Principal Talent Acquisition Partner, Creative

Engine; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 157,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonuses & equity

Hybrid/hub offices

Job summary

Engine is seeking a Creative Recruiter to own hiring for Product Design from Senior ICs to Design Leadership. You will partner with our Head of Design and senior leaders to build the design org that defines how our products look and function.

You will craft sourcing, interview processes, and hiring bar from the ground up. You will shape portfolio calibrations, rubrics, and market maps, while partnering with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure strong pipelines.

Qualifications

• 10+ years (or deep expertise) of full-cycle recruiting experience, with a strong preference for in-house environments.
• Deep experience hiring Product Designers, Design Leaders, or adjacent creative talent.
• A track record of building recruiting processes and functions from 0 to 1 — you've done this before and you know what "from scratch" actually feels like.
• A sharp eye for design quality and confidence running portfolio reviews and design-specific evaluation loops.

Responsibilities

• Run full-cycle recruitment for Product Design roles — sourcing, screening, portfolio review, interview process design, closing, and offer negotiation.
• Partner with the Head of Design and senior leaders as a true talent advisor.
• Build the Product Design hiring process at Engine from scratch: rubrics, interview loops, portfolio review standards, calibration sessions, and scorecards.
• Develop deep market maps of the design community and build long-term pipelines of exceptional creative talent.
• Use data to influence hiring decisions, forecast pipeline health, and hold the bar on quality.
• Manage senior stakeholders — including C-level and Director-level partners — with clarity, speed, and confidence.
• Represent Engine's brand and mission to top-tier candidates, from first outreach to signed offer.
• Flex into Product recruitment as priorities shift.

Skills

Full-cycle recruiting

In-house recruiting

Product design hiring

Portfolio reviews

Stakeholder management

Data-driven decisions

Hiring process design

Ambiguity resilience

Executive communication

Job description

Remote - US

About Engine

Engine is the all-in-one travel and spend management platform trusted by 38K+ businesses and groups representing 1.8M+ travelers. We're the retailer and the rails of business travel, the fastest-growing company in travel tech, built on a decade of proprietary technology, supply, and pricing no one else can replicate. Other travel and AI companies run on our infrastructure to book real trips, hold rates, and move payments, without building any of it themselves. We built it, AI-forward at every layer, from how travelers book to how the rails run.

That work has earned recognition as one of Fast Company's Best Workplaces for Innovators (2025), TravelTech's Reservation Platform of the Year (2026), and one of Built In's Best Places to Work (2020–2026).

We're looking for bold, ambitious people to help redefine how businesses manage and experience travel. Working here, you can expect exponential growth, an ambitious pace, full ownership, and high-caliber colleagues who push you to do the best work of your career. Every hire raises the bar.

Come outpace the ordinary and build the future of travel with us.

We're hiring a Creative Recruiter to own hiring for Product Design across Engine — from Senior ICs to Design Leadership. You'll partner directly with our Head of Design, C-level leaders, and cross-functional Directors to build the design org that will define how our products look, feel, and function for years to come.

This is a 0-to-1 seat. You'll be building the sourcing motion, interview process, and hiring bar for design at Engine from the ground up. Portfolio calibration, evaluation rubrics, stakeholder alignment, market mapping — you'll shape all of it. If you like inheriting a playbook, this isn't the role. If you like writing one, keep reading.

What you'll do

• Run full-cycle recruitment for Product Design roles — sourcing, screening, portfolio review, interview process design, closing, and offer negotiation
• Partner with the Head of Design and senior leaders as a true talent advisor
• Build the Product Design hiring process at Engine from scratch: rubrics, interview loops, portfolio review standards, calibration sessions, and scorecards
• Develop deep market maps of the design community and build long-term pipelines of exceptional creative talent
• Use data to influence hiring decisions, forecast pipeline health, and hold the bar on quality
• Manage senior stakeholders — including C-level and Director-level partners — with clarity, speed, and confidence
• Represent Engine's brand and mission to top-tier candidates, from first outreach to signed offer
• Flex into Product recruitment as priorities shift

What you'll bring

• 10+ years (or deep expertise) of full-cycle recruiting experience, with a strong preference for in-house environments
• Deep experience hiring Product Designers, Design Leaders, or adjacent creative talent
• A track record of building recruiting processes and functions from 0 to 1 — you've done this before and you know what "from scratch" actually feels like
• A sharp eye for design quality and confidence running portfolio reviews and design-specific evaluation loops
• Strong stakeholder management chops — you can hold a room with C-level and Director-level partners, push back when needed, and move things forward
• The ability to influence with data — pipeline metrics, funnel analytics, market benchmarks, and comp data are how you make your case
• Speed and resilience — you move fast without dropping the ball, and you thrive in ambiguity
• Willingness and ability to pivot into Product hiring as needed

Base Pay Range

$157,300 - $185,000 USD

The Engine Edge: Perks & CompensationWe believe in rewarding great work with great benefits:

• Compensation: Competitive base pay tied to role and experience, with opportunities for bonuses, commissions, and equity.
• Environments for Success: Different roles have different needs in terms of the environments that drive success which is why we have a hybrid-hub model. Whether you are in one of our amazing offices or fully remote, we’ll make sure you have what you need to succeed.

Perks and benefits may vary based on employment type, location, and more.