OpenAI· People Systems & Operations· San Francisco
Head of People Science and Operations
Comp$347K – $385K
Classified Tasks (20)
Automate 0%Augment 65%Human-Only 35%
Augment (13)
AI assists, human decides
Define frameworks for using experimentation, analytics, process design, technology, and service delivery to improve employee experience and organizational effectiveness.
analytical
Ensure core people systems scale with the business and remain accurate, auditable, and human-centered.
technical
Apply people science methods to interviewing, compensation, career growth, promotion, reward, and recognition processes.
analytical
Partner with Research, Engineering, and Product teams to deploy OpenAI technology internally and drive automation, intelligent workflows, and system improvements across People Operations, data science, and employee experience platforms.
technical
Build an operating model that links experimentation, insight generation, process design, and service delivery.
operational
Oversee development of people analytics, dashboards, research agendas, and experimentation frameworks to improve decision quality.
analytical
Establish service standards, workflows, and controls across core people operations processes.
operational
Drive simplification and automation across onboarding, job changes, offboarding, case management, employee support, and data governance.
operational
Create mechanisms to rapidly test new people programs, evaluate results, and scale successful initiatives.
operational
Ensure people data is reliable, well-governed, and translated into actionable insights for executives and managers.
analytical
Lead teams to experiment with and deploy OpenAI technology to modernize People systems and embed AI-enabled automation, decision support, and scalable operational infrastructure.
technical
Define success metrics for operational quality, employee experience, experimentation throughput, and impact on business outcomes.
analytical
Build durable infrastructure that enables fairness, transparency, and responsible scale across People operations.
technical
Human-Only (7)
Requires human judgment
Build and lead an integrated People Data Science and People Operations function.
leadership
Translate people strategy into durable operating models and ensure decisions are grounded in evidence.
operational
Lead a unified strategy across People Data Science, Analytics, and People Operations.
leadership
Partner with HRBPs, Talent, Total Rewards, Legal, Finance, IT, and Security to improve end-to-end execution of critical people programs.
communication
Recruit, develop, and build a leadership team with capabilities in operations, analytics, research, and change management.
leadership
Serve as a strategic advisor to the Chief People Officer on organizational health, workforce insights, and operating effectiveness.
leadership
Partner closely with Finance, Legal, IT, Security, and the broader People team to support rapid, global company growth.
communication
Job description
Head of People Science and Operations | OpenAI Careers ## Head of People Science and Operations People Systems & Operations - San Francisco Apply now(opens in a new window) **About the Team** OpenAI’s People team is committed to hiring, engaging, and supporting world-class talent to help safely build and deploy universally beneficial Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). The People Science and Operations team is responsible for the systems, data, and operational rigor that underpin every stage of the employee lifecycle. Our work sits at the intersection of employee experience, regulatory compliance, and business velocity — ensuring that as OpenAI scales rapidly and globally, our foundations remain accurate, auditable, and human-centered. This is a high-trust, high-impact function. We partner closely with Finance, Legal, IT, Security, and the broader People team to support growth in a dynamic environment with significant internal and external scrutiny. Operational excellence here is not about process for process’s sake — it is about building durable infrastructure that enables fairness, transparency, and responsible scale. **About the Role** The Head of People Science and Operations is responsible for building and leading an integrated function spanning People Data Science and People Operations. Reporting to the Chief People Officer, this executive will define how the company uses experimentation, analytics, process design, technology, and service delivery to improve employee experience and organizational effectiveness. They will serve as the connective tissue between people strategy and execution, ensuring that ideas are translated into durable operating models, that decisions are grounded in evidence, and that core people systems scale with the business. This role is based in San Francisco, CA. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees. **In this role, you will:** * Lead a unified strategy across People Data Science, Analytics, and People Operations. * Inject science into all aspects of People processes ranging from how we interview, how we compensate, grow, promote, reward, and recognize Talent. * Partner with Research, Engineering, and Product teams to apply OpenAI’s own technology internally—driving automation, intelligent workflows, and system improvements across People Operations, data science, and employee experience platforms. * Build an operating model that links experimentation, insight generation, process design, and service delivery. * Oversee the development of people analytics, dashboards, research agendas, and experimentation frameworks that improve decision quality. * Establish clear service standards, workflows, and controls across core people operations processes. * Partner with HRBPs, Talent, Total Rewards, Legal, Finance, IT, and Security to improve end-to-end execution on critical people programs. * Drive simplification and automation across onboarding, job changes, offboarding, case management, employee support, and data governance. * Create mechanisms to test new people programs quickly, learn from results, and scale what works. * Ensure people data is reliable, well-governed, and translated into actionable insights for executives and managers. * Lead teams in experimenting with and deploying OpenAI technology to modernize People systems and operations—embedding AI-enabled automation, decision support, and scalable operational infrastructure across the People function. * Build a high-performing leadership team with strong capabilities in operations, analytics, research, and change management. * Define success metrics for operational quality, employee experience, experimentation throughput, and impact on business outcomes. * Serve as a strategic advisor to the CPO on organizational health, workforce insights, and operating effectiveness. **You might thrive in this role if you:**