People Analytics Lead

About Ascend

Ascend Partner Services is on a mission to revitalize the accounting profession. We are a fast-growing aggregator of high-quality regional CPA firms across the United States, backed by Alpine Investors — a people-first private equity firm. We provide our 20+ partner firms with the shared resources, technology, capital, and playbooks to help them grow, attract top talent, and bring their businesses into the new age — without sacrificing the independence and culture that make them great.

We move fast. We love our people. We set a high bar because our mission matters. And we genuinely believe that excellence and joy are not in conflict — we call it bringing the sunshine.

If you are energized by building something meaningful from the ground up, translating complex data into stories that drive real decisions, and operating autonomously in a high-trust environment, this role was designed for you.

The Opportunity

This is a foundational, high-visibility role sitting within Ascend Partner Services — our shared services headquarters — reporting to the Director of Employee Engagement. You will serve as our first dedicated People Analytics function, building the infrastructure, frameworks, and insight engine that will power people strategy across Ascend and all of our partner firms.

Our executive leadership team — including the CEO, CFO, and Board — expects differentiated, proactive people intelligence this year. You will deliver it. You will own our Visier implementation, build the frameworks to measure AI ROI across the organization, produce M&A-facing people analytics collateral, and partner closely with our AI Enablement and Professional Development team to prove the impact of upskilling at scale.

This is not a role where you will wait for direction. You will receive vision and outcomes, then build the path yourself — leveraging AI and agentic tools to scale your impact far beyond what one person could traditionally accomplish. You will not manage people. You will influence hundreds of stakeholders across a growing national network.

What You'll Do

Build and Own the People Analytics Platform Lead the full implementation and ongoing management of Vizier as our enterprise people analytics platform. Configure integrations with Workday, Culture Amp, and Greenhouse. Create scalable reporting infrastructure that empowers executives and Heads of People at our 20+ partner firms to access meaningful, real-time workforce insights without requiring your direct involvement in every query.

Measure and Communicate AI ROI Develop a rigorous, repeatable framework for calculating the return on investment from AI deployment across Ascend and our partner firms. Translate complex findings into compelling narrative reports and presentations for the Board, the Executive Leadership Team, and Heads of People at the firm level. Make the abstract tangible and the numbers meaningful to each audience.

Deliver Proactive, Predictive Workforce Intelligence Go beyond reporting what happened. Develop predictive models and forward-looking analyses that surface risks and opportunities before they become problems. Partner directly with the Chief People Officer to shape people strategy, prioritization, and focus for 2026 and beyond.

Build M&A People Analytics Collateral Develop a repeatable suite of analytics assets that demonstrate Ascend's measurable impact on culture, retention, engagement, and performance at firms we acquire. These materials will be used actively during our M&A process to tell a compelling, data-backed story of what joining Ascend means for a firm's people.

Partner on Upskilling Impact Measurement Work hand-in-hand with our AI Enablement and Professional Development function to design measurement frameworks and reporting that tangibly demonstrate the impact of learning and development investments across the organization. Connect upskilling to business outcomes in ways that resonate at every level of the organization.

Scale Through Systems and AI Build systems and leverage AI tools and agents to dramatically extend your own capacity. Develop self-serve reporting, automated insight delivery, and scalable processes that reduce dependency on you as a single point of failure and extend the reach of people analytics across a growing portfolio of firms.

What We're Looking For

The Profile We are looking for someone who thinks like a People Scientist — deeply grounded in organizational psychology and behavioral data — but who presents like a trusted strategic advisor. You combine technical rigor with exceptional storytelling. You are as comfortable building a predictive model as you are walking a CEO through what it means for their business. You do not need hand-holding. You need a clear vision and then room to run.

Experience & Skills

• 7–12 years of experience in people analytics, HR data science, organizational research, or a closely related field; background in a People Scientist role at a high-caliber organization is strongly preferred
• Demonstrated expertise in people analytics platforms; Visier experience strongly preferred, Workday familiarity required
• Experience integrating and deriving insights from multiple HR data sources (CultureAmp, Greenhouse, HRIS, L&D platforms, etc.)
• Strong business acumen and experience linking business and people outcomes
• Proven ability to calculate and communicate ROI from HR and technology investments, including AI
• Strong quantitative skills: statistical modeling, predictive analytics, and data visualization
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; ability to tailor narrative and visual presentation to C-suite, Board, HR, and business unit audiences
• Experience producing executive-ready presentations and polished external-facing collateral
• Familiarity with AI and automation tools; demonstrated ability — or clear aptitude — to leverage AI agents to scale individual output
• Track record of operating autonomously in a high-growth, ambiguous environment
• Background in organizational psychology, industrial-organizational psychology, HR, or a related discipline is a meaningful plus

You Will Thrive Here If You:

• Default to building systems, not just answering questions one-off
• Get energy from turning data into decisions, not just dashboards
• Can hold the complexity of a technical analysis and a compelling story simultaneously
• Are a self-starter who takes ownership without needing to be managed
• Bring the sunshine — optimistic, curious, and genuinely joyful in your craft
• Are comfortable operating in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial organization where the path is still being built

What You Can Count on at Ascend

We live by our values:

• Own it. We seize growth opportunities with the passion, speed, and accountability of an entrepreneur.
• Serve wholeheartedly. We love our people and serve them with positivity and kindness.
• Be excellent. We set a high bar because our mission matters.
• Win together. We stay in sync, achieve as a team, and celebrate each other.
• Bring the sunshine. We have fun and bring enthusiasm to make the journey joyful.

Compensation and Other

• Highly competitive cash and equity bonus compensation package, including attractive benefits.
• Start date is as soon as practicable.

At Ascend, we provide a fair and equal employment opportunity for all candidates regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, marital status, disability, or any other legally protected characteristic. Ascend hires and promotes individuals solely based on qualifications for the position to be filled and business needs.