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Dandelion Chocolate · 3 months ago

People Operations & Talent Manager

San Francisco, CA

Full-time

Onsite

Mid, Senior Level

Dandelion Chocolate is a bean-to-bar chocolate factory in San Francisco focused on building good relationships with farmers and fostering a people-first culture. The People Operations & Talent Manager will play a crucial role in talent and team building, supporting recruiting efforts, and enhancing the candidate experience while collaborating closely with leadership to align team goals with the company's long-term vision.

Consumer GoodsFood and BeverageMarketingRestaurantsRetailSnack Food

Responsibilities

Recruiting & Team Building – Our organizational successes and setbacks can always be traced back to how we hired and onboarded. Research sourcing strategies, schedule and conduct initial phone screens, maintain detailed notes for the hiring manager to review later to make sound hiring decisions. Schedule reference checks with candidate contacts so that we can hire our candidates with full confidence. It takes 18-24 months to see how the team you hired years ago is performing today. You’ll have the rare opportunity to shadow the outgoing People Operations leader to see our peak operations humming before taking on those reins in 2026. You will have confidential access to reviews, exit interviews, company all-hands surveys, and other performance information so you can develop your sensitivity and expertise for talent. We are passionate about recruiting, view it as a key part of our strategy, will train you, and are therefore looking for someone who intends to commit and grow with Dandelion for the long-term. You’ll also co-host company-wide interview training sessions, work with managers to regularly update job descriptions, orchestrate first-day experiences which include signed cards, onboarding boxes, configured email accounts, and a 90-day plan. Most of all, build a world-class team that takes pride in their work, consistently hits goals, and is excited to adapt and grow with Dandelion

Seasonal Staffing – You’ll phone screen, hire, and onboard permanent and seasonal café, retail, fulfillment, and packaging roles as well as work with seasonal agencies to flex to holiday demand. Just a few weeks in November and December can represent more than 50% of our sales. You’ll be responsible for developing a strategy that will allow us to double our team size with the help of agencies, recruiting, and coordinating teamwork throughout the holidays

Candidate Experience – Candidates believe actions over words. Our dedication to excellence is evident when candidates receive confirmed interview times, are guided with an introductory tour of the factory, sit down to a clean table with water carafes, and receive a response within 7 days. Even if the role isn’t the right fit, your warm demeanor & buttoned-up process makes candidates excited to apply again

People Operations & Growth Opportunities – A key part of this role is talent building and recruiting, especially during the holiday season. During other parts of the year, you’ll support other People Operations work—helping team members with timeclocks, coordinating with our IT partners to repair laptops, organizing professional development classes, hosting onboarding and All Hands events, conducting annual surveys, and lifting morale with holiday gifts or team lunches throughout the year. No two days look the same, but each one strengthens your foundation to grow into a long-term People Operations leader with us. People Operations at Dandelion spans many disciplines – recruiting, benefits and compliance, professional development, leveling, IT and facilities, community and neighbor relations, and, on occasion, personnel matters. No one person can do everything, so you’ll collaborate closely with our CXO, legal advisors, IT agencies, seasonal recruiters, and long-time HR colleagues as you build your expertise and eventually specialize in an area. You’ll also gain exposure to complex personnel conversations so that you can learn from real examples and develop judgment for future leadership. While we believe in offering second chances, we maintain clear boundaries and very little tolerance for toxic behavior. You won’t be responsible for managing personnel issues directly, but you’ll be part of discussions that will deepen your understanding of how a healthy, high-trust culture is maintained

Exec Relations – You’ll report to the CXO and interface regularly with the CEO, CFO, and COO. Send weekly emails that track annual turnover, candidate funnels, and overall team health. Ensure that the CFO is informed of roles currently being hired for so she can account for it in our labor forecast. Coordinate with our COO to ensure we can staff for peak holiday operations. Connect with the CEO to make sure the onboarding process reflects the values of the organization and has up-to-date information

Leadership Support – Work hand-in-hand with busy managers to understand what traits they prioritize in candidates and to make sure you’re able to accurately describe the role during phone interviews. You know that your success depends upon managers trusting you to build their team. You’ll be working with leaders when they are short-staffed and likely not at their best – you may need to track down late interview notes or assist them with a 90-day plan. We’re looking for someone who can de-escalate and de-stress harried managers with an even-keeled, fair, and can-do attitude

Other tasks as necessary – Our culture is defined by being kind, humble, and no one is above doing work. We are a small team and, especially during the holidays, everyone pitches in to help each other. You can be depended upon to pick up new skills as necessary for the role and to follow through without reminders

Qualification

Talent AcquisitionOnboardingOrganizational SkillsProfessional DevelopmentGoogle SuiteDiscretionCalm JudgmentTeam SkillsWriting Skills

Required

Professionalism – You bring calm judgment and professionalism to sensitive situations and never traffic in gossip or speculation

Commitment & discretion – Whether you are early in your career or more seasoned, you've demonstrated follow-through and reliability in whatever environments you've been part of — through leadership, community involvement, or professional roles. You handle sensitive information with maturity and good judgment. Previous experience in roles requiring discretion, mediation, or confidentiality is a plus

Organizational skills – You're a can-do, buttoned-up person who likes punctuality, responds to emails within 24 hours, and has no problem keeping track of the flow of résumés, cover letters, and interviewer notes

Writing & typing skills – When you aren't sure whether you pore, poor, or pour over a résumé, you look it up and ensure that candidates receive grammatically correct replies with no misspellings or typos. We type as we conduct phone screens so we can preserve as much detail for the hiring manager as possible. If you're a hunt-and-peck typer, this is not the role for you!

Fluent computer skills – You keep candidate notes and personnel details organized in Google Suite. You use calendar reminders and email filters to stay on top of candidate responses. You can use basic formulas in Google Spreadsheets to help with leveling

Team skills – You can read a room and pick up on unspoken interpersonal dynamics. You can neutralize politics and ask the right questions to align the team