Senior Manager, People Operations

About GiveDirectly

What if the most effective way to fight poverty was also the simplest: give people money and trust them to decide what they need?

Since 2011, GiveDirectly has proven that idea at scale. We’ve delivered more than $1B in cash directly to 2+ million people living in poverty and crisis across 15 countries, and rigorous research shows the results: healthier kids, stronger businesses, sturdier homes, and more resilient families and local economies. Cash is now widely recognized as one of the most scalable, cost-effective, and dignified forms of aid.

Our ambition goes beyond our own programs. We want cash to become the benchmark for aid, much as the index fund became the benchmark for investing, so that every aid dollar is held to one question:

is this doing more good than giving the money directly to people living in poverty?

We’re growing fast, and this is a rare and important moment to join.

We expect to hit $1B in revenue in 2026 with significant growth forecast for 2027. At the same time we are building a new technology stack and operating model designed for a roughly 10x change in scale, and we are actively pursuing partnerships with major funders to move even more money in bigger ways, to people who need it.

We are known for our extensive integration of technology into field processes; our quantitative approach to performance measurement; and our commitment to rigorous, independent, experimental evaluation of our impact, with multiple Randomized Control Trials completed and others in progress.

How we work

Our team spans 20+ countries and 69 languages. Our culture is candid, analytical, and non-hierarchical. We expect high ownership and give people real responsibility early. Our values are central to how we hire, work, and grow, and they are deliberately opinionated:

Recipients first.

Recipients’ preferences come before those of donors or ourselves.

Team next.

We optimize for organizational success, not individual success.

Be proactively candid.

We say what we believe and share information openly.

Create positive energy.

We aim to be a source of energy for colleagues, not a drain.

Think rigorously; act quickly.

We reason from first principles, then act rather than debate.

Know yourself and grow.

We own our imperfections and seek feedback to grow.

Accept reality. Propose solutions.

We focus on what can change and bring solutions, not just problems.

Be productively ambitious.

We take risks for step-change impact, not incremental progress.

If they describe how you like to work and they energize you, this could be a great fit.

Want to learn more? Read and listen:

• We are one of Time100’s
• Most Influential Companies of 2026, and our work has been covered by
• The Economist, NPR, TED

, and

The Washington Post

. We're now preparing to deliver billions of dollars a year to people in extreme poverty, if funding allows.

Read our CEO's essay on what that will take.

About this Role

GiveDirectly's People Operations team owns global payroll, employee lifecycle, HR data, and total rewards delivery for a workforce spread across more than 20 countries. As the team has grown, so has the case for additional capacity at the leadership level to help own the operating engine that keeps payroll, service delivery, and people data running well every day. This role is that operating engine.

The Senior Manager, People Operations will manage a team of Associates and Coordinators (3 in total for now). You'll own end-to-end payroll delivery, the ticketing system and employee lifecycle (onboarding, offboarding, transfers), HRIS data quality, and execution of the annual compensation cycle and mobility transactions. You'll be the first point of contact for country HR teams on operational payroll, data, and ticketing matters, and you'll build depth across your team so critical knowledge doesn't sit with one person.

This is a hands-on, builder's role. You'll set the operating model for your areas (cadence, controls, service standards) and be accountable for the outcomes, not just for delivering against someone else's plan.

Job Type:

Full-time

Reports to:

Senior Manager, People Operations

Level:

Senior Manager

Location:

Remote, with a requirement to overlap with an East Africa timezone by at least 3 hours, and meaningful overlap with US Eastern hours. We can only employ people in certain places at the moment, so it's worth checking our current list of eligible countries to see if yours is included. If you're based elsewhere, it's not an automatic no, but do flag it early with your recruiter. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas in the U.S. or U.K. at this time.

Travel Requirements:

Must be able to travel ~3-4 times per year to one of our countries of operation for team retreats and oversight.

What you'll do

• Team leadership and delivery: Lead, coach, and develop a team, setting clear priorities, standards of work, and ownership across payroll, service delivery, people data, and lifecycle operations
• Build depth and cover across the team so critical knowledge is not concentrated in one person, and establish clear escalation paths for absences and peak periods
• Define the operating model for your areas, including cadence, controls, service standards, and how work is prioritized against the function roadmap
• Serve as the first point of contact for country HR teams on operational payroll, data, lifecycle, and ticketing matters
• Global payroll: Own end-to-end payroll delivery for all global staff across entities and employer of record arrangements, ensuring accurate and timely processing of salaries, benefits, and deductions
• Own the payroll calendar, approvals, controls, and reconciliation, partnering with Finance on month-end, accruals, and people cost reporting
• Manage payroll providers operationally, including service quality, issue resolution, invoicing, and migrations
• Maintain current knowledge of payroll and statutory requirements across all operating locations, and drive the changes needed to stay compliant
• Run annual bonus administration end to end, ensuring calculations are accurate and payments are made within designated timelines
• People operations service delivery and employee lifecycle: Own the ticketing system and its operating rhythm, including triage, assignment, SLA performance, and reporting
• Own onboarding, offboarding, transfers, and role changes as designed processes rather than a series of transactions, and be accountable for the experience they produce
• Analyze trends and root causes of recurring issues and deliver structural fixes rather than repeat workarounds
• Drive the implementation of tools that improve functionality and user experience
• Act as the escalation point for complex or high-priority tickets, providing direction and ensuring timely resolution
• People data and systems: Own HRIS operations and data quality, including the method for preventing inaccurate data entering the system at source
• Own the people systems roadmap covering workflows, automation, integrations, and reporting infrastructure, partnering with IT and Finance on delivery
• Run the audit and reporting cycle, and maintain reporting standards in practice
• Produce the people reporting that leadership decisions rely on

Other tasks:

Participate in cross-functional initiatives and organizational projects, representing People Operations requirements

Perform all other duties that may be assigned to you from time to time by the Senior Manager, People Operations and stakeholders

What you'll bring:

• 6+ years of professional experience in People Operations, HR operations, or global payroll, including at least 2 years managing a team
• Direct experience running multi-country payroll and people operations, ideally including Sub-Saharan Africa and employer of record arrangements
• Demonstrated ownership of an HRIS, including an implementation, migration, or significant data quality turnaround
• A systems and process mindset, with the ability to point to workflows you have automated, simplified, or eliminated
• Working knowledge of employment and statutory requirements across multiple jurisdictions, with sound judgment on compliance risk and a clear sense of when to decide and when to escalate
• Strong analytical skills, including comfort with compensation and cost modelling and advanced spreadsheet ability
• Ability to liaise remotely with a wide range of people at all levels and across different cultures, and to act with credibility, tact, and diplomacy
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to communicate technical people operations content to non-specialist audiences
• Comfort operating with incomplete guidance and shifting priorities, and strong time management across competing deadlines
• Professionally proficient in English
• Experience in a global non-profit, international development organization, or mission-driven company with an Africa presence preferred
• Familiarity with employer of record and contractor models across multiple countries (Oyster, Remote, or similar) preferred
• Aptitude to learn new software tools such as Slack, BambooHR, Jira, and Asana, and comfort with AI-assisted tools to streamline people operations workflows
• Exceptional alignment with GiveDirectly Values and active demonstration of our core competencies: emotional intelligence, problem solving, project management, follow-through, and fostering inclusivity. We welcome and strongly encourage applications from candidates who have personal or professional experience in the low-income and/or historically marginalized communities that we serve.

Base Salary:

$114,660

Bonus at Target Performance:

10% (~$11,466, with potential for upside. For reference, with the organization’s current performance multiplier, this amount would be $13,415 in 2025)

Estimated Total Compensation at Target: $126,126+

Annual Benefits Stipend:

$21,393

United Kingdom

Base Salary:

£77,600

Bonus at Target Performance:

10% (~£7,760, with potential for upside. For reference, with the organization’s current performance multiplier, this amount would be £9,079 in 2025)

Estimated Total Compensation at Target: £85,360+

Annual Benefits Stipend:

£2,760

Kenya

Base Salary:

$83,820

Bonus at Target Performance:

10% (~$8,382, with potential for upside. For reference, with the organization’s current performance multiplier, this amount would be $9,807 in 2025)

Estimated Total Compensation at Target: $92,202+

Annual Benefits Stipend:

$8,453

This role is fully remote, so if you are not based in the US, UK or Kenya, we will share an estimated salary benchmark for the country you are based in during the hiring process.

Working at GiveDirectly

Flagging for US applicants:

We invite you to "

Know Your Rights

" as an applicant.

Commitment to Safeguarding

As a global organization working with communities to eliminate extreme poverty, GiveDirectly takes the safeguarding of its recipients, staff, and partners seriously. To that end, GiveDirectly is a member of the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme

, and will systematically check with previous employers about any abuse or misconduct related matters involving potential new hires. We may also employ other robust pre-hire screens, including in-depth reference checks, criminal background checks, and sanctions screens.

These efforts help us continue to build and maintain trust with the communities we work with, and prevent abuse to our recipients and staff.

**GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect people and basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance when it comes to preventing,  reporting, or responding to any form of abuse or  exploitation.” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.**

Reasonable Accommodations

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible work environment. If you require any accommodations during the application or interview process, or to perform the essential functions of the role, please email us at careers@givedirectly.org with the email subject “Accommodation Needed”. We will work with you to ensure reasonable accommodations are made to support your needs.

Want to put your best foot forward on your GiveDirectly application?

Take a look at our Candidate Application Prep Guide!

Referrals

Know the right person for this role? Please consider referring them

. We offer a reward of $3,000 for a Senior Manager or above role, and $500 for a Manager role, paid if we end up hiring your referral. Thank you for sending great people our way!