1. WHY THIS ROLE EXISTS:

Building the HR function every founder wishes they had.

FTN is building the HR function every founder wishes they had the judgment of a CHRO, the coverage of a full team, and an AI-native operating layer underneath it, without the overhead most startups and growing SMBs can't yet justify. We work with founders and leadership teams at the stage where every hire changes the trajectory of the company, and we're the reason those decisions get made with rigor instead of guesswork.

Our teams run on BYOA - Bring Your Own Agents - a set of AI agents built specifically for HR work, so the humans on the team spend their time on judgment, not repetitive process.

We're now bringing on the people who will run that promise on the ground. This is a rare seat: a chance to be part of the founding team building FTN itself, working directly with clients and with FTN's founders from day one. We're looking for someone who's ready to be trusted with real ownership immediately - not eased into it.

2. WHY APPLY:

What you're actually signing up for.

- Pioneer the HR AI agenda. Very few HR professionals get to shape how AI actually gets used in HR, not just talk about it. You'll be building and running that playbook from the inside, not reading a think-piece about it.

- Work with the best minds in the startup ecosystem. Founders, operators and investors building category-defining companies - you'll be in the room with them, not one step removed.

- See the whole board, not one square of it. Across multiple clients and stages, you'll build pattern recognition most HR careers take a decade to earn in a single company.

- Build something that outlasts one job. The frameworks and judgment you build here become FTN's IP and your own body of work not a slide deck that gets forgotten when you move on.

3. WHAT YOU'LL OWN:

The mandate.

- Run end-to-end HR operations for 13 client startups: onboarding, policy design, contracts, compliance, performance systems built for their stage, not adapted from an enterprise playbook.

- Be the actual point of contact a client's team trusts when something HR-shaped comes up not a name on an org chart.

- Build and sharpen the tools FTN reuses across every client - job description frameworks, onboarding systems, comp philosophy so the function gets stronger with every engagement.

- Work alongside FTN's AI agents (BYOA) to run the repeatable parts of HR operations, so your time goes to the calls that actually need judgment.

- Bring what you learn on the ground into new client conversations, helping shape how FTN scopes and pitches its work.

- Work directly with FTN's founders on how the function itself is built - not just how it's delivered.

4. WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR:

The profile.

- 25 years in HR, ideally inside tech or services companies - startup or scale-up exposure is a strong plus.

- End-to-end ownership. You've run onboarding, written policy, managed a performance cycle - not just supported one.

- Based in or able to work from Bangalore, with flexibility for 2 days/week on-site with clients.

- Comfortable in the room with a founder or CEO and trusted there from day one - this role has real client-facing exposure immediately.

- Multi-client exposure is a plus - agency, consulting, or fractional HR background.

- Genuine interest in the business side of HR - you want a seat in the conversation about what a client needs, not just a scope handed to you.

- Comfortable working alongside AI tools as part of how the job gets done, not threatened by them.

5. WHY JOIN US:

What we believe?

- HR is not hiring plus admin. It's the highest-leverage function in a growing company, and we treat it that way - not as a checklist, as strategy.

- The CHRO belongs at the table. Not summoned when there's a problem - part of how the big decisions get made in the first place.

- On-site is not a proxy for productivity. We care about the work getting done right, not where you're sitting when you do it.

- We don't just take orders - we challenge. A good HR partner tells a founder what they need to hear, not just what they asked for.

- Judgment compounds. The best HR thinking gets built once and reused well, not reinvented from scratch every time.

- AI should do the repeatable work, not replace the judgment. With BYOA running underneath you, you're not buried in admin - you're free to do the part of HR that actually needs a human.

6. HOW WE WORK:

The team.

FTN is a small, senior founding team building something founders have been asking for an AI-native HR function, not a legacy one wearing new branding. You'll work directly with Deepika and Ruchira, with real visibility into how the company itself is built not just the clients you serve.