--- title: 'Associate Human Resources Generalist at Quartermaster' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/associate-human-resources-generalist-quartermaster-arlington-m3pqyw5c1qb2' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-10-14' --- # Associate Human Resources Generalist at Quartermaster - **Company:** Quartermaster - **Location:** Arlington, VA - **Employment:** full-time - **Work type:** onsite - **Posted:** 2026-10-08 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-14 - **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/quartermaster/e785ff07-87b6-47b7-8eac-8b42a673d1f4 ## Job description ## About Us Quartermaster is building the world's most comprehensive maritime intelligence platform. Our SmartMast™ system transforms commercial and civilian vessels into a persistent, distributed sensing network—combining HD video, AI, radar, RF sensing, and AIS to deliver real-time maritime domain awareness at global scale. With 600+ sensors deployed across 25+ countries and more than 400,000 vessels identified outside of AIS, we are setting a new standard for what ocean surveillance and safety can look like. We are a mission-driven, high-velocity team building dual-use technology for defense agencies, coast guards, and commercial maritime operators. Job Description Quartermaster is seeking a proactive, highly organized Associate HR Generalist to support our rapidly scaling team and help build out our core People operations. In this role, you will work across the entire employee lifecycle—driving seamless onboarding, managing day-to-day HR administrative operations, maintaining HRIS systems, and supporting employee relations, benefits, and compliance initiatives. You will serve as a primary point of contact for employee inquiries, ensuring our team members experience high-touch, reliable support as we scale. The ideal candidate thrives in fast-paced startup environments, brings meticulous attention to detail, and excels at building scalable HR processes without sacrificing the personal touch that makes a great workplace culture. ## Key Responsibilities - Own the end-to-end employee onboarding and offboarding processes, coordinating with IT, Recruiting, and hiring managers to deliver a seamless team member experience. - Maintain data integrity and manage records within our HRIS, keeping employee profiles, organizational charts, and compensation tracking accurate and up-to-date. - Serve as the first point of contact for employee inquiries regarding benefits, HR policies, leave requests, and general HR processes. - Assist in administering company benefits programs, including open enrollment, broker coordination, leave of absence management, and worker's compensation. - Support compliance initiatives by monitoring federal, state, and local labor law requirements, updating employee handbooks, and managing personnel files. - Coordinate performance management cycles, employee feedback touchpoints, and training initiatives across cross-functional teams. - Partner with the Talent Acquisition team to streamline the transition from candidate offer acceptance to Day 1 onboarding. - Drive culture initiatives, employee recognition programs, team events, and office experience projects to maintain high team engagement. Qualifications (Preferred): - 1–3 years of hands-on HR experience (as an HR Assistant, Coordinator, or Junior Generalist), preferably in a venture-backed tech startup, engineering, or fast-growing environment. - Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Psychology, or equivalent practical experience. - Hands-on experience with modern HR platforms (e.g., Rippling, Gusto, BambooHR, Sequoia, or similar HRIS tools). - Solid understanding of HR fundamentals, labor laws, benefits administration, and compliance best practices. - High degree of discretion, maturity, and judgment when handling sensitive, confidential information. - Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with a customer-service mindset toward supporting team members. - Strong organizational skills and the ability to multitask, prioritize, and drive projects independently in a fast-changing environment. - Bonus: HR certification (SHRM-CP or PHR) or prior experience supporting distributed/hybrid engineering teams. Work Environment - Hybrid environment with regular time at our Arlington, VA office. - High-velocity startup atmosphere with high autonomy and opportunities for rapid career growth. - Flexible working hours with occasional deadline-driven projects. ## About Quartermaster ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Quartermaster builds a real-time, distributed maritime awareness network by equipping vessels with AI-powered sensor packages (SmartMast) and an analytics platform. - **Entity Type**: Private (Series A) - **Headquarters**: Arlington, Virginia, United States - **Founded**: 2023 - **Founders**: Neil Sobin (CEO) ## Core Business - **Primary industry**: Maritime intelligence, defense technology, AI/robotics, ocean sensing - **Target customers**: Governments (navies, coast guards), commercial shipping operators, insurers, and maritime researchers (B2G, B2B) - **Mission**: “Connect every vessel on the water to create a comprehensive, real-time picture of our oceans, unlocking critical data insights that underpin a prosperous global maritime ecosystem.” [quartermaster.us](https://www.quartermaster.us/about) ## Products & Services - **SmartMast**: A weather-hardened hardware package (cameras, radios, sensors) mounted on a ship’s mast that continuously collects and relays maritime data. Combined with an AI analytics platform, it provides real-time vessel identification, anomaly detection, and environmental monitoring. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **Quartermaster Analytics Platform**: Cloud-based software that ingests SmartMast data and applies computer vision and machine learning to generate actionable intelligence for fleet operators, insurers, and government agencies. ## Market Standing - **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed - **Key Metric**: $43 million in Series A funding (announced May 20, 2026) [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Co-led by First Round Capital and Quiet Capital, with participation from TMV, Steel Atlas, BoxGroup, Operator Partners, Shorewind Capital, and David (surname not specified). Key hires from Anduril (Steve Ribaudo as CGO) and Scale AI (Matt Beck as COO). [quartermaster.us](https://www.quartermaster.us/about) | [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai) - **Growth Signals**: - Headcount grew 625% year-over-year to 40 employees (as of mid-2026). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai) - Over 600 ships equipped with SmartMast, covering 10 million square miles of ocean. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - Assisted in “over 20 rescues of mariners at sea.” [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - Operates in 7 countries (Panama, Colombia, South Korea, UAE, Brazil, Taiwan, United States). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai) ## Competitive Advantages - **Proprietary hardware edge**: SmartMast is far more advanced than the standard AIS (Automatic Identification System), which is opt-in and easily spoofed. Quartermaster’s sensors provide persistent, verified, real-time data that is less susceptible to fraud. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **Pro-mariner incentive model**: Rather than selling sensors to fleet operators (a tough sell in a low-margin industry), Quartermaster creates value for mariners (e.g., rescue support, safety data) to encourage voluntary adoption, locking in network effects. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **First-mover in distributed ocean sensing**: No other company has deployed a real-time, AI-powered sensor constellation at this scale, giving Quartermaster a data moat and early relationships with governments and commercial fleets. ## Strategic Focus - **Engineering hiring**: A large portion of the $43M Series A is earmarked for hiring engineers (RF, software, AI, systems) to accelerate product development. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **Fleet expansion**: Continue equipping more vessels with SmartMast, especially in key maritime corridors, to densify the network. - **New applications**: Developing uses for government intelligence, marine autonomy training data, environmental monitoring, and insurance risk assessment. - **Global presence**: Scaling operations in Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East (already in 7 countries). [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai) ## Why Work Here - **High-impact mission**: Directly contribute to ocean safety, security, and sustainability – work that has tangible real-world results (e.g., rescues at sea). - **Fast-growing startup**: 625% YoY headcount growth; employees have significant ownership and influence over product direction. - **Engineering culture**: “A single engineer can make a significant impact in relatively short periods of time” because the ocean space is largely untapped. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) - **Remote-friendly**: Some roles (e.g., “Opportunity Hire”) are listed as remote, though the HQ in Arlington, VA likely expects hybrid for core engineering teams. [quartermaster.us](https://www.quartermaster.us/jobs/opportunity-hire) - **Diverse, inclusive environment**: Equal opportunity employer that encourages individuals of all backgrounds to apply. [quartermaster.us](https://www.quartermaster.us/jobs/opportunity-hire) - **Notable perks**: Not explicitly listed, but the company emphasizes pro-mariner values and a collaborative, mission-driven culture. ## Sources 1. [quartermaster.us/about](https://www.quartermaster.us/about) 2. [techcrunch.com](https://techcrunch.com/2026/05/20/this-startup-raised-43m-to-build-a-hive-mind-for-ships/) 3. [linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai](https://www.linkedin.com/company/quartermasterai) 4. [quartermaster.us/jobs/opportunity-hire](https://www.quartermaster.us/jobs/opportunity-hire) 5. [jobs.ashbyhq.com/quartermaster](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/quartermaster) ## Other roles at Quartermaster - [Security Engineer, Application Security](https://feeny.ai/job/security-engineer-application-security-quartermaster-united-states-jv69v1vj0h7m) — United States - [Office Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/office-manager-quartermaster-arlington-xd5zf85jpj3b) — Arlington, VA - [Senior Software Engineer / RF Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-software-engineer-rf-systems-quartermaster-arlington-fmg80br2zt9z) — Arlington, VA - [Technical Program Manager / RF Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-program-manager-rf-systems-quartermaster-arlington-hsbht8sjs2k8) — Arlington, VA - [VP of Supply-Fleet Recruitment](https://feeny.ai/job/vp-of-supply-fleet-recruitment-quartermaster-new-york-jx7vs2ppd95y) — New York, NY - [Contracts Manager, Government Programs](https://feeny.ai/job/contracts-manager-government-programs-quartermaster-arlington-h3x56j223gc0) — Arlington, VA - [Technical Program Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-program-manager-quartermaster-arlington-mn55sdzt8jmb) — Arlington, VA - [Senior Mechanical Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mechanical-engineer-quartermaster-arlington-q6xgwr7w4v39) — Arlington, VA - [Applied Machine Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/applied-machine-learning-engineer-quartermaster-arlington-8gxjb58ahjjf) — Arlington, VA - [Recruiter](https://feeny.ai/job/recruiter-quartermaster-arlington-3sdcz2zcyhe3) — Arlington, VA