Senior People Partner, R&D - Eng & AI

About Gusto

At Gusto, we're on a mission to grow the small business economy. We handle the hard stuff—like payroll, health insurance, 401(k)s, and HR—so owners can focus on their craft and customers. With teams in Denver, San Francisco, and New York, we’re proud to support more than 400,000 small businesses across the country, and we’re building a workplace that represents and celebrates the customers we serve. Learn more about our Total Rewards philosophy .

About the Role:

As a Senior People Partner (R&D), you will design and lead the execution of impactful people strategies for a designated organization or subset of teams within Gusto. You will serve as a trusted strategic advisor to directors and senior leadership, proactively identifying organizational risks and opportunities while championing initiatives that strengthen our culture during periods of significant growth. As a strategic partner, you'll closely collaborate with specialized People functions (Invite, Talent Development, Compensation, ER, and Benefits) to develop integrated solutions that address complex business challenges. You'll drive cross-functional alignment, ensuring people initiatives are cohesive and support broader organizational objectives. With minimal guidance, you'll develop innovative approaches to talent management that enhance both team performance and employee experience. In this role, you will excel in dynamic and challenging environments, applying your passion for developing and refining processes and practices while establishing best practices that elevate the entire People organization. You will also champion the adoption of AI-driven solutions to enhance people strategies, demonstrating a proactive approach to leveraging technology for efficiency and intuitive workflows.

About the Team:

Gusto's People team is growing and scaling with the company! As our business scales and becomes more complex, and as we add hundreds of new Gusties each year, we need to ensure that our strategies for engagement with our employees are positive, engaging, values-driven and compliant.

Here’s what you’ll do day-to-day:

• Lead and define the organization's People objectives, including attracting, hiring and onboarding great talent, developing and retaining Gusties, and achieving our goals around representation and inclusion.
• Develop and implement innovative talent solutions that address complex business challenges, partnering strategically with specialized People functions (Invite, Talent Development, Compensation and Benefits).
• Leverage AI and data analytics to identify trends, predict talent needs, and develop scalable people solutions, ensuring our strategies are data-driven and forward-thinking.
• Design and execute business and talent initiatives that support our short and long-term business goals, including driving practices that enable high performance and operational excellence. Continuously explore and implement AI tools and platforms to streamline HR processes, improve employee experience, and drive operational excellence.
• Serve as a trusted strategic advisor to directors and senior leadership, providing coaching and guidance on organizational effectiveness, performance management, and leadership development.
• Own end-to-end organizational design initiatives and workforce planning by assessing capabilities, identifying talent gaps, developing people resources, and introducing succession planning.
• Build strong cross-functional partnerships to ensure people initiatives are cohesive and support broader organizational objectives while creating a consistent Gustie experience.
• Identify and translate current and future business needs into comprehensive People/Talent Plans, leveraging data and workforce analytics to drive strategic decision-making.
• Lead organizational development interventions such as change management, team effectiveness, and leadership coaching with minimal guidance.

Here’s what we're looking for:

• Progressive HR Experience: 10+ years of progressive HR experience with 5+ years in senior People Partner roles across various industries. Proven ability to craft and deliver strategic plans, particularly in partnership with engineering and/or technical teams.
• Strategic Thinking & Business Acumen: Strong capability to align People initiatives with business objectives, translating high-level strategies into actionable plans that drive organizational success.
• Relationship Management & Executive Presence: Exceptional interpersonal skills with proven ability to influence and coach directors and senior leaders, building strategic partnerships and maintaining executive presence.
• AI Proficiency & Innovation: Demonstrated experience in leveraging AI tools and platforms to scale HR operations, enhance efficiency, and create intuitive solutions. Proven ability to identify and implement innovative AI-driven approaches to talent management and employee engagement.
• Organizational Design & Change Management: Advanced knowledge of organizational design principles and demonstrated success leading organizational change initiatives that result in measurable improvements.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Experience partnering effectively with specialized HR functions (Invite, Talent Development, Compensation and Benefits) to develop integrated people solutions.
• Workforce Analytics & Data-Driven Approach: Significant experience leveraging data and workforce analytics to inform strategic decision-making and demonstrate business impact.
• Talent Development & DEI Leadership: Strong track record of developing talent strategies and implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives that enhance organizational performance.
• Agility & Ethical Practice: Ability to thrive in fast-paced, ambiguous environments while maintaining strong commitment to confidentiality and handling sensitive issues with integrity.

Our cash compensation amount for this role is between $154,045 - $189,989/year in Denver, between $181,275 - $223,573/year for New York/San Francisco, and between $176,000 - $218,000/year for Seattle. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including candidate location, experience and expertise and may vary from the amounts listed above.

Gusto has physical office spaces in Denver, San Francisco, and New York City. Employees who are based in those locations will be expected to work from the office on designated days approximately 2-3 days per week (or more depending on role). The same office expectations apply to all Symmetry roles, Gusto's subsidiary, whose physical office is in Scottsdale.

Note: The San Francisco office expectations encompass both the San Francisco and San Jose metro areas.

When approved to work from a location other than a Gusto office, a secure, reliable, and consistent internet connection is required. This includes non-office days for hybrid employees.

Our customers come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because it makes our company stronger. If you share our values and our enthusiasm for small businesses, you will find a home at Gusto.

Gusto is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in hiring or any employment decision based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or other applicable legally protected characteristic. Gusto considers qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. Gusto is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. We want to see our candidates perform to the best of their ability. If you require a medical or religious accommodation at any time throughout your candidate journey, please fill out this form and a member of our team will get in touch with you.

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Personal information collected and processed as part of your Gusto application will be subject to Gusto's Applicant Privacy Notice .