaceutical processing payloads the capsules the C-PICA heat shields and the satellite buses.

From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space. Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind.

Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from SpaceX Blue Origin major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley. Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures Lux Capital Founders Fund Caffeinated Capital General Catalyst and Also Capital.

Varda is headquartered in El Segundo California where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles equipment and materials are built integrated and tested. Varda also has offices in Washington DC and Huntsville AL.

Join Varda and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem.

About This Role

Varda has grown to about 300 people and with significant growth ahead we are hiring our first dedicated people partner. You will be a trusted advisor to our Executive Leadership team coaching and challenging them through rapid growth and change. You will work closely with your peers in Recruiting Finance and Systems/Analytics to approach our people needs from a holistic full-cycle employee experience mindset.

This role is not set up for you. There is no existing function or playbook and most leaders do not yet know the value of a People Partner. You will earn credibility by solving real problems and delivering results people can see.

What Youll Do

• Advise and coach leaders. Partner with our four executives and their leadership teams on how they lead organize and grow. Many of our managers are leading for the first time so you will coach on feedback delegation and hard conversations.
• Talent evaluation. Operationalize performance so employees grow through outcomes not effort. Partner in talent reviews and calibration advise on development and succession and guide pay and promotion decisions rooted in strong performance.
• Compensation modeling. Build our compensation philosophy into day-to-day practices guiding through changes as the market shifts. Develop leadership understanding of pay leveling offers promotions and equity.
• Resolve conflict early. Teach leaders to give direct feedback and de-escalate situations before they become employee relations issues. This is yours end to end.
• Product mindset. Start from first principles question everything ship small and measure what works iterate and deliver again.
• Collaborate across teams. Align with peer functions so everyone drives changes as one team in the same direction toward the same horizon line.
• Use data and AI. Sharpen your point of view with real numbers measure impact understand the insights and what is missing. Use AI to deliver smarter easier and faster.

Why Varda

• Build the Future: Varda is building a new technology and a new market help create the people foundation so our vision becomes reality .
• Solve Hard Problems: Create capability within the organization that directly enables the company manifest.
• Ownership & Impact: Join a fast-growing passionate team where your work directly shapes the future of space and humanity.

What You Bring

• 10 years in HR including business partnering to engineering or hardware organizations. Experience as a first or founding HR hire is strongly preferred.
• Deep compensation expertise and experience teaching leaders to apply it.
• Strong coaching skills including with first-time managers and senior executives.
• Experience with talent reviews calibration and promotion decisions with a bias toward outcomes.
• Credibility with technical leaders. You are practical direct and useful.
• First-principles thinking comfort with ambiguity and the self-direction to build without a roadmap.
• Skill at building relationships and aligning peers without formal authority.
• Experience in hardware manufacturing or deep tech is a plus.

Compensation & Location

• Salary Range: $175000 - $225000/per year
• This role ison-site in El Segundo CA
• Leveling and base salary is determined by job-related skills education level experience level and job performance
• You will be eligible for incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards

ITAR Requirements

Varda like all employers must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items our policy is to only hire U.S. persons who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.

E-Verify Statement

Varda Space Industries Inc. participates in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security E-Verify program. The E-Verify program is an Internet-based employment eligibility verification system operated by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Learn more about the E-Verify program.

E-Verify Notice Right To Work Notice

Varda Space Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are always evaluated based on merit qualifications and performance. We will never discriminate on the basis of race color gender national origin ethnicity veteran status disability status age sexual orientation gender identity martial status mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Required Experience:

Director