Associate Director, Talent Acquisition (Europe)

Cytokinetics; Zug; Hybrid; CHF 162,000 - 203,000; Full time

Job summary

Cytokinetics is seeking an Associate Director, Talent Acquisition (Europe) to shape and drive Europe-wide recruitment strategy from Zug, Switzerland. This hybrid role combines strategic leadership with hands-on execution and requires partnering with business leaders, HR, and external partners to deliver high-impact hiring outcomes.

The successful candidate will manage full-cycle recruitment across multiple European countries, lead contract recruiters, and advance talent pipelines, employer

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive talent acquisition experience in pharma or life sciences.
• Experience recruiting across multiple European countries with varied labor regulations.
• Experience developing TA strategies, pipelines, and scalable processes.
• Strong stakeholder management and ability to influence senior leaders.

Responsibilities

• Lead Europe TA partner for Europe, aligning with business priorities and workforce plans.
• Lead full-cycle recruitment across multiple European countries and functions.
• Partner with leaders, HR, and external partners to anticipate needs and develop sourcing approaches.
• Develop and maintain strategic talent pipelines for critical roles.
• Oversee relationships with executive search firms and external partners.

Skills

Talent acquisition leadership

Stakeholder management

Cross-country recruitment

Analytical / data-driven

Communication skills

Project management

AI-enabled recruiting tools

Recruiting strategy

Education

Bachelor's degree

Advanced degree

Tools

Workday Recruiting

Recruiting tech stack

Job description

Cytokinetics is a specialty cardiovascular biopharmaceutical company, building on its over 25 years of pioneering scientific innovations in muscle biology, and advancing a pipeline of potential new medicines for patients suffering from diseases of cardiac muscle dysfunction.

The Associate Director, Talent Acquisition (Europe) will play a critical role in shaping and executing Cytokinetics’ talent acquisition strategy across Europe. Partnering closely with business leaders, Human Resources, and cross-functional stakeholders, this individual will leverage workforce planning and talent market insights to drive hiring strategies, strengthen recruiting capabilities, and deliver exceptional talent outcomes that support Cytokinetics' continued growth.

This role combines strategic leadership with hands‑on execution and requires the ability to influence senior stakeholders, lead complex hiring initiatives across multiple European countries, and continuously enhance recruiting operations, process, and candidate experiences. The successful candidate will bring strategic thinking, creativity, business acumen, analytical rigor, and a relentless drive for continuous improvement to build scalable talent acquisition capabilities that enable business growth.

This role reports to the Head of Talent Management (US) with a dotted line to the Head of HR Europe. This is a hybrid role based in Zug, Switzerland and expected to be onsite 4 days/week in accordance with company policy.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the lead Talent Acquisition partner for Europe, developing and executing recruiting strategies aligned with business priorities and workforce plans.
• Lead full-cycle recruitment across multiple European countries for Commercial, Medical Affairs, Global Supply Chain & Tech Ops, Regulatory, Quality, and G&A functions.
• Partner with business leaders, Human Resources, and Total Rewards to anticipate hiring needs, provide talent market insights, and develop effective sourcing approaches.
• Develop and maintain strategic talent pipelines for critical and business-sensitive roles across the region.
• Oversee relationships with executive search firms, recruitment agencies, and other external talent partners to ensure effective talent delivery.
• Lead talent attraction initiatives, employer branding efforts, university partnerships, and diversity-focused sourcing strategies to strengthen candidate pipelines and market presence.
• Deliver an exceptional candidate experience while ensuring efficient and effective hiring outcomes.

Stakeholder Management & Recruiting Operations

• Serve as a trusted advisor to European business leaders and HR partners, providing guidance on hiring decisions, workforce planning, and labor market trends.
• Establish and continuously improve recruiting processes, tools, reporting, and governance frameworks to drive consistency, scalability, and operational excellence across Europe.
• Ensure recruiting practices comply with applicable employment regulations, GDPR requirements, and local market considerations.
• Develop recruiting metrics and reporting to provide insights into hiring performance, organizational needs, and process effectiveness.
• Partner closely with global Talent Acquisition and Human Resources teams to ensure alignment across processes, systems, and policies.

Team Leadership

• Lead and develop contract recruiters supporting European hiring activities, ensuring high-quality execution and alignment with recruiting priorities.
• Provide coaching, guidance, and subject matter expertise to hiring managers and HR partners on talent acquisition best practices.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive talent acquisition experience, preferably within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or life sciences industry.
• Demonstrated experience recruiting across multiple European countries and navigating diverse employment practices and labor regulations.
• Experience developing talent acquisition strategies, talent pipelines, scalable recruiting processes, and recruiting programs that support organizational growth.
• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence senior leaders and build trusted partnerships across functions and geographies.
• Experience recruiting within Commercial, Medical Affairs, Global Supply Chain & Tech Ops, Regulatory, Quality, and/or G&A functions preferred.
• Strong knowledge of recruiting technologies and Applicant Tracking Systems, preferably Workday Recruiting, including experience leveraging AI-enabled recruiting tools.
• Experience leading recruiters, external recruiting partners, or talent acquisition programs.
• Strong analytical, communication, influencing, and project management skills.
• Fluent English required; German and/or French preferred.
• Ability to work onsite in Zug, Switzerland at least four days per week.

Pay Range

The salary range for this role in Zug, Switzerland is CHF 162’400 – CHF 203’000 gross annually. Final compensation will depend on skills, experience, and internal equity considerations.

In line with Switzerland equal pay regulations, we apply objective, gender-neutral criteria to determine compensation. We actively monitor pay equity through our annual Gender Equality Index and are committed to maintaining fair and transparent pay practices.

In compliance with Switzerland pay transparency legislation, compensation for this role is based on objective criteria and is aligned with our company-wide salary register. We are committed to ensuring equal pay for work of equal value.

Our employees come from different backgrounds, and we celebrate those differences. We are looking for the best candidates for our open roles, but do not expect applicants to meet every qualification in order to be considered.

Our passion is anchored in robust scientific thinking, grounded in integrity and critical thinking. We keep the patient front and center in all we do – all actions and decisions are in service of the patient and their caregivers. We champion integrity, ethics, doing the right thing, and being our best selves.

Cytokinetics is an Equal Opportunity Employer