People infrastructure
for modern teams.
People systems that actually work — built for founders, creative teams, and growing companies. No bloat, no busywork, no HR baggage.
The philosophy
Designed for the people inside it.
The best people ops disappears into the work. Tools your team actually use. Processes that respect their time. Structures that hold up under pressure — and stay out of the way of the work itself.
Services
Two ways to
work together.
A monthly retainer, done two ways — People Operations Support takes the day-to-day off your plate, Fractional Head of People takes the whole strategic function off it. Or a focused project for the one specific thing that needs doing. Pick the shape that fits where you are.
People Operations Support
The day-to-day of people ops, off your plate — systems, compliance, and benefits handled, with a senior partner on call for anything that needs real judgment.
- HRIS and payroll, administered and running smoothly
- Benefits — full design, vendor selection, and administration
- Compliance basics — policies, trainings, OSHA, and recordkeeping
- Employee relations, hard conversations, and terminations — handled directly, not handed off
- Performance plans and compensation guidance, built and handed off
Fractional Head of People
Everything in People Operations Support, plus standing ownership of your people strategy — the embedded strategic muscle of a Head of People, without the full-time hire.
- Everything in People Operations Support
- Culture and leadership, kept alive not just documented
- Manager coaching, ongoing — not a one-time training
- Onboarding playbook, refined as you learn what works
- Compensation strategy and performance, owned end-to-end
- People analytics and engagement — the metrics that matter
Focused Projects
One specific thing that needs doing. No retainer, no long engagement — just the project, done well.
- Full-cycle talent acquisition and hiring
- Employee handbook and policy creation
- Compensation philosophy and salary bands
- Career leveling and job architecture
- HRIS or ATS selection, implementation, and automation
- Manager development programs
- Culture and values framework
- People analytics and KPI dashboards
- Contingent workforce design and management
The process
How it works.
Every engagement starts with a discovery conversation — what's not working, where the gaps are, and what the right fix looks like. If we're aligned, we build the scope together. No proposals sent cold, no packages forced onto the wrong problem.
Lauren Vicari
Founder · Fractional Head of People
I've built people functions from scratch and scaled them through growth, change, and the inevitable chaos — bringing clarity where there isn't any, making the hard calls when they're needed, and building systems that actually work day to day. Growing companies, especially the ones doing interesting work, deserve better than generic advice and off-the-shelf playbooks built for someone else's org.
I design people practices around the way your team actually works. Right-sized, well-made, and built to grow with you instead of getting in the way.
Ready to build people ops that actually work?
No hard sell. Just an honest conversation.