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Principal, Talent Acquisition

San Francisco (Brisbane)

Vivodyne creates human data before clinical trials.

We accelerate the successful discovery, design, and development of human therapeutics by testing on large, lab-grown human organ tissues at massive scale, driving technological advancement at the convergence of novel biology, robotics, and AI. We identify and validate new therapeutic targets and de-risk new therapeutic assets by producing clinically translatable multi-omic data from our proprietary, physiologically-realistic human organ tissues at unprecedented scale, speed, and quality. This enables us to produce more human data than all clinical trials in the U.S. combined. We’re financially backed by some of the most selective and successful venture funds, and we have already partnered with a majority of the top 10 multinational pharmaceutical companies to discover and develop better, safer drugs and dramatically reduce the burden of animal testing.

www.vivodyne.com

Role

We’re looking for a driven and resourceful Principal, Talent Acquisition, to build and scale Vivodyne’s hiring engine. You will own end-to-end recruiting across the company — partnering closely with hiring managers, the leadership team, and external search firms to identify and secure exceptional talent across science, engineering, and operations.

You’ll have a strong bias for action, an ability to context-switch across technical domains, and a track record of owning full-cycle recruiting in high-growth environments. This is a high-impact role reporting directly to the COO with visibility across the company.

Responsibilities

  • Develop and own the company-wide talent acquisition strategy, aligned with growth goals and hiring plans
  • Partner with leadership across departments to forecast headcount needs and workforce planning
  • Define and implement an exceptional candidate experience, from first touch to close
  • Build a strong top-of-funnel presence for Vivodyne, including LinkedIn outreach, employer branding, and candidate experience
  • Build trusted partnerships with hiring managers and company leadership; define hiring plans and role specs jointly
  • Collaborate with Finance on budgeting and headcount planning
  • Own the strategy and content for recruiting outreach, social presence, and campaigns
  • Implement automation and improvements in reporting, compliance, and operations
  • Source, engage, and close top candidates across multiple functions (engineering, robotics, biology, AI, operations, and BD)
  • Manage our applicant tracking system and recruitment operations for speed and visibility
  • Identify and manage external headhunting/search firms for specialized and executive roles; negotiate terms, own deliverables, and drive outcomes
  • Continuously refine hiring processes to scale effectively with company growth

Expectations & Requirements 

  • Deliver on time-to-hire, quality-of-hire, and pipeline goals across all open roles
  • Build a function that is scalable, proactive, and insight-driven
  • Partner closely with leadership on organizational design and workforce strategy
  • Passion for building teams, mentoring recruiters, and driving meaningful business impact through hiring
  • Proven success scaling Talent Acquisition in a high-growth startup or life sciences/tech environment
  • Promote diversity, equity, and inclusion and ensure equity in hiring practices
  • Strong business and communication acumen, with a focus on client engagement
  • Ability to manage client expectations at the senior and executive level
  • Polished written and verbal communication for both technical and executive audiences
  • Natural player-coach qualities—able to execute while mentoring others
  • Cross-disciplinary project management expertise, overseeing execution across technical, bio, and business teams
  • Fluency in translating between scientific, technical, and business domains

Experience & Technical Expertise

  • 7–10+ years of experience in recruiting or talent acquisition, ideally with exposure to high-growth startups
  • Proven success hiring for technical teams (engineering, AI/ML, or life sciences)
  • Experience managing relationships with retained search or headhunting firms
  • Ability to operate both strategically and tactically — you know how to build the engine and also run it
  • Clear communicator with strong organizational and project management skills
  • Experience recruiting in a startup or Series A/B-stage environment strongly preferred
  • Familiarity with biotech, pharma, or deep tech hiring

 

San Francisco pay range

$184,000 - $249,000 USD

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