Founding People Operations Lead

About the Role As the first dedicated People and Recruiting hire at an early-stage AI procurement software startup, you will build the foundations for hiring and people operations. You will own the candidate experience from first outreach through onboarding and help create a welcoming, effective workplace as the team grows. What You'll Do Own recruiting end to end, including sourcing, pipeline management, candidate experience, offers, and closing. Manage onboarding, employment contracts, compensation, benefits, and HR compliance. Help build high-performing teams through hands-on people operations and thoughtful processes. Run daily office operations and welcome new team members and visitors. Set up AI agents to support sourcing, screening, and recurring workflows. What We're Looking For At least 2 years of experience in recruiting or people operations, including hands-on ownership of hiring from sourcing through offers and closing. Experience with onboarding, employment contracts, or HR compliance. Experience at an early-stage startup, ideally during a zero-to-one phase. Fluent in English and German, with strong organization, discretion, and a warm, people-first approach. Excited to work with AI tools and build agent-supported workflows. Compensation & Benefits Competitive salary and meaningful equity. Visa sponsorship is not available. Location On-site in Berlin, Germany.