Engineering & Manufacturing Recruiter

Onward Search; Fairfield (CT); On-site; USD 60,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Commission eligibility

401K/retirement plan

Comprehensive benefits and PTO

Job summary

Onward Search is seeking a proactive Engineering & Manufacturing Recruiter to drive delivery and growth across our Staffing business. This role focuses on high‑volume candidate sourcing, aggressive pipeline building, and full‑cycle recruitment for manufacturing, engineering, and skilled trade roles in a fast‑moving, production‑driven environment.

Ideal candidates thrive in KPI‑heavy, commission‑oriented workflows, are fluent with AI‑powered recruiting tools, automation, and modern ATS

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience as a staffing agency recruiter.
• Experience recruiting engineering, manufacturing, or skilled trade roles.
• Strong comfort with recruiting technology: ATS with API integrations, texting platforms, AI‑assisted sourcing.

Responsibilities

• Proactively source engineering, manufacturing, and skilled trade candidates using job boards, referrals, LinkedIn, texting platforms, and AI tools.
• Build and maintain a strong, active candidate pipeline in manufacturing and engineering talent markets.
• Recruit for roles including machinists, maintenance technicians, mechanics, assembly roles, CDL drivers.
• Conduct high‑volume phone and video candidate screenings.
• Discuss and negotiate pay rates with candidates and manage candidates through interview, offer, and placement stages.
• Leverage ATS, CRM, texting tools, and AI to drive speed and meet KPIs.

Job description

We are seeking a proactive, highly competitive Engineering & Manufacturing Recruiter to drive delivery and growth across our Engineering & Skilled Trades Staffing business. This role is focused on high‑volume candidate sourcing, aggressive pipeline building, and full‑cycle recruiting for manufacturing, engineering, and skilled trade roles in a fast‑moving, production‑driven environment.

The ideal candidate thrives in a KPI‑heavy, commission‑oriented workflow, is obsessive about speed and efficiency, and is deeply fluent in AI‑powered recruiting tools, automation, and modern ATS ecosystems. This recruiter operates like a hunter—leveraging sourcing automation, texting platforms, and data to move faster than the market and consistently outperform traditional, tool‑light recruiters.

Key Responsibilities:

• Proactively source engineering, manufacturing, and skilled trade candidates using job boards, referrals, LinkedIn, texting platforms, and AI tools
• Build and maintain a strong, active candidate pipeline in manufacturing and engineering talent markets
• Recruit for roles including:
• Machinists / CNC
• Maintenance Technicians
• Mechanics
• Mechanical & Electrical Assembly
• CDL Drivers
• Conduct high‑volume phone and video candidate screenings
• Qualify candidates for skills, experience, availability, and fit
• Discuss and negotiate pay rates with candidates
• Manage candidates throughout interview, offer, and placement stages
• Maintain strong candidate relationships to drive retention and redeployment
• Leverage ATS, CRM, texting tools, AI (including CoPilot), and sourcing automation to drive speed and efficiency
• Consistently meet or exceed KPIs related to outreach, submittals, interviews, placements, and starts

Required Qualifications:

• 3+ years of experience as a staffing agency recruiter
• Experience recruiting engineering, manufacturing, or skilled trade roles
• Strong comfort with recruiting technology, including:
• ATS platforms with API integrations
• Texting platforms
• AI‑assisted sourcing and workflow tools
• Comfortable with outbound phone, text, and digital outreach
• Strong organization, time‑management, and follow‑through skills
• Candidates from tool‑light or low‑tech staffing environments may struggle in this role
• $60,000-$65,000 (based on experience).
• This position is commission & bonus eligible.
• Comprehensive benefits and PTO package to include 401K also included.