Principal People Business Partner

ABOUT SANDBOXAQ

SandboxAQ is a high-growth company delivering AI solutions that address some of the world's greatest challenges. The company's Large Quantitative Models (LQMs) power advances in life sciences, financial services, navigation, cybersecurity, and other sectors.

We are a global team that is tech-focused and includes experts in AI, chemistry, cybersecurity, physics, mathematics, medicine, engineering, and other specialties. The company emerged from Alphabet Inc. as an independent, growth capital-backed company in 2022, funded by leading investors and supported by a braintrust of industry leaders.

At SandboxAQ, we've cultivated an environment that encourages creativity, collaboration, and impact. By investing deeply in our people, we're building a thriving, global workforce poised to tackle the world's epic challenges. Join us to advance your career in pursuit of an inspiring mission, in a community of like-minded people who value entrepreneurialism, ownership, and transformative impact.

THE OPPORTUNITY

At SandboxAQ, we operate distinct product teams pursuing different AI technologies. This means our work crosses multiple, highly specialized technical frontiers. Our people strategy - who we hire and how we empower them - is a critical factor in whether we succeed.

We are looking for a Principal level People Partner who acts as a "Swiss Army Knife" organizational development expert and executive consultant. In this role, you will work across all business units and collaborate closely with partner functions like Finance, Information Security, Business Operations, and Marketing to drive company-wide objectives.

This unique role requires you to constantly zoom in and zoom out. One day you will partner with a business leader to architect a top-down people strategy that aligns with their 3-year product and commercial vision; the next, you will roll up your sleeves to handle a structural reorg or build a localized solution for an acute team issue.

You will not be running standard HR programs from an ivory tower. We have a centralized People Operations team that builds our core company-wide programs (like talent reviews and performance management) to provide a solid baseline foundation. Your job is to use that foundation as a springboard to design highly customized solutions for each business unit - ranging from structural redesigns and workflow overhauls to leadership alignment or custom training. Your insights will be critical to informing the content and priorities for company-wide programs and initiatives that help the company prepare for the future.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

- Strategic Business Consultation: Partner with business leaders to evaluate whether their current team setup supports their product and commercial vision. You will be accountable for ensuring there is a standardized, actionable "People Plan" for each business unit.

- High-Velocity Cross-Functional Design: Act as the internal expert on change management and organizational design. You will help design structures and frameworks that protect the agility of individual business units while keeping centralized infrastructure and technical breakthroughs highly accessible.

- Bridging Cultural Paradigms: Actively diagnose and manage organizational friction points and help leaders optimize team dynamics and understand polarities such as speed vs. quality, short-term revenue attainment vs. long-term competitive advantage, services vs. product.

- Bespoke Talent & Retention Strategy: Translate baseline talent data into localized action plans. Partner with our Head of People Operations & Programs and Total Rewards Manager to design retention strategies that keep our employees insulated from poaching by frontier AI labs.

- Ruthless Prioritization & Execution: You cannot do everything. You will diagnose the highest leverage opportunities for each business unit, and prioritize and help execute the exact point solutions that move the needle on business outcomes.

- Future Leadership: While you will operate as a high-impact individual contributor today, as the company grows you will architect our future People Partner model and eventually hire, mentor, and lead a team.

ESSENTIAL SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

- Experience: 10+ years of progressive experience in People Partnering / HRBP roles, organizational development, or management consulting, with at least 2-3 years at a Director or Principal level.

- Domain Expertise: Proven track record in organizational design (ideally in deeply technical, nimble environments), change management methodologies, and designing scaled organizations.

- Environment: Deep experience working in high-growth AI, deep-tech, biotech, or highly complex R&D environments. Experience managing the unique dynamics of commercializing highly scientific research is a massive plus.

- Execution Track Record: Demonstrable experience building high-impact frameworks, operational plans, and accountability st