VP, Total Rewards & People Operations

🚀 Whatnot

Whatnot is the largest livestream shopping platform in North America and Europe to buy, sell, and discover the things you love. We’re building the future of ecommerce, bringing together community, shopping and entertainment. We are committed to our values, and as a remote co-located team, we operate out of hubs within the US, UK, Ireland, Poland, and Germany today.

We’re innovating in the fast-paced world of live auctions from fashion, beauty, electronics to collectibles like trading cards, comic books, and even live plants. Whatnot has something for everyone.

And, we’re growing. Whatnot has been one of the fastest growing marketplaces and we’re hiring forward-thinking problem solvers across all functional areas.

About the People Team

The purpose of the Whatnot People Team is to make Whatnot an inclusive, remote-first destination where all employees feel respected, valued, and empowered to do their best work. We accomplish this goal by hiring top talent, investing in growth and development, championing diversity, and recognizing and rewarding impact at Whatnot.

💻 Role

We’re seeking an experienced and creative leader with keen business acumen to join our growing People team at Whatnot! As the VP of Total Rewards and People Operations, you will report to the Chief People Officer and be a vital member of the People Leadership team. Our Total Rewards and People Operations function will be critical to building a high-performing culture and attracting and retaining the excellent people we need to deploy Whatnot’s mission at scale. 

As our first VP of Total Rewards and People Operations, you will have a proven track record of leading teams to success, a passion for technology, and a commitment to building a great workplace culture. You will lead, shape, and scale all total rewards and people operations, systems, and data. These systems and processes are essential components of Whatnot’s operating system. Getting them right will require you to be a strategic partner in defining, documenting, and bringing to life our culture of high-performing innovation and delivery. This will involve building and running the systems, structure, and team needed to independently drive the development and execution of strategic initiatives to continuously improve compensation, benefits,  employee onboarding and offboarding, feedback and decision-making systems and insights, technology solutions and operations, compliance, policy and procedure administration, and more. 

We expect you to be our internal subject matter expert on all things “HR.” You have thoroughly studied best practices, but understand that each company and situation is unique. Rather than relying on a rigid playbook, you believe in delivering sensible solutions tailored to the specific needs and challenges of Whatnot. Getting things done is in your DNA, and you will execute quickly and excellently. You understand the importance of building reliable programs and systems enabled by best-in-class technology. Finally, you thrive in a creative, scrappy, collaborative environment where the best ideas change the company’s direction.

Team members in this role are required to be within commuting distance of our San Francisco, New York or Los Angeles hubs.

👋 You

Curious about who thrives at Whatnot? We’ve found that low ego, a growth mindset, and leaning into action and high impact goes a long way here.

• Lead the team responsible for all things related to our Total Rewards, HR systems, analytics, and operations.
•  Develop a holistic, total rewards strategy encompassing compensation, benefits, recognition programs, and other rewards to drive employee engagement, motivation, and retention.
• Develop and execute a strategic compensation plan that attracts and retains top talent while aligning with our company's financial goals and market competitiveness.
• Oversee the design, implementation, and administration of our employee benefits programs, including health insurance, retirement plans, wellness initiatives, and other perks.
• Conduct regular market analysis and benchmarking to ensure that compensation and benefits packages remain competitive and compliant with industry standards and regulations.
• Partner with senior leadership to design and manage executive compensation programs that incentivize performance and support our business objectives.
• Collaborate with HR and business leaders to integrate compensation and rewards into our performance management process, ensuring alignment with individual and organizational goals.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive people technology strategy that aligns with the organization's Talent and business goals.
• Ensure People technology systems comply with data privacy and security regulations and maintain the highest data protection standards.
• Coordinate our teams to deliver scaled programs and projects (e.g., systems implementation, M&A, internationalization) and innovate quickly with a smooth, end-to-end user experience.
• Sponsor the development and implementation of a comprehensive people systems infrastructure and roadmap, becoming the central owner across various enterprise and productivity tools across the People team.
• Develop and deliver effective communication strategies that tell our growth story and educate employees about our compensation and benefits programs, promoting understanding and appreciation.
• Stay abreast of relevant laws, regulations, and best practices related to compensation and benefits, ensuring compliance and mitigating risks.
• Manage relationships with external vendors, consultants, and brokers to optimize the delivery of compensation and benefits services and control costs.
• Provide leadership, guidance, and mentorship to the Total Rewards & People Operations team, fostering a culture of collaboration, transparency, innovation, and continuous improvement.

    Preferred Qualifications & Leadership Capabilities

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Previous experience as Head of Total Rewards and People Operations at a similar company in size and structure. Experience with IPO is a plus. 
• 10+ years of progressive experience in compensation, benefits, systems, people analytics, and HR technology, with at least five years in a leadership role, operating as a player/coach, and owning some of the hard things with your team
• A solid operational background with the ability to leverage technology in building an efficient user experience.
• Demonstrated experience in taking things from “scrappy” to “scaled” in a high-growth, fast-paced environment
• Experience in systems implementation that includes integration across business systems beyond the People team, such as Finance, Corp Eng, and IT
• Deep knowledge of compensation principles, practices, and trends, including incentive design, equity compensation, and executive pay. 
• Experience designing and administering employee benefits programs, including health and welfare plans, retirement savings plans, and wellness initiatives.
• Demonstrated expertise in people analytics and the ability to digest data and pull out insights, but also understand where the data comes from and how to optimize systems to support its digestion
• Strong people analytical skill set with an ability to create metrics and dashboards to interpret data, analyze trends, and make data-driven decisions.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and adept at creating compelling narratives to communicate value and drive growth plans. Ability to collaborate effectively with stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
• An unyielding passion for providing the ultimate employee experience and serving as a model of Whatnot’s values in the experience of cross-functional partners working with the team
• Certified Compensation Professional (CCP), Certified Benefits Professional (CBP), or similar certifications are preferred.
• Experience in the e-commerce or technology industry is preferred. 

💰Compensation

For Full-Time (Salary) US-based applicants: $350,000/year to $380,000/year + benefits + equity

The salary range may be inclusive of several levels that would be applicable to the position. Final salary will be based on a number of factors including, level, relevant prior experience, skills and expertise. This range is only inclusive of base salary, not benefits (more details below) or equity.

🎁 Benefits

• Flexible Time off Policy and Company-wide Holidays (including a spring and winter break)
• Health Insurance options including Medical, Dental, Vision
• Work From Home Support
  • Home office setup allowance
  • Monthly allowance for cell phone and internet
• Care benefits
  • Monthly allowance on both food and wellness
  • Annual allowance towards Childcare
  • Lifetime benefit for family planning, such as adoption or fertility expenses
• Retirement; 401k offering for Traditional and Roth accounts in the US (employer match up to 4% of base salary) and Pension plans internationally
• Monthly allowance to dogfood the app
• Parental Leave
  • 16 weeks of paid parental leave + one month gradual return to work *company leave allowances run concurrently with country leave requirements which take precedence.

💛 EOE

Whatnot is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value diversity, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, parental status, disability status, or any other status protected by local law. We believe that our work is better and our company culture is improved when we encourage, support, and respect the different skills and experiences represented within our workforce.