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Varda Space Industries is accelerating commercial space infrastructure development, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable reentry capsules. The company designs and operates W-Series vehicles in-house, including pharmaceutical processing payloads, capsules, heat shields, and satellite buses. Founded in 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with backing from Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, and other top-tier investors, Varda is headquartered in El Segundo, California, with additional offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, Alabama.
Reporting to the People Director, the People Manager will build and scale infrastructure supporting Varda's people systems, equity programs, operational rigor, and assigned business unit people operations. This role balances process design, compensation and benefit administration, compliance, people operations, and performance management in a fast-scaling environment.
Key responsibilities include serving as the primary People Business Partner for assigned business units, building trusted relationships with leaders to translate business priorities into effective People strategies, and partnering on organizational design, workforce planning, and organizational change. The role involves coaching managers on leadership effectiveness, performance, employee development, and team building.
The People Manager will lead annual talent processes including performance reviews, talent calibration, promotion discussions, succession planning, and development planning. They support leaders in identifying, developing, and retaining top talent while building leadership capability through coaching and feedback. The role includes supporting compensation recommendations aligned with company philosophy and market practices, leading rollout of company-wide People initiatives, and developing manager communications and training resources.
Operationally, the People Manager partners with Payroll, Recruiting, Finance, and Legal to ensure seamless execution of core People processes throughout the employee lifecycle. They support organizational changes, transfers, promotions, and workforce planning activities, maintain accurate employee data, and conduct periodic audits of People processes to ensure accuracy, consistency, and compliance.
