Part 3: PeopleOps Tech Stack – Empowering Teams for Growth
Your company’s growth is only as scalable as the team behind it. And your team is only as scalable as the systems supporting them.
At Fulcrum, we’ve seen high-performing companies invest in People Operations not just as an HR function, but as a strategic advantage. The right stack doesn’t just help you hire faster; it enables you to hire better, onboard smarter, and build a culture that can weather change.
Hiring: Speed Meets Structure
Hiring ramps quickly at the growth stage—but speed without structure can be costly. That’s why platforms like Greenhouse, Ashby, and Lever are common in our portfolio: they bring rigor, transparency, and consistency to the hiring process.
Meanwhile, tools like LinkedIn Recruiter and Carta help companies compete for top talent while aligning compensation with long-term value creation.
Takeaway: Fast hiring is risky hiring. The right tools create discipline without slowing you down.
Core HR: Building the Backbone
Once headcount accelerates, core HR systems become mission-critical. We see consistent adoption of Rippling, BambooHR, Gusto, and Paylocity—platforms that integrate payroll, benefits, compliance, and onboarding.
These systems eliminate manual overhead and boost lean PeopleOps teams to punch above their weight.
Takeaway: Invest early in scalable HR infrastructure. It’s cheaper than fixing gaps under pressure.
Culture & Performance: Reinforcing What Matters
Culture isn’t what you write down—it’s what your systems reinforce. Tools like Lattice, 15Five, and Bloom Growth give managers the ability to set goals, track performance, and provide timely feedback.
Collaboration hubs like Notion, Note, and Asana have also become culture carriers—driving clarity, ownership, and alignment across distributed teams.
Takeaway: As headcount grows, alignment gets harder. Build habits and tools that keep everyone rowing in the same direction.
The AI Layer: A New Era in PeopleOps
AI is beginning to transform how PeopleOps teams operate. It’s less about replacing people—and more about enabling them to focus on what matters most.
- ChatGPT and Jasper are speeding up job description writing, onboarding docs, and internal comms.
- Perplexity is helping teams manage knowledge in real time.
- AI-enhanced platforms are starting to flag engagement and retention risks before they escalate.
Takeaway: AI won’t replace your culture, but it will elevate how you build and support it.
What Resilience Looks Like in a PeopleOps Stack
A resilient PeopleOps stack is:
- Automated – Frees up bandwidth for strategic work
- Integrated – Connects systems across the employee lifecycle
- Human-centered – Designed for teams, not just transactions
- Transparent – Enables clarity and accountability
- AI-Enhanced – Boosts performance without adding headcount
Closing the Loop
The tools you choose reflect the company you’re building. Across go-to-market, product, and people, a resilient tech stack doesn’t just support scale, it makes it sustainable.
At Fulcrum, we partner closely with our portfolio companies to design systems that evolve with growth. Because smart tech stacks fuel and compound momentum.
Curious how your stack stacks up? We’re always happy to share what we’re seeing across the portfolio.