Head of Talent

Stealth Startup; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Stealth Startup in San Francisco, CA is seeking a high-caliber Head of Talent to build an exceptional engineering-focused team. This role targets Front Deployed Engineers and customer-facing engineers, partnering with leaders to shape hiring strategy and drive adoption of scalable practices.

The ideal candidate brings strategic recruiting judgment, strong sourcing skills, and a data-driven approach to build high-performing teams in a fast-moving startup environment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in talent acquisition or technical recruiting.
• Experience recruiting customer-facing engineers.
• Proven sourcing and closing track record in competitive markets.
• Strong outbound sourcing, Boolean search, LinkedIn outreach.
• Partner with engineering leaders to define hiring needs.
• Able to work fast in a startup, with high ownership.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Data-driven approach to pipelines and metrics.
• Willing to work full-time on-site in San Francisco, CA.

Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting from intake to offer management and closing.
• Source exceptional technical talent via LinkedIn, referrals, and outreach.
• Build pipelines for Forward Deployed Engineers and customer-facing roles.
• Partner with hiring managers to define needs and evaluation criteria.
• Operate at startup speed while maintaining high candidate quality.
• Develop targeted talent maps and sourcing strategies.
• Deliver compelling outreach communicating mission and opportunities.
• Track pipeline performance and identify bottlenecks to improve metrics.
• Represent the company to high-quality candidates and the tech community.

Skills

Talent acquisition

Customer-facing eng

Outbound sourcing

Technical assessment

Eng leader partnership

Fast-paced startup

Communication skills

Data-driven recruiting

On-site SF

Tools

LinkedIn Recruiter

Boolean search

Talent mapping

ATS familiarity

Job description

We’re looking for a high-caliber, hands-on Head of Talent to help build an exceptional team at a fast-growing technology company. This role is ideal for a recruiting professional who has operated in a high-performance startup environment, thrives in fast-paced settings, and knows how to identify and attract exceptional technical talent.

A key focus will be sourcing and recruiting customer-facing engineering talent, including Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs) and engineers who work closely with customers to implement solutions, solve complex technical challenges, and drive product adoption.

The ideal candidate combines strategic recruiting judgment with exceptional sourcing skills, a strong technical recruiting background, and the ability to partner closely with engineering and business leaders to build high-performing teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting: Lead the recruiting process from role intake and sourcing through screening, interview coordination, offer management, and closing.
• Source exceptional technical talent: Proactively identify, engage, and attract high-quality engineering candidates through LinkedIn, referrals, targeted outreach, and creative sourcing strategies.
• Specialize in customer-facing engineering: Build pipelines for Forward Deployed Engineers, Solutions Engineers, and other technical professionals who combine strong engineering fundamentals with customer-facing capabilities.
• Partner with hiring managers: Collaborate with engineering leadership and cross-functional stakeholders to define hiring needs, calibrate candidate profiles, and establish clear evaluation criteria.
• Operate at startup speed: Manage multiple searches simultaneously while maintaining a high bar for candidate quality, responsiveness, and overall hiring experience.
• Build effective recruiting strategies: Develop targeted talent maps, competitive intelligence, and sourcing approaches to reach candidates from high-performing startups and leading technology organizations.
• Drive candidate engagement: Deliver compelling outreach and communicate the company's mission, technical challenges, and career opportunities to prospective candidates.
• Optimize recruiting processes: Track pipeline performance, identify bottlenecks, and use recruiting data to improve sourcing effectiveness, conversion rates, and time to hire.
• Represent the company externally: Build relationships with high-quality candidates and strengthen the company's reputation within the technical talent community.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in talent acquisition or technical recruiting, ideally within a high-growth startup or similarly demanding technology environment.
• Demonstrated experience recruiting for customer-facing engineering roles, particularly Forward Deployed Engineers, Solutions Engineers, or related technical positions.
• A proven track record of sourcing and closing exceptional technical talent in competitive markets.
• Strong outbound sourcing skills, including advanced LinkedIn Recruiter search techniques, Boolean search, talent mapping, and personalized candidate outreach.
• Ability to assess technical profiles and distinguish candidates with strong engineering fundamentals from those whose experience is primarily nontechnical.
• Experience partnering directly with engineering leaders, founders, and senior stakeholders to drive hiring outcomes.
• Comfort operating in ambiguous, fast-moving environments where priorities can shift quickly.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to engage both highly technical candidates and executive stakeholders.
• A data-driven approach to recruiting, with the ability to manage pipelines, evaluate recruiting metrics, and continuously improve processes.
• Willingness to work full-time on-site in San Francisco, CA.

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous recruiting experience at a top-tier, high-growth technology startup with a strong engineering culture and a high hiring bar.
• Experience recruiting for AI, machine learning, enterprise software, developer tools, or other technically sophisticated products.
• Familiarity with Forward Deployed Engineering teams and the intersection of software engineering, customer implementation, and technical problem-solving.
• Experience building technical talent pipelines from scratch for hard-to-fill or highly specialized roles.
• Experience using modern applicant tracking systems, recruiting analytics, and sourcing tools.

What Success Looks Like

• Build a consistent pipeline of highly qualified customer-facing engineering candidates.
• Successfully identify and engage engineers who combine technical depth with strong communication and customer-facing skills.
• Establish trusted partnerships with hiring managers and leadership.
• Improve recruiting efficiency without compromising candidate quality.
• Help the company attract and hire exceptional talent in a competitive startup environment.

This is a full-time, on-site position based in San Francisco, CA. The role requires close collaboration with company leadership and technical teams in a fast-paced, high-ownership environment.