Senior Recruiter Creative & Media

DEPT®; Rotterdam; Hybrid; EUR 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Buddy programme

Learning & development opportunities

Health & wellness discounts

Unlimited vacation days

Job summary

DEPT® is seeking a Senior Recruiter for Creative & Media to shape our talent strategy across EMEA. You will partner with senior leadership, build proactive pipelines, and drive innovation in sourcing with AI-enabled tools.

Join a Growth Invention company that values curiosity, collaboration, and delivering exceptional candidate experiences across a fast-moving, partner-led organisation.

Qualifications

• Significant in-house recruitment experience within a creative, media, digital, or integrated agency environment.
• Experience hiring across multiple EMEA markets with adaptable search strategies by location.
• Confidence managing senior stakeholders in a matrix organisation and leading hiring strategies.
• Strong direct-sourcing capability, including Boolean search, market mapping, and pedigree mapping across competitors.
• Data fluency and the ability to build and defend a hiring story with metrics.
• Navigational intelligence and the instinct to get things done in a global, fast-moving organisation.
• Proactive and autonomous mindset with curiosity and willingness to reinvent hiring approaches.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement the talent strategy for Creative & Media services across key EMEA markets.
• Advise senior leadership, manage expectations, and turn difficult hiring requests into realistic mandates.
• Use data to turn hiring intelligence into insights that inform leadership decisions.
• Drive innovation through new sourcing channels, AI-enabled tooling, and assessment approaches.
• Build and own proactive talent pipelines and market maps for searches.
• Head-hunt directly for senior talent via LinkedIn Recruiter and networks.
• Represent DEPT® at industry events and in the talent community to build employer brand.
• Champion candidate experience across EMEA from first contact to onboarding.
• Share playbooks, mentor others, and improve recruiting practices.

Skills

In-house recruitment

Creative & Media recruiting

EMEA market hiring

Stakeholder management

Direct sourcing

Boolean search

Market mapping

Pedigree mapping

Data-driven hiring

Employer branding

Tools

LinkedIn Recruiter

Job description

As a Senior Recruiter Creative & Media, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of DEPT® by developing and implementing strategic talent acquisition initiatives for the Creative & Media service teams across EMEA.

DEPT® is a Growth Invention company operating at the intersection of technology and marketing. Its specialists deliver services across Brand & Media, Experience, Commerce, CRM, and Technology & Data.

You will embody DEPT®'s culture as the initial ambassador for candidates, ensuring a seamless and positive experience throughout their recruitment journey. By collaborating closely with leadership teams, you will gain a deep understanding of role requirements, deliver regular updates on hiring progress, and offer valuable market insights to support informed decision-making.

Job purpose

As a Senior Recruiter, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of our agency by developing and implementing strategic talent acquisition initiatives for our Creative & Media service teams across EMEA.

What you’ll do

• Alongside the Head of, develop and implement the talent strategy for Creative & Media services across key EMEA markets.
• Operate as a trusted advisor to senior leadership, managing expectations, challenging briefs when needed, and turning difficult hiring requests into realistic, fillable mandates.
• Use data to lead decision-making by turning hiring intelligence into insights that shape leadership decisions and remove blockers.
• Drive innovation across the function through new sourcing channels, AI-enabled tooling, and assessment approaches.
• Build and own proactive talent pipelines and market maps so searches never start cold.
• Headhunt directly for senior talent through LinkedIn Recruiter and personal networks, targeting passive candidates at rival networks and boutiques.
• Represent DEPT® in the market at industry events, on panels, and in the talent community, building employer brand and long-term networks.
• Champion candidate experience across EMEA, ensuring every future Depster experiences the “small enough to care” side of the company from first contact.
• Raise the bar across the recruiting team by sharing playbooks, mentoring others, and improving recruiting practices.

What you’ll bring

• Significant in-house recruitment experience, ideally within a creative, media, digital, or integrated agency environment.
• A track record of hiring across multiple EMEA markets, with the ability to adapt search strategies by location.
• Confidence managing senior stakeholders in a matrix organisation and leading hiring strategies.
• Strong direct-sourcing capability, including Boolean search, market mapping, and pedigree mapping across competitors.
• Data fluency and the ability to build and defend a hiring story with metrics.
• Navigational intelligence and the instinct to get things done inside a global, fast-moving, partner-led organisation.
• A proactive and autonomous mindset, balanced with curiosity and a drive to keep reinventing hiring approaches.

What you’ll get

• Social and cultural events with opportunities to connect through organised activities and celebrations.
• Inspirational talks with regular guest speakers and events.
• Learning and development opportunities to support growth and advancement.
• A buddy programme to support you through your first weeks at DEPT®.
• A reputation for doing good, including Certified B Corp® status since 2021 and recognition such as ‘Agency of the Year’ at The Lovies and The Webby Awards.
• The opportunity to work with a wide range of clients across industries and celebrate successes together.

We offer

• A flexible, hybrid working policy with 2–3 days from the office depending on location, and the opportunity to work from abroad for 13 weeks a year.
• 24 vacation days per year and the possibility to buy an unlimited number of extra vacation days.
• DEPT®/YOU Learning Menu and DEPT®/YOU Special Programs tailored to your development needs.
• Health support through the OpenUp platform, gym and wellness discounts, and healthy lunches at the office.
• Discounts on a lease bike and support for commuting with an NS Business Card.
• Recognition as a Great Place To Work in the Netherlands since 2022.

Why DEPT®?

DEPT® is drawn to people who stay curious, move with intent, and never stop inventing. Its culture runs on three values: better together, relentlessly curious, and get sh*t done.

At DEPT®, you will find the freedom to explore, the space to collaborate, and the trust to make a real impact for clients, colleagues, and the world the company is helping to build.