People Operations & Benefits Specialist

The People Operations & Benefits Specialist supports day-to-day human resources operations with a focus on benefits administration, HR tech stack, and employee support. This role serves as the first point of contact for HR inquiries, coordinates benefit related activities, ensures data accuracy across systems, and manages and enhances HR processes to support employee experience and compliance.

What you will do:

• Serve as first-line support for HR-related inquiries, managing the HR inbox and responding to employee questions in a timely and professional manner.
• Triage inquiries and solve complex, sensitive, or unresolved issues as needed; escalate issues and inquiries as needed
• Administer health and welfare benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and ancillary plans.
• Manage benefit enrollments, changes, and terminations, including COBRA administration.
• Ensure accurate data transfer and reconciliation between HRIS and benefit vendor systems.
• Maintain benefits system configuration and supports data integrity efforts.
• Manage open enrollment planning and execution.
• Maintain employee records and ensure data accuracy within the HRIS (Paylocity).
• Analyze and processes employee lifecycle transactions, including hires, terminations, and job changes.
• Conduct audits of HR and benefits data and supports reporting needs, including benefit eligibility and ad hoc reports.
• Manage onboarding and offboarding processes and other HR operational workflows.
• Administer employee accommodation requests and supports the ADA interactive process, escalating as needed.
• Administer leave processes for the Talent consultant population, including coordination with internal teams and external vendors.
• Partner with Finance, Staffing Operations, and external vendors to support accurate and timely processing.
• Identify recurring issues, trends, or process gaps and communicates them to leadership.
• Build knowledge of benefits compliance requirements, including ACA, and support related tracking, reporting, and audit activities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

What you bring:

• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills.
• Ability to manage multiple workflows and prioritize effectively.
• Ability to follow established processes and exercise sound judgment within defined guidelines.
• Customer-focused approach to employee support.
• Basic understanding of HR practices, including benefits administration and HR operations.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite or related software.
• Proficient with or ability to quickly learn HRIS systems (Paylocity preferred) and benefits platforms.
• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field preferred or equivalent experience.
• Approximately 2–4 years of HR or People Operations experience, with exposure to benefits administration and HR systems.

Compensation

In this role, you'll enjoy a competitive base salary of $62,500-$78,000/year depending upon experience. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location.

About Horizontal
At Horizontal, we deliver holistic, innovative solutions tailored for your technology, business strategy, creative and marketing needs via talent, team, and project solutions. Our vast expertise ensures flexible, diverse and tech-forward approaches that don’t just accomplish your unique goals but exceeds them. We live by five pillars: Collaboration, Greater Good, Integrity, Positive Energy, and Hustle.

Benefits

Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)

Retirement Plan (401k, IRA)

Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)

Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)

Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity)

Short Term & Long Term Disability

Training & Development

Wellness Resources

Keywords: Human Resources Coordinator, HR Coordinator, HR Admin, Staffing Industry experience, People Operations Specialist, HR Operations Specialist, People Operations Coordinator, Human Resources Specialist, Benefits Administrator

The above description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.