People Partner Lead, Engineering

About Gusto At Gusto, we're on a mission to grow the small business economy. We handle the hard stuff — payroll, health insurance, 401(k)s, and HR — so owners can focus on their craft and their customers. With teams in Denver, San Francisco, and New York, we support more than 500,000 small businesses nationwide and are building a workplace that reflects the people we serve. All full-time employees receive competitive base pay, benefits, and equity (RSUs) — because everyone who helps build Gusto should share in its success. Offer amounts are determined by role, level, and location. Learn more about our Total Rewards philosophy . AI is a fundamental part of how work gets done at Gusto. We expect all team members to actively engage with AI tools relevant to their role and grow their fluency as the technology evolves. AI experience requirements vary by role and will be assessed during the interview process. About the Role: We're looking for a high-ownership People Business Partner to support our Engineering, Data Science, and Security/IT organizations at Gusto. This role reports into Gusto's Head of People and serves as a trusted partner to leaders across some of our most technically complex teams. This role blends high-trust business partnership with hands-on execution. You'll partner with leaders through organizational changes, drive core People programs and operating rhythms, and act as the connective tissue between R&D and the broader People team. The leaders you'll support have strong points of view and deep context — you add value by stress-testing their thinking, then making it happen. The ideal candidate is equally comfortable analyzing gPulse data to surface a team health trend, running a clean reorg end-to-end, and building a lightweight process that makes a program actually land. This role is designed for someone who operates with high ownership, has a strong bias toward action, and earns trust through follow-through — not decks. We are in an active build phase — this role requires someone who arrives ready to construct, not inherit. About the Team: Build trusted partnerships with Engineering, Data Science, and Security/IT leaders — understanding what's happening in their teams, surfacing friction early, and navigating performance management, promotions, leveling, and employee relations matters with good judgment. Synthesize People data — gPulse results, Gustofied performance cycles, attrition signals, headcount trends — into clear, actionable reads for R&D leaders before they have to ask. Support and operationalize core talent programs including performance cycles, calibration discussions, promotion processes, and manager enablement. Reinforce high performance standards, accountability, and clarity around expectations, feedback, and growth across Engineering, Data Science, and Security/IT. Serve as the liaison between R&D and Gusto's broader People team (Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards, L&D, People Ops), translating company-wide programs into what they mean specifically for technical orgs — and surfacing R&D context back to the center. Proactively identify risks, friction points, and opportunities for improvement using People insights and organizational data. Build lightweight but scalable People frameworks, operating mechanisms, and repeatable processes that improve consistency across the business. When org changes are decided, own end-to-end execution — transition planning, communication sequencing, Workday updates, leader enablement, and follow-through until nothing is left unresolved. Here’s what you’ll do day-to-day: Build trusted partnerships with Engineering, Data Science, and Security/IT leaders — understanding what's happening in their teams, surfacing friction early, and navigating performance management, promotions, leveling, and employee relations matters with good judgment. Synthesize People data — gPulse results, Gustofied performance cycles, attrition signals, headcount trends — into clear, actionable