People Operations Specialist

Role Description

This role sits at the heart of People, Culture, and Organisation, driving the operational and administrative excellence that keeps the function running smoothly and evolving continuously. Based in the US, you'll be the go-to people operations expert for our American colleagues and managers, while collaborating closely with a global People Ops team to ensure consistency and shared best practice across regions. You'll own the review and optimisation of people systems and processes — identifying opportunities to simplify, automate, and reduce complexity — while implementing data-driven solutions that improve efficiency and service delivery for managers and colleagues alike. Equally important is the day-to-day: ensuring interactions with people processes are quick, intuitive, and reliable. This role is the connective tissue between foundational operational delivery and the organisation's broader digital transformation agenda, with a clear goal of building a more agile, adaptive people function.

What you’ll be doing

• Employee Lifecycle Management:
  • Provide expert administrative support across the full employee lifecycle globally — including onboarding (I-9 verification), employment changes, absences, benefits, and offboarding.
  • Process bi-weekly US payroll and support monthly payroll in European and Australian markets; maintain accurate colleague data across the HRIS in compliance with local labour laws.
  • Serve as the primary contact for colleague and manager enquiries on people policies, procedures, and HRIS; monitor the ticketing system to ensure requests are triaged, actioned, and resolved to SLA.
  • Maintain the internal people knowledge base and coordinate ISO audit preparation, including record-keeping, stakeholder liaison, and compliance documentation management.
• HR Systems:
  • Act as first-line support for HRIS enquiries, providing basic training and resolving routine issues; assist in creating standard reports and maintaining documentation of procedures, settings, and workflows.
  • Identify automation and process improvement opportunities; support system upgrades, integrations, and new implementations to meet Digital Science's operational needs.
• Problem Solving and Operational Delivery:
  • Investigate and resolve people operations issues by applying established policies and controls; coordinate with employees, managers, People Partners, and vendors to enable timely resolution.
  • Identify recurring issues, data inconsistencies, or process gaps and contribute recommendations for improvement.
• Continuous Improvement and Innovation:
  • Regularly identify and implement ways of working improvements; act as a bridge between the people team and the business to drive automation, simplification, and process efficiency.
• Data, Insight & People Analytics:
  • Use people data and HR analytics to identify trends, surface risks, and inform priorities; contribute to regular reporting on people metrics and advocate for the employee experience using lifecycle and pulse survey insights.
• Commitment to Excellence:
  • Invest in personal and professional growth, engage in cross-functional knowledge sharing, and foster a collaborative, innovative team environment.

Qualifications

• Proven experience resolving complex HR challenges in a dynamic environment, including supporting organisational change from an operational and execution standpoint.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to use HR data to drive reporting and improvements; experience with ticketing systems, document management, or compliance processes.
• Experience with Trinet or similar co-employment platforms; HiBob experience a plus.
• Proficient in Google Workspace; excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable learning new tools quickly.

Living our Values

• We are brave in the pursuit of better.
• We are collaborative and inclusive.
• We are always open-minded.
• We are from and for the community.

Commitment to Diversity

As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to building and nurturing a workplace where every individual feels valued and belongs. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status. Beyond recruitment, we strive to cultivate an environment where inclusivity is woven into the fabric of our culture, enabling everyone to be their best self and do their best work.