Lead Recruiter

The Nuclear Company; Columbia (SC); On-site; USD 118,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401k with company match

Competitive compensation packages

Job summary

The Nuclear Company is hiring a Lead Recruiter to build and lead our recruiting function as we scale from a founding team to hundreds of employees. You will recruit engineers, project leaders, regulatory specialists, and corporate roles, shaping how we attract and hire world‑class talent.

You will partner with leadership, design scalable processes, and leverage AI-enabled tools to deliver a fast, high‑quality candidate experience. Expect travel to project sites and industry events as needed.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of full-cycle recruiting in technical/engineering roles.
• Experience in nuclear industry or other regulated fields.
• Experience building a TA function from scratch or scaling a team.
• Strong direct sourcing and executive recruiting capability.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent education.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the executive team to understand hiring priorities and timelines.
• Recruit directly for senior and critical roles with a steady pipeline.
• Build the TA function from the ground up and scale as the company grows.
• Establish the recruiting tech stack and connect workflows to HR, Finance, and Legal systems.
• Close hard-to-win talent and guide candidates from first contact to offer.

Skills

Full-cycle recruiting

Nuclear industry knowledge

Sourcing and outreach

Startup recruiting experience

Executive recruiting

Communication and influence

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

ATS/CRM systems

AI-enabled recruiting tools

Job description

The Nuclear Company is the fastest growing AI tech-enabled startup in the nuclear and energy space, pioneering a fleet-scale approach to building the next generation of nuclear reactors. Through our design-once, build-many model, we're accelerating the deployment of safe, reliable, and affordable nuclear energy.

We operate with an AI-first mindset. Every employee is expected to leverage AI, technology, and the Nuclear Operating System (NOS) as integral components of their role to improve the quality, speed, and impact of their work. We expect every team member to continuously identify opportunities to automate workflows, enhance decision-making, improve processes, and contribute to the ongoing evolution of NOS as a strategic operating capability that enables The Nuclear Company to scale with excellence.

We hire people who are driven by purpose, thrive in ambiguity, and are energized by building what has never been built before. Our team combines intellectual curiosity with high agency, embraces candid feedback and continuous learning, and holds themselves and others to exceptional standards. Our values—Transparency, Responsibility, Unity, Scrappy, and Tenacity—guide how we hire, collaborate, and make decisions every day. They are not words on a wall; they are the standard by which we operate. TRUST is the foundation of our safety culture, fostering intellectual honesty, accountability, and open communication, while our values challenge every team member to execute with urgency, humility, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to our mission.

About the role

We’re hiring a Lead Recruiter to find and win the people who will build this company. You will be our first dedicated recruiting hire, focused on bringing in engineers, project and construction leaders, regulatory and licensing specialists, supply chain and finance professionals, and corporate team members, often from a talent pool that is small, specialized, and already in demand.

This is a hands‑on role for someone who is at their best talking with candidates, working their network, and closing great hires. As we grow from a founding team to hundreds of employees, you will be the recruiting partner leaders rely on to keep pace.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the executive team and the leaders to understand hiring priorities, timelines, and the profiles we need
• Recruit directly for senior and critical roles, including technical, and project leadership searches, while keeping a steady pipeline for experienced and early-career hires
• Create the plan for growing the TA function, including when to add recruiters, coordinators, and sourcers, and how to onboard and develop the team
• Build the talent acquisition foundation from scratch, including the recruiting tech stack (ATS, CRM, sourcing tools, scheduling, and reporting) and the workflows that connect them to HR, Finance, and Legal systems
• Hire, manage, and coach future recruiting team members as headcount grows from a founding team to hundreds of employees
• Source proactively for scarce nuclear talent
• Activate and grow your network, and build relationships with universities, military transition programs, professional associations, and specialized search partners
• Tell our story to candidates, positioning a startup‑pace company backed by a global investor and anchored in a generational energy mission
• Advise hiring managers on talent market conditions, realistic timelines, and what it takes to win candidates
• Guide candidates through a strong, personal experience from first conversation to signed offer, and close hard‑to‑win talent
• Work with HR, Finance, and Legal on compensation, offers, relocation, and onboarding
• Navigate the realities of a regulated industry, including security clearances, background screening, and export‑control considerations
• Represent the company at industry events, conferences, and hiring fairs

Experience

• 8+ years of recruiting experience, including significant time in full‑cycle, in‑house recruiting for technical, engineering, or project‑based organizations
• Experience in the nuclear industry or a closely related field (utilities, power generation, EPC, defense, national labs, or other regulated, safety‑critical industries), with the ability to speak credibly with technical candidates
• Experience implementing or optimizing recruiting tools and processes, ideally building a TA function from the ground up or scaling one through a major growth phase
• Demonstrated success hiring senior leaders and hard‑to‑find technical talent in competitive markets
• Strong sourcing skills and a network you can activate, with a bias toward direct outreach over passive postings
• Experience in a startup, new venture, or fast‑growing company, and the ability to scale hiring quickly as the business grows
• Comfort with ambiguity, speed, and shifting priorities
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the credibility to advise executives and candidates alike
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience

Preferred Experience

• Direct experience recruiting for nuclear developers, reactor vendors, utilities, or large capital projects
• Experience supporting joint ventures, carve‑outs, or companies backed by private equity or institutional investors
• Experience recruiting for large‑scale construction, infrastructure, or project delivery workforces
• Familiarity with security clearance processes, export‑control requirements, or NRC‑related qualification requirements
• Prior experience building and leading a recruiting team, including hiring, managing, and developing recruiters
• Willingness to travel to project sites, offices, and industry events
• Hands‑on experience with AI‑enabled recruiting tools and automation
• Competitive compensation packages
• 401k with company match

Estimated Starting Salary Range

The estimated starting salary range for this role is $118,000 - $140,000 annually less applicable withholdings and deductions, paid on a bi‑weekly basis. The actual salary offered may vary based on relevant factors as determined in the Company’s discretion, which may include experience, qualifications, tenure, skill set, availability of qualified candidates, geographic location, certifications held, and other criteria deemed pertinent to the particular role.

EEO Statement

The Nuclear Company is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an environment of inclusion in the workplace. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. We prohibit discrimination in all aspects of employment, including hiring, promotion, demotion, transfer, compensation, and termination.

Export Control

Certain positions at The Nuclear Company may involve access to information and technology subject to export controls under U.S. law. Compliance with these export controls may result in The Nuclear Company limiting its consideration of certain applicants.

As set forth in The Nuclear Company’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about ITAR here.