Founding Lead Recruiter

Clera; United States; Remote; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Significant equity compensation

High-growth, high-impact environment

Job summary

Clera, a fast-moving robotics startup accelerating the renewable energy transition, seeks a Founding Lead Recruiter to build the talent function from the ground up and own the full candidate lifecycle. You will influence equity and culture from day one, with on-site responsibility in San Leandro, CA.

You will establish recruiting processes, partner with hiring managers to shape roles and timelines, and lead onboarding and employer branding to attract top engineering talent in a high-velocity

Qualifications

• End-to-end recruiting from scratch in a startup context (Series A or similar).
• Experience leading onboarding and shaping initial employee experience.
• Strong collaboration with hiring managers and cross-functional teams.
• Ability to scale recruiting and mentor junior recruiters.

Responsibilities

• Build the talent function and recruiting processes from the ground up, including workflows, tooling, and metrics.
• Own the end-to-end recruitment lifecycle — sourcing, screening, interviewing, offer negotiation, and closing.
• Partner with hiring managers to define roles, strategies, and timelines.
• Deliver a standout candidate experience from first touch through offer acceptance.
• Lead and improve the onboarding experience for new hires.
• Own employer branding to attract top engineering and technical talent.
• Scale the recruiting function over time, mentoring recruiters and reporting metrics.

Skills

End-to-end recruiting

ATS proficiency

Stakeholder management

Candidate experience

People leadership

Data-driven decisions

Tools

ATS platforms

Job description

About the Role

This is a rare opportunity to join a fast-moving, mission-driven robotics company at the ground floor of its people function. As the Founding Lead Recruiter, you'll build the talent and recruiting operation entirely from scratch, own the full candidate lifecycle, and play a direct role in shaping a passionate team working to accelerate the global transition to renewable energy. You'll have meaningful equity and a high-impact seat at the table from day one.

The company develops large-scale robotic systems that automate the most labor-intensive tasks in solar farm construction — a sector experiencing explosive growth and a critical need for the kind of speed and scale only automation can deliver.

What You'll Do

• Build the talent function and recruiting processes from the ground up, including workflows, tooling, and metrics

• Own the end-to-end recruitment lifecycle — sourcing, screening, interviewing, offer negotiation, and closing

• Partner closely with hiring managers and cross-functional stakeholders to define roles, hiring strategies, and timelines

• Deliver a standout candidate experience from first touch through offer acceptance

• Lead and continuously improve the new-hire onboarding experience

• Own employer branding initiatives to attract and close top-tier engineering and technical talent

• Scale the recruiting function over time, including hiring, mentoring, and developing additional recruiters

• Track and report on recruiting metrics to drive data-informed decisions

What We're Looking For

Required:

• Proven experience building an end-to-end recruiting function from scratch at an early-stage startup (Series A or similar), including defining processes and metrics

• Experience leading new-hire onboarding programs and owning the initial employee experience

• Strong track record partnering with hiring managers and cross-functional teams

• Experience scaling a recruiting function or managing a small recruiting team

• Ownership of employer branding and candidate experience initiatives, particularly for engineering roles

• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment, juggle competing priorities, and iterate quickly

• Detail-oriented with strong relationship-management and communication skills

• ATS proficiency and familiarity with modern HR/recruiting technologies

• Authorization to work in the United States without visa sponsorship (sponsorship is not available)

• Willingness to work fully on-site in San Leandro, CA (remote work is not available for this role)

Nice to Have:

• Recruiting experience or domain knowledge in robotics, hardware engineering, renewable energy, or the climate/solar industry

• Background hiring from companies in the robotics or automation space

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience

• Significant equity compensation reflecting your foundational impact on the company

• Opportunity for outsized learning, growth, and ownership in a high-velocity environment

Location

This role is fully on-site in San Leandro, California. Remote and hybrid arrangements are not available. Visa sponsorship is not offered.