Head of People

Who We Are

Søter is an insurance company built from the ground up to support next generation financial infrastructure. Our mission at Søter is to pioneer insurance solutions specifically tailored for businesses dealing with digital assets and crypto, with a strong focus on:

• Operational risk (D&O, P&I)


• Loss of assets risk (Specie, Crime)


• Smart contract risk (Cyber)

In an industry first, Søter aims to offer policies denominated in and backed by USD, Bitcoin and Ethereum - ensuring 1-to-1 asset-liabilities matching and superior insurance products for its clients.

About The Role:

We are seeking a seasoned generalist people professional based in New York City (USA) who has experience partnering with a scaling business to establish their People function for the first time and take the lead on all matters relating to people – resourcing, resource planning, day-to-day people operations, talent development and training, HR compliance, performance management, employee engagement etc.

We are looking for someone who is energized by being an integral part of a scaling business with an attitude to match – flexible, approachable, pragmatic and highly organized. This is a crucial role within the organization and as our first ever People Lead, you will have the opportunity to put your own stamp in the development of our people function. You will bring the skills and ambition to drive forward significant developments in the function in order to enable Soter to attain its business strategy. This role requires good leadership and organizational skills, knowledge of up-to-date HR best practices and international employment law with an ability to give sound practical advice and collaborate with teams across multiple jurisdictions.

As the first HR leader, you will work closely with the company’s CEO as well as with other stakeholders to define, communicate and execute a variety of HR initiatives, ranging from identifying and deploying appropriate employment solutions across jurisdictions, supporting the introduction and oversight of a new performance management approach, introducing Health & Safety policies, running HR compliance and audit checks, recruitment and onboarding, systems management with an element of reporting and administration. You will actively contribute to the employee experience focusing on employee retention and engagement at all times, whilst managing HR day-to-day activities and administrative processes.

This is a busy, standalone and hands-on role which ideally requires an experienced People Manager with broad knowledge of all HR disciplines, as well as the ability to balance the operational and the strategic.

Working for a geographically dispersed team and supporting multiple jurisdictions, this role can be home or office based, with a lot of flexibility on hybrid working arrangements in place

What You Are Good at:

• Building and maintaining a close working relationship with the senior leadership team, to become a trusted People partner


• Being the first point of contact for team managers to provide support on concerns regarding conduct, capability and general performance and advising on the most appropriate course of action


• Providing training and coaching to team managers on people processes, providing them with the tools to effectively manage and support their people


• Working closely with the CEO to enable the successful delivery of the people strategy to deliver the ambitious business growth plans as well as day to day activities and tasks


• Having a key focus on people policy development and strategic projects such as performance management, HR compliance, H&S, employee engagement, talent management & development and other initiatives


• Having significant experience in employee relations, case law and legal changes, ensuring all people policies are current and compliant


• Having experience of Immigration and Right to Work processes and compliance


• Proactively managing employee relation cases, advising colleagues and coaching people managers on best practice approaches


• Supporting all talent acquisition strategies to ensure the company is able to attract and retain the very best caliber talent across all areas of the business


• Analyzing and providing insight on agreed HR key metrics, generating regular reporting, and informing board reporting


• Supporting the ongoing implementation and management of the newly implemented HRIS

What You Bring:

• Substantial experience in generalist Human Resources or People Operations roles in a start-up or fast scaling environment within financial or professional services, FinTech or similar industry experience


• International HR background with experience supporting different jurisdictions


• Prior experience in advisory or business partnering roles including experience of project managing HR interventions and initiatives end-to-end


• Sound knowledge of employment law along with practitioner level knowledge of supporting payroll is key


• Strong understanding of HR functions & best practices


• Proven experience working in a fast-paced environment


• Experience utilizing HRIS/ATS systems and using Google applications


• HR advanced certification/qualification is preferred


• Excellent communication skills and the ability to build, engage and maintain strong relationships with employees across all levels


• Practical hands-on experience implementing and actioning policy and process


• Demonstrable examples of building key relationships across a business


• Continuous improvement mindset


• Solid knowledge of Immigration and right to work checks and processes


• Must be able to work independently with autonomy and confidence whilst having an ability to keep relevant people informed along the way as required

What You Can Expect:

• Working with best-in-class talent


• Exposure to innovative services in the digital asset space


• Great internal growth and development opportunities


• Competitive compensation, benefits, and perks


• Flexible hybrid working