Director, People & Culture
$170k - $200k USD
Our mission is to open the door to the life-changing impact of education. We build market-leading, online college credit and test-preparation solutions that help working adults earn their degrees, advance their careers, and achieve economic mobility. Recognized by Fast Company and GSV 150 as one of the world’s most innovative education companies, we are also at the forefront of AI-first learning, combining artificial intelligence with the latest learning science to improve access and outcomes at scale.
Our product is our impact. Through our Keys to College and Keys to the Classroom initiatives, we have saved students over $700 million in tuition and enabled hundreds of thousands of learners to pursue and succeed in careers across nursing, teaching, counseling, business, and other high-demand fields. We are deeply focused on measurable outcomes and building products that create meaningful, lasting change in people’s lives.
About the Role
We are seeking an experienced, forward-thinking Director of People and Culture to lead and continuously improve all aspects of our People function. This role blends strategic leadership with hands-on execution. It requires someone excited about using modern tools, including AI, to continually raise the quality, speed, and consistency of the People team.
The Director will lead employee engagement, hiring and retention, training and development, performance management, and compensation and benefits with a focus on designing systems and processes that scale efficiently while supporting a high-performing culture.
This role is based in our Mountain View, CA office and is hybrid in office Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
What You’ll Do:
Employee Engagement, Culture, and Retention
- Lead employee engagement strategy and execution, including feedback mechanisms, communication, and engagement initiatives.
- Monitor engagement trends and proactively address risks related to morale, performance, and retention.
- Translate company values into consistent, practical people practices that support a strong, high-performing culture.
- Develop and execute retention strategies by analyzing attrition drivers and implementing targeted interventions.
Talent Acquisition
- Partner with leaders to support effective hiring practices, workforce planning, and candidate selection.
- Oversee talent acquisition strategy to attract, assess, and hire top talent.
- Improve hiring efficiency and quality through structured processes and responsible use of AI tools.
Performance Management, Training & Development
- Lead performance, coaching and development efforts that support clear goal setting, ongoing feedback, and skill growth for employees and managers.
- Evolve and scale learning and performance frameworks, including onboarding, manager enablement, feedback cycles, reviews, and promotion processes.
- Coach and support managers in delivering clear expectations, timely feedback, and fair, consistent performance decisions.
- Leverage data and AI-enabled insights to enhance the quality, consistency, and impact of learning and performance practices.
Compensation, Benefits, and Compliance
- Design, manage, and continuously improve compensation and benefits programs that are competitive, equitable, and aligned with business goals.
- Partner with leadership on compensation planning, promotions, and retention strategies.
- Use data and AI-enabled insights to inform pay decisions, identify retention risks, and improve total rewards effectiveness.
- Ensure compliance with employment laws, regulations, and internal policies.
What You’ll Bring:
- 10+ years of People/Human Resources experience.
- Strong background across all areas of human resources.
- Demonstrated experience applying AI or advanced automation to improve efficiency, quality, or scale across people team programs.
- Experience in growth-stage or dynamic environments.
- History of building and managing success people teams.
- Excellent judgment, communication, and relationship-building skills.
- Ability to balance senior leadership goals and employee relations.
The salary range for this position is $170,000-$200,000 per year. Pay is dependent upon factors including skills, work experience, business needs, and market demands.
At Study.com, we know that strong communities are built on the power of our diversity, and we respect and strive to understand for the diverse identities, race, ethnicities, backgrounds, and perspectives of our team members. Our work and company culture have been consistently recognized, including:
- Inc. Best Place to Work
- Fortune Great Places to Work – Best Workplaces in the Bay Area
- Golden Bridge Awards – Gold Winner, Corporate Social Responsibility
- San Francisco Business Times & Silicon Valley Business Journal – Best Places to Work
Study.com provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, veteran or disability status. In addition to federal law requirements.
Study.com complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. Additionally, qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for the position in accordance with applicable state and local laws.