Director Talent Acquisition

Umbilical Advanced; Amsterdam; Hybrid; EUR 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Umbilical Advanced is partnering on a retained search for a Director of Talent Acquisition - International based in Europe, ideally Amsterdam. This role oversees EMEA and APAC TA, coordinating across regions and functions to scale hiring effectively.

You will lead TA partners in two regions, build market-entry playbooks, expand agency coverage, and collaborate with HR on retention and offer strategy in high-mobility markets. Amsterdam base preferred with global scope.

Qualifications

• Led recruiters across multiple regions, ideally EMEA and APAC.
• Fluency in works councils, GDPR, notice-period planning and local contract norms.
• Credible delivery in Malaysia, India, Japan or Indonesia.
• Built reporting, owned PSL, and can discuss each team member by name.

Responsibilities

• Lead TA Partners in two regions, manage a personal desk of Director-level searches.
• Build new-market hiring playbooks for country openings.
• Develop agency coverage and collaborate with HR on retention and offer strategy.
• Bring escalations, stakeholder conversations, and hiring decisions into the same day.

Skills

Global TA leadership

Stakeholder mgmt

GDPR knowledge

Hiring waves 40+

Job description

DIRECTOR, TALENT ACQUISITION, INTERNATIONAL (EMEA & APAC)

Seven time zones. Two pods. One leader who can make them feel like the same team!!!

We're partnering on a retained search for a Director of Talent Acquisition - International, based in Europe, ideally Amsterdam.

Our client is a data centre business delivering gigawatts across three continents, with a workforce set to more than double in under 18 months.

EMEA and APAC carry more than half of that forward demand.

Your remit spans accounting waves in Malaysia, an operations ramp in India, and expansion into Japan, the Nordics and Italy, all under one leader.

THE BUILD

The Amsterdam seat is the only one in the business that touches every region in a single working day, with APAC in the morning and the EU/US in the afternoon.

You'll use that position to bring escalations, stakeholder conversations and hiring decisions into the same day.

You'll build the new-market hiring playbooks that let the business open a country without reinventing the process.

You'll also develop real agency coverage in markets where it's thin, and partner with HR on retention and offer strategy in markets where people move for 5-10% after six months.

This is a function you'll help shape, not one you'll inherit.

THE CATCH (AND IT'S A GOOD ONE)

This is not an ivory tower role!!!

You'll lead TA Partners in two regions, and you'll carry a meaningful personal desk of Director-level searches across EMEA and APAC alongside them.

The best person for this seat still enjoys making the hire, and knows how to build a real relationship with the people they lead.

WHO THRIVES HERE

• Someone who has led recruiters across more than one region, ideally EMEA and APAC together
• Someone with working fluency in works councils, GDPR, notice-period planning and local contract norms
• Someone with credible delivery in Malaysia, India, Japan or Indonesia
• Someone who has run a genuine hiring wave of 40+ hires into one site or function, from start to finish
• Someone who has built their own reporting, owned a PSL, and can talk about each team member by name

Data centre and mission-critical backgrounds are ideal. Engineering, energy, power, semiconductor and industrial experience all translate well. Leadership fundamentals will always outrank sector. Business English is essential, and Dutch is a genuine advantage.

THE DETAIL

EU, ideally in Amsterdam (in-market, or relocating before you start; existing NL right to work strongly preferred)

Negotiable base (genuinely) + strong target bonus + equity, the equit piece is compelling!

Targeting an October 2026 start