About MantriAI:

MantriAI is the search partner for this role. All applications come to us first. We screen and send only shortlisted profiles to the client.

About the Hiring Company:

An AI product startup in Bengaluru - lean team, growing fast across engineering, GTM and design. The company works six days a week from its Bengaluru office.

About the role:

This is the company's first HR hire. You will own the people function end to end - talent acquisition, payroll and compliance, office administration, and culture - working directly with the founders. This is an individual contributor role: there is no HR team. The role suits someone who wants breadth and ownership, with hustle in an AI-native environment.

What you'll do:

- Own recruitment coordination end to end - work with hiring managers and the search partner on scheduling, candidate experience, offer roll-outs and closing across all open roles.

- Run onboarding for new joiners - documentation, induction and the first-week experience.

- Set up and run payroll - select an HRMS, own the monthly payroll cycle, and manage the compliance calendar with the company's CA.

- Own office administration - vendors, assets, travel and day-to-day operations.

- Build the basics of the people function as the team grows - policies, engagement and review processes.

- Be the first point of contact for all employee matters.

What we are looking for:

- 4-8 years of HR experience with generalist breadth across talent acquisition and HR operations.

- Experience owning HR independently - as a first or early HR hire at a startup, or as a solo HR running multiple functions at a small company.

- Hands-on payroll exposure on any HRMS (Keka, greytHR, Zoho People, RazorpayX Payroll or similar).

- Comfort with ambiguity - you will often be creating processes, not running existing ones.

- Clear written and spoken communication.

- Willingness to work six days a week from the Bengaluru office - please apply only if this works for you.

Why join:

- Build a people function from scratch, working directly with the founders.

- Compensation at the top of the market for this function.

- A transparent and open culture.

Location and work model:

Bengaluru, in-office, six days a week. Full-time employment only.

Hiring process:

- Application and resume screen.

- Screening call with MantriAI.

- 15-minute call with the hiring team.

- In-office conversation.

Posted by MantriAI, search partner on this mandate. Shortlisted candidates hear from us within 2 working days.