We’re looking for a Staff Talent Sourcer who lives and breathes talent discovery - someone who can take complex, highly specialized talent needs across multiple functions and translate them into precision sourcing strategies across the EU region. You’ll be the go-to expert for talent intelligence, market mapping, proactive candidate generation, and pipeline cultivation across our aerospace, autonomy, AI, advanced hardware, and broader business organizations.
This isn’t just a "find resumes" role - it’s about building intelligence, relationships, and repeatable systems that fuel our hiring engine across EU. As a Staff Talent Sourcer, you'll serve as a strategic partner to recruiters and hiring leaders while leveraging modern AI tools, regional market intelligence, and scalable sourcing practices to help us identify and hire world-class talent across a broad range of functions, levels, and geographies.
What you'll do:
- Own the top of funnel: Partner closely with recruiters and hiring leaders to define target profiles and build deep, data-informed sourcing strategies across EU for roles spanning Engineering, Software, Embedded, AI/ML, Systems, Manufacturing, Operations, Product, Program Management, Corporate functions, and other critical disciplines.
- Map the EU market: Develop comprehensive talent landscapes by company, skillset, function, geography, seniority, and organizational structure across key European and EU markets; identify hidden talent pools, competitor insights, regional talent hubs, and emerging talent trends to inform recruiting strategy and workforce planning.
- Generate and engage: Use advanced Boolean search techniques, sourcing platforms, and creative sourcing channels (LinkedIn Recruiter, SeekOut, HireEZ, GitHub, professional communities, niche industry networks, conferences, referrals, and more) to identify, engage, and attract exceptional talent across diverse functions and EU markets.
- Build pipelines proactively: Cultivate long-term relationships with passive, highly specialized, and hard-to-find talent across EU to enable just-in-time hiring across strategic programs, business functions, and growth markets.
- Navigate diverse talent markets: Develop deep expertise across Eu countries and talent ecosystems, adapting sourcing strategies to local market dynamics, candidate expectations, languages, mobility considerations, competitive landscapes, and regional hiring requirements.
- Leverage AI to scale sourcing: Design, build, and continuously improve AI-powered sourcing workflows, research agents, and practical automations that increase recruiter productivity, accelerate candidate discovery, enhance market intelligence, and improve operational efficiency.
- Build repeatable sourcing systems: Use AI tools and workflow automation to create structured market maps, talent intelligence reports, outreach content, sourcing documentation, and scalable recruiting processes that can be leveraged across the Talent Acquisition organization and adapted to different EU markets.
- Be the sourcing SME: Serve as the subject matter expert on EU sourcing by coaching recruiters and hiring managers on regional market insights, sourcing strategy, talent availability, competitive intelligence, candidate engagement best practices, and emerging recruiting technologies.
- Partner for impact: Collaborate cross-functionally with Talent Acquisition Operations, Employer Brand, University Recruiting, People teams, and business leaders to optimize recruiting strategies, outbound messaging, candidate experience, and operational excellence across EU.
- Track and iterate: Use recruiting analytics, experimentation, and storytelling to measure sourcing effectiveness across markets, optimize outreach strategies, improve conversion rates, identify regional differences, and continuously evolve sourcing practices.
Required qualifications:
- 8+ years of sourcing experience, with significant experience supporting hiring across multiple EU markets and a broad range of functions and talent profiles.
- Proven track record in market mapping, competitive intelligence, and candidate generation for highly specialized, difficult-to-fill, and business-critical roles.
- Demonstrated experience sourcing across multiple disciplines, which may include Engineering, Software, AI/ML, Hardware, Manufacturing, Operations, Product, Program Management, Commercial, G&A, and other corporate functions.
- Deep expertise in advanced Boolean search, LinkedIn Recruiter, HireEZ, SeekOut, GitHub, and other modern sourcing platforms, with the ability to identify talent across diverse EU markets.
- Strong knowledge of the EU talent landscape, including regional talent hubs, competitor ecosystems, candidate behaviors, market dynamics, and differences in recruiting across countries.
- Demonstrated ability to operate as a consultative partner to recruiters, hiring managers, and senior leaders, influencing hiring strategy through market insights and talent intelligence.
- Hands-on experience building or leveraging AI-powered sourcing workflows, agentic AI tools, workflow automations, or practical AI solutions that improve recruiting or business processes.
- Direct experience using AI development environments or coding assistants (such as Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Gemini, or similar tools) to create repeatable sourcing workflows, structured research outputs, market intelligence, process automation, or operational documentation.
- Experience building and maintaining long-term relationships with passive, niche, senior, or otherwise difficult-to-engage talent across multiple markets.
- Excellent communication and storytelling skills with the ability to engage candidates from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds and influence stakeholders across functions and geographies.
- Strong judgment, curiosity, cultural awareness, and a continuous improvement mindset with the ability to evaluate and adopt emerging AI technologies to improve recruiting outcomes.
- Highly organized, data-driven, and able to operate autonomously in a fast-paced, mission-driven, internationally distributed environment.
Preferred qualifications:
- Prior experience supporting aerospace, defense, robotics, autonomy, AI/ML, advanced technology, manufacturing, or other complex hardware/software organizations.
- Experience sourcing across multiple European talent markets, including established and emerging technology and engineering hubs.
- Experience navigating cross-border hiring considerations, candidate mobility, work authorization, export control, or other regulatory considerations relevant to hiring across EU.
- Experience sourcing across both highly technical and non-technical functions, with the ability to quickly develop expertise in new talent markets and disciplines.
- Familiarity with Ashby and recruiting analytics, CRM, or talent intelligence platforms.
- Experience supporting high-growth, venture-backed, multinational, or rapidly scaling technology organizations.
- Demonstrated passion for staying ahead of emerging recruiting technologies, regional talent trends, sourcing methodologies, and AI advancements.
Skills Required
- 8+ years of talent sourcing experience across multiple EU markets and a broad range of functions and talent profiles
- Experience with market mapping, competitive intelligence, and candidate generation for specialized, difficult-to-fill roles
- Experience sourcing across disciplines including engineering, software, AI/ML, hardware, manufacturing, operations, product, program management, commercial, and corporate functions
- Advanced Boolean search and hands-on experience with LinkedIn Recruiter, HireEZ, SeekOut, GitHub, and other sourcing platforms
- Strong knowledge of EU talent landscapes, regional talent hubs, competitor ecosystems, candidate behavior, and country-specific recruiting dynamics
- Experience partnering consultatively with recruiters, hiring managers, and senior leaders to influence hiring strategy
- Experience building or using AI-powered sourcing workflows, agentic AI tools, workflow automations, or practical AI solutions
- Direct experience using AI development environments or coding assistants such as Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, or Gemini
- Experience building long-term relationships with passive, niche, senior, or difficult-to-engage talent
- Excellent communication and storytelling skills across diverse professional and cultural backgrounds
- Strong judgment, curiosity, cultural awareness, and continuous improvement mindset
- Highly organized, data-driven, autonomous, and effective in a fast-paced international environment
- Experience supporting aerospace, defense, robotics, autonomy, AI/ML, advanced technology, manufacturing, or complex hardware/software organizations
- Experience sourcing across multiple European technology and engineering hubs
- Experience with cross-border hiring, candidate mobility, work authorization, export control, or related regulatory considerations
- Experience sourcing both technical and non-technical functions
- Familiarity with Ashby, recruiting analytics, CRM, or talent intelligence platforms
- Experience supporting high-growth, venture-backed, multinational, or rapidly scaling technology organizations
- Passion for emerging recruiting technologies, regional talent trends, sourcing methodologies, and AI advancements
What the Team is Saying
Shield AI Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare coverage is described as excellent, with dental/vision and mental‑health support, and ancillary protections like life and disability appearing in benefit summaries. The breadth and perceived affordability of coverage are highlighted as a standout component of the package.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave is featured alongside enhanced maternity benefits, fertility and childcare support, and onsite resources such as a Mother’s Room. These elements are positioned as competitive and above the minimal baseline for the company’s stage.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity is granted to all full‑time hires, with RSUs, double‑trigger tax timing, and tools to model scenarios (e.g., through Carta Tax). Communications also reference a transition from options to RSUs, reinforcing access and maturity of ownership programs.
Shield AI Insights
What We Do
At Shield AI, you won't wait years to see your work reach the field. You'll build hardware and software that operates in the real world right now, in the hands of the people who depend on it. Hivemind, our AI pilot, has been flying since 2018. It has flown more than 30 platforms, including an F-16, and it now sits under a U.S. Air Force production contract for Collaborative Combat Aircraft. When you write code or shape a system here, you contribute to technology with a proven flight record and a clear production future. V-BAT flies intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions with an operational record that stretches from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific. It delivers eyes where they matter most, in the most demanding conditions on earth. The teams behind it watch their work get tested where the stakes are real. X-BAT takes its first flight this year. It's an AI-piloted fighter that needs no runway, built to operate where traditional aircraft can't. Join now and you help shape a program at its earliest, most formative stage. That's the kind of ground-floor work that defines a career. Do the most impactful work of your life, on problems that matter. Autonomy at this level asks a lot of you. You'll take on problems in perception, planning, and control that few teams anywhere are equipped to solve. You'll work across disciplines, from aerospace and robotics to machine learning and systems engineering, alongside people who hold themselves to an exacting standard and expect the same from you. Our mission is clear: protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. That purpose runs through every decision, every design review, and every deployment. It's why the work here carries a weight you can feel. Ready to join our mission? Explore our open roles and find where you fit.
Why Work With Us
Founded in 2015 by a former Navy SEAL, Shield AI builds AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft. Veterans aren't an afterthought here, they're at every level. It's why the work carries weight: AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft flying real missions, from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific, protecting service members and civilians.
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Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
