Introduction

As a People Ops leader in a startup or scaleup, you're constantly juggling priorities: hiring top talent, retaining your best employees, building a thriving culture, and scaling processes—all while navigating the complexities of rapid growth. To help you tackle these challenges, this guide provides a comprehensive list of 30 expertly crafted prompts designed to optimize your day-to-day work.

These prompts are structured using the Anatomy of an o1 Prompt, a proven framework that ensures clarity, specificity, and actionable results. Whether you’re working on recruitment strategies, employee engagement initiatives, or compliance planning, these prompts will save time and deliver high-impact outcomes.

The Anatomy of an o1 Prompt

An o1 Prompt is structured into four key components to ensure precision and relevance:

  1. Goal: Clearly defines what you want to achieve.
  2. Return Format: Specifies how the response should be structured (e.g., a list, report, template).
  3. Warnings: Highlights potential pitfalls or constraints to avoid errors or inefficiencies.
  4. Context Dump: Provides background information to tailor the response to your specific needs.

Here’s an example from the attached image:

Goal: I want a list of the best medium-length hikes within two hours of San Francisco. Return Format: For each hike, return the name of the hike as I'd find it on AllTrails, then provide the starting address, ending address, distance, drive time, hike duration, and what makes it unique. Return the top 3. Warnings: Be careful to ensure the trail names are correct and that the time estimates are accurate. Context Dump: My girlfriend and I hike a ton! We've done most local SF hikes and want something new with ocean views and good food nearby.

This structure ensures clarity for both the creator and recipient of the prompt. Now let’s dive into 30 prompts tailored for People Ops leaders.

Top 5 ROI Prompts

1. Employee Retention Strategy

Goal: Identify the top three reasons employees leave our company and create actionable strategies to reduce turnover.

Return Format: Provide a ranked list of reasons with supporting data (e.g., exit interviews) and specific recommendations for each.

Warnings: Ensure recommendations are realistic given our current resources; avoid generic solutions.

Context Dump: Our turnover rate is 18%, above industry benchmarks, and exit interviews frequently mention workload and career growth concerns.

2. DEI Hiring Plan

Goal: Develop a diversity, equity, and inclusion hiring plan to increase representation in leadership roles within the next year.