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About the Role
Vita Coco is seeking a strategic and operational leader for the Director of People Operations & Total Rewards role. This position is responsible for building and scaling best-in-class people operations, including compensation, benefits, payroll, HRIS, compliance, and people data. The role ensures Vita Coco’s people infrastructure is accurate, compliant, scalable, and employee-centered, supporting the company's growth as a global public entity. You will collaborate with Finance, Legal, IT, and the Global People Team to execute strategies, strengthen controls, and deliver reliable people data for informed business decisions. This role manages the People Operations Manager and People Coordinator and reports to the Global VP of People.
Responsibilities
- Lead U.S. market benchmarking and pay analysis using external surveys and internal data to ensure competitive and equitable compensation programs.
- Design and oversee end-to-end U.S. compensation processes, including annual merit cycles, bonus planning, promotions, off-cycle adjustments, and pay equity reviews.
- Play a key role in shaping and evolving Vita Coco’s compensation philosophy, frameworks, and governance.
- Own benefits strategy and vendor management, including renewals, plan design, and employee experience enhancements.
- Ensure compensation and benefits programs are compliant, scalable, and aligned with public-company standards.
- Ensure accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processing.
- Serve as system owner for global HRIS (UKG), ensuring system configuration, data integrity, and optimization.
- Lead UKG enhancements, integrations, testing, and process automation.
- Maintain SOX-aligned controls for payroll, equity, compensation, and people data.
- Ensure compliance with federal, state, local, and international employment laws and regulations.
- Partner with Legal on audits, filings, and regulatory reporting (e.g., proxy statement, equity disclosures, wage and hour).
- Monitor regulatory changes and proactively update policies and practices.
- Establish data governance, documentation, and quality standards.
- Build dashboards and reporting for headcount, turnover, compensation, payroll, and benefits.
- Provide actionable insights to People and business leaders.
- Build scalable processes, documentation, and SOPs.
- Lead cross-functional projects with Finance, Legal, IT, and the Global People Team.
- Manage vendors and contracts related to payroll, benefits, and HR systems.
- Mentor and develop team members, fostering a high-performance operations culture.
Requirements
- 8+ years of progressive experience in People Operations, HR Operations, or Total Rewards.
- 5+ years leading compensation, payroll, and benefits programs.
- Deep experience with payroll and compensation strategy in a public company.
- Strong working knowledge of UKG HRIS (implementation or optimization experience preferred).
- Experience supporting multi-country / global workforces.
- Strong knowledge of employment law and compliance frameworks.
- Proven people leader.
- Experience applying AI in HR to streamline workflows and improve the employee experience, with skills in HR process optimization and automation.
Skills
- Compensation strategy
- Benefits strategy
- Payroll processing
- HRIS management (UKG)
- Public company compliance
- SOX compliance
- Employment law
- Data governance
- Reporting and analytics
- Process automation
- Vendor management
- Team leadership
- AI in HR
Location
- NYC
- Remote
Work Type
- In person
- Remote
Experience Level
- 8+ years of progressive experience in People Operations, HR Operations, or Total Rewards
- 5+ years leading compensation, payroll, and benefits programs
Salary/Compensations
- $170,000—$190,000 USD
Benefits
- Full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits
About the Company
- Vita Coco is the leading coconut water brand in the world, built on a simple idea: bring better-for-you, natural hydration to more people.
- Since starting in 2004, we’ve grown into a global business with teams in New York, London, and Singapore, and we’re now publicly traded on NASDAQ under COCO.
- As a Public Benefit Corporation and Certified B Corp, we’re committed to supporting farming communities, sourcing responsibly, and building products that are better for people and the planet.
- We move fast, stay scrappy, and care deeply about doing the right thing.
- Our Values: Human First: We lead with inclusivity, transparency, and empathy. Nothing is Impossible: We experiment, learn, and keep moving forward. United by Our Will to Win: We stay aligned, work collaboratively, and push toward shared goals. Part of Something Bigger: We’re committed to uplifting the communities we’re connected to locally and globally.
Equal Opportunity
- We welcome you to apply—even if you don’t check every box. We’re big fans of curious, growth-minded people who want to learn, contribute, and make an impact. If you feel connected to our brands and our mission, we’d love to hear from you.