People Operations Lead

Who we are at Osmo: Osmo is a digital olfaction company, on a mission to give computers a sense of smell to improve the health and wellbeing of human life. Why? Our sense of smell both enriches and saves lives, and has a deep and direct connection to our emotions and memory. Olfactory Intelligence has applications across industries including fragrance, manufacturing, security, medicine, and more. We believe in the power of automation and thoughtfully applied AI/ML to solve problems beyond the reach of human intuition alone. Osmo is headquartered in Elizabeth, NJ, with an additional office in Somerville, MA. Osmo is seeking a People Operations Lead to own that layer and move us from scrappy, reactive support to proactive, data-informed partnership. You will partner with our Chief People Officer to run and maintain the operational infrastructure our People function depends on, day to day and at scale. This is a hands-on builder role. You will run payroll, own benefits and the compensation cycle, hold the system of record, and produce the people reporting the executive team and board actually use. You report to the Chief People Officer and work closely with Finance. Key Responsibilities People Systems & Analytics

• Manage the HRIS and ATS as the systems of record, including configuration, integrations, permissions, and data flow between them, in line with established data governance standards.
• Build and maintain core reporting: headcount, attrition split voluntary and involuntary, first-year attrition, tenure, span of control, cost per head, time to fill, and function-level cuts.
• Run the monthly and quarterly reporting rhythm for the executive team.
• Manage vendors and hold them to service levels.

Immigration & Compliance

• Administer the immigration visa process for current and potential employees.
• Own leave end to end: FMLA, NY and NJ state programs, disability, parental leave, workers' compensation intake with EHS, and the logistics of ADA accommodations.
• Manage ACA reporting, Form 5500, non-discrimination testing, and COBRA.
• Own I-9s, employment verifications, personnel files, and records retention.
• Maintain the handbook, state-specific addenda, required notices, and the annual compliance calendar.
• Keep multi-state registrations current as we hire into new states.
• Handle EEO-1, OSHA 300 logs with EHS, and audit response.
• Answer employee questions on pay, benefits, leave, and policy, and escalate anything sensitive to the CPO.

Total Rewards (Payroll, Benefits, Compensation)

• Run annual renewal and open enrollment: broker management, plan design options, cost modeling, employee communications, and enrollment execution.
• Administer medical, dental, vision, 401(k), and ancillary plans day to day, including eligibility, carrier feeds, invoicing, and discrepancy resolution.
• Maintain job architecture: job codes, families, levels, and FLSA classifications, kept accurate in the system of record.
• Run the annual compensation cycle: benchmarking refresh, budget modeling, manager tooling, calibration inputs, letters, and system entry.
• Price roles against survey data and provide offer recommendations to hiring managers.
• Run multi-state payroll for exempt and non-exempt employees in partnership with Finance. Own accuracy, timing, and the audit trail.
• Build and administer timekeeping, scheduling, and attendance ahead of the manufacturing ramp: overtime, shift differentials, meal and rest periods, retro pay, and wage-and-hour exposure across NY and NJ.

Required Qualifications

• 6+ years in people operations, HR operations, or total rewards, including end-to-end payroll ownership.
• Hands-on multi-state payroll for exempt and non-exempt populations. Hourly, overtime, and timekeeping are familiar ground, not something you would be learning here.
• Benefits ownership through renewal, open enrollment, and daily administration, not coordination with a broker who does it for you.
• Compensation operations: discretion with benchmarking, band construction, merit cycle execution, and equity administration.
• Data-driven mindset with real analytical capability. You build the model yourself. Advanced spreadsheet work is assumed; SQL or BI tooling is a plus.
• Comfortable operating with general guidance in a fast-paced environment; brings structure to ambiguous problems within existing frameworks.

Nice to have

• Experience supporting both exempt and non-exempt populations, a real plus given our manufacturing teams.
• Experience on a lean People Operations team.
• Experience supporting a manufacturing, lab, or warehouse workforce through a ramp.
• HRIS implementation or migration experience.
• Prior partnership with Finance on payroll reconciliation, headcount modeling, or equity administration.
• Multi-state employee relations and compliance exposure.

Base Salary: $140k - $160k If this role inspires you we’d encourage you to apply. We are committed to recruiting, developing, and retaining an incredible team optimized for a diversity of thought, background, and approaches. For all Full-Time Employees, compensation is just one component of Osmo’s total rewards approach, which is designed to support the well-being, growth, and long-term success of our team members. Depending on the role, this may include base salary or contract-based pay, along with access to health, dental, and vision coverage; a 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match; flexible paid time off and company holidays; and equity or incentive compensation for eligible roles. Actual compensation will vary based on factors such as experience, skills, location, internal equity, and other relevant business considerations. Osmo regularly reviews pay ranges and compensation structures to ensure they remain competitive, equitable, and aligned with current market data. All employment decisions and responsibilities are determined based on current ability and your ability to grow, without regard to race, color, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, religion, age, marital status, physical, mental, or sensory disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Osmo does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Osmo or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by the Osmo Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Osmo and Osmo will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire