People Programs Manager

About the role: Reporting to the Senior Director, Talent Acquisition and Culture, the People Programs Manager will own and evolve the programs and moments that shape how people feel about working at Forter. This is a strategic IC role focused on driving recognition, culture, events, swag, and DEI initiatives while partnering cross-functionally to amplify Forter's employer brand and Employee Value Proposition. You'll sit on the People team and operate at the intersection of culture, communications, and community, touching every layer of the employee lifecycle from day one through long tenure. You'll own your programs end-to-end, set the vision, manage vendors and budgets, and bring creative thinking to how we show up for our people globally and locally. What you’ll be doing: Employee Experience Programs Design and improve core EX programs: Own and continuously evolve recognition, milestone moments, onboarding experiences, and culture moments, ensuring they land with impact across a global workforce. Shape the global events cadence: Partner with local employee experience teams to develop and evolve a global events calendar, ensuring consistency of experience while preserving local relevance across geographies. Develop and manage the swag program: Lead Forter's swag strategy end-to-end, including vendor selection, inventory management, quality standards, and distribution for employees, candidates, and new hires. Connect programs to company momentum: Design and activate recognition and celebration moments tied to company milestones and wins, from new client launches to product achievements, ensuring employees feel the impact of the company's success. Identify experience gaps: Audit the employee journey on an ongoing basis and propose scalable, high-impact solutions where gaps exist. EVP & Employer Brand Activate Forter's Employee Value Proposition: Partner with Marketing and TA to define, articulate, and activate the EVP, ensuring alignment between how we show up as an employer externally and what employees actually experience internally. Spotlight employee stories: Surface and amplify authentic employee journeys across internal and external channels, including content, social, career pages, and events. Partner on brand repositioning: Work closely with Marketing to ensure Forter's brand evolution is reflected internally, embedding updated messaging, values, and identity into employee programs, communications, and key moments across the lifecycle. Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Lead DEI programming: Drive Forter's DEI initiatives with a specific focus on building and enabling Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). Build ERG infrastructure: Develop the frameworks, charters, governance, programming support, and budget allocation that allow ERGs to operate and grow effectively. Partner on priorities and progress: Work with People leadership and business leaders to set DEI priorities, measure impact, and design programming tied to awareness moments and heritage months. Budget & Vendor Management Own program budgets: Manage budget planning, tracking, and reporting across your full program portfolio. Manage vendor relationships: Lead external partnerships with event venues, recognition platforms, swag suppliers, and ERG program tools, including RFPs, contracts, and ongoing performance management. Drive efficiency: Identify opportunities to improve cost-effectiveness without compromising employee experience quality. Global & Local Balance Build programs that scale: Design initiatives that work globally while making space for local culture, office identity, and regional nuance. Partner with local Employee Experience teams: Work alongside Employee Experience Partners and office leads to customize programs appropriately across Forter's markets. Operationalize consistency: Balance centralized standards with decentralized flexibility, ensuring every employee has a connected Forter experience regardless of location. What you’ll need: 4-8 years of expe