The Role
The People Operations Manager will manage HR operations, compliance, and employee experience in France and the UK, ensuring smooth day-to-day operations in a fast-growing environment.
Summary Generated by Built In
About AQEMIA
Aqemia is a drug invention company dedicated to creating novel molecules to address unmet medical needs. Its proprietary QEMI platform combines more than 12 years of physics-based research with state-of-the-art generative AI, enabling the launch of preclinical programs without relying on experimental data and accelerating discovery from day one. Aqemia’s portfolio spans oncology, immunology, neurology, and cardiology, and includes both wholly owned programs and partnered programs with leading pharmaceutical companies, such as a multi-year, $150M strategic collaboration with Sanofi. The company’s most advanced preclinical programs are currently undergoing in vivo optimization.
Mission
We are looking for a People Operations Manager to own and continuously improve AQEMIA’s People Operations, compliance, and employee experience across France and the UK.
This hybrid role combines hands-on People Ops execution, HR systems ownership, and legal/compliance coordination to keep day-to-day operations running smoothly in a fast-growing, international environment.
Responsibilities
HR Operations & Systems
🎯 Keep People Operations running smoothly day to day.
Run employee lifecycle ops (onboarding → changes → offboarding).
Own HR tools and data (HRIS, payroll, benefits).
Coordinate payroll/benefits providers in France & the UK.
Align processes with HRBP and Talent Acquisition.
Legal & Compliance (France & UK)
🎯 Support the VP People in building a solid, compliant HR framework across both markets.
Be the main point of contact for People-related legal matters.
Keep contracts, amendments, and policies up to date.
Track law changes and ensure actions are implemented.
Process Improvement & People Projects
🎯 Goal: simplify, standardize, and improve visibility as we scale.
Document and standardize key People Ops processes.
Fix recurring issues and simplify workflows.
Lead People Ops projects as needed (onboarding, HRIS, benefits).
Track core People KPIs and maintain dashboards.
Profile
5+ years’ experience in People Operations and HR Administration within high-growth environments.
Strong knowledge of French employment law and good grasp of UK labour regulations.
Proven track record in cross-border People Ops (France & UK).
Excellent organization and project management skills with strong attention to detail.
Comfortable managing HR, legal, and operational topics.
Fluent in English and French, both used daily.
Hands-on, proactive, and collaborative, with a passion for building lasting processes.
Our recruitment process
Screening call with HRBP - 30mn
Business case with VP People & HRBP - 1h
Cultural fit interview with Emmanuelle Martiano, Co-founder and COO - 45mn
Final interview with Maximilien Levesque, Co-founder and CEO - 1h
Why join us?
At AQEMIA, we are redefining drug discovery through the power of physics and generative AI. Joining us means contributing to transforming how new medicines are invented and helping shape the direction of our fast-growing company and team.
Pioneering a physics-first approachto drug discovery: we leverage fundamental research to redefine how drugs are discovered. At the core of our approach lies atomic-scale physics, enabling us to uncover truly innovative medicines and deliver hard-to-find therapies.
Interdisciplinary team: brilliant talent from tech and life sciences.
Recognition & Impact: part of French Tech 120 and France 2030, supporting the most promising French scale-ups with global impact potential; also featured in the 2025 Sifted AI 100, Europe’s top AI startups.
International environment: based in central Paris (HQ) with an office in London. English is our working language.
Strong financial backing: $100M raised since inception from leading European and International investors.
Top Skills
Hris
Payroll Systems
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The Company
What We Do
AQEMIA is a next-gen pharmatech company generating one of the world's fastest-growing drug discovery pipeline. Our mission is to design fast innovative drug candidates for dozens of critical diseases, such as immuno-oncology.
Our unique approach leverages quantum-inspired physics algorithms to power generative AI in designing novel drug candidates—without relying on experimental data. We already delivered several drug discovery successes within our internal pipeline and through collaborations with pharmaceutical companies.
Our most advanced programs are currently in vivo optimization.
We are growing and hiring! Check our career website: https://jobs.lever.co/aqemia.com
Discover the roles and behind-the-scenes at AQEMIA on our Welcome To The Jungle page: https://www.welcometothejungle.com/fr/companies/aqemia
