Director, People

Astronomer empowers data teams to bring mission-critical software, analytics, and AI to life and is the company behind Astro, the industry-leading unified DataOps platform powered by Apache Airflow®. Astro accelerates building reliable data products that unlock insights, unleash AI value, and powers data-driven applications. Trusted by more than 700 of the world's leading enterprises, Astronomer lets businesses do more with their data. To learn more, visit www.astronomer.io.

About this role :

We’re looking for a strategic, hands-on Director of People to lead and evolve Astronomer’s global People function. You’ll play a pivotal role in shaping the culture, systems, and programs that empower our teams to perform at their best and scale effectively.

This is a unique opportunity for a leader who can flex between strategy and execution- comfortable advising executives on organization design one moment and diving into process optimization the next. You’ll oversee a global team, driving initiatives across performance, engagement, compliance, and employee experience.

This role reports to the VP of People and partners closely with senior leadership, Finance, and Legal to ensure our people strategy and operations aligns with Astronomer’s business goals and next phase of growth.

What you get to do :

Strategic Partnership & Leadership

Serve as a trusted advisor and business partner to executive leadership on organizational effectiveness, performance, and change management.

Design and implement people strategies that enable scale, engagement, and leadership growth across a global, distributed workforce.

Lead and develop a small, high-performing People team, fostering accountability and collaboration.

Performance, Development, & Employee Relations

Own performance management and succession planning processes, ensuring clarity, fairness, and measurable outcomes.

Provide counsel on employee relations and compliance matters with sound judgment and discretion.

Partner with leaders to proactively identify and address performance and engagement needs.

People Operations & Programs

Oversee onboarding, benefits, compensation, leave administration, and people systems to ensure operational excellence and compliance.

Lead semi-annual review cycles, compensation refreshes, and engagement surveys, driving data-driven insights and continuous improvement.

Ensure secure, accurate, and compliant data management in Workday and related systems, with a focus on automation and efficiency.

Partner with Legal external counsel on immigration and compliance topics.

What you bring to the role :

10+ years of progressive HR / People experience, including at least 3 years in a leadership or business partner capacity.

Deep expertise across performance management, org design, employee relations, and compliance.

Broad understanding of People Operations and Benefits, including policy design and program execution.

Proven ability to lead through influence, challenge thoughtfully, and balance strategic priorities with day-to-day needs.

Analytical and data-driven approach to people strategy, with strong attention to detail and systems mindset.

Hands-on and scrappy- comfortable rolling up your sleeves to dive into the details, problem-solve in real time, and keep things moving when needed.

Experience managing distributed / global teams and driving programs across multiple regions.

Startup or high-growth experience strongly preferred; comfortable operating in a fast-paced, ambiguous environments.

Bonus points if you have :

Experience with Workday.

The estimated total compensation for this role ranges from $230,000-$250,000, along with an equity component. This range is merely an estimate, and the width of the range reflects willingness to consider candidates with broad prior seniority. Actual compensation may deviate from this range based on skills, experience, and qualifications.

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At Astronomer, we value diversity. We are an equal opportunity employer : we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

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