Director of Talent Acquisition (fmd)

Focused Energy is building the future of clean energy through laser-driven inertial fusion. Backed by our $240M Series A the largest fully secured Series A in the global fusion industry we are scaling rapidly across multiple geographies.

Based in Germany and the US we have brought together the top scientific and engineering minds using proven technologies to unlock fusion power at commercial scale. Focused Energy is working to realize game-changing scientific innovation that promises to deliver a clean sustainable and abundant source of power globally.

Location: Role is Hybrid and based in either Berlin or Darmstadt Germany with remote flexibility.

Were hiring a Director of Talent Acquisition to own how this company hires. This isnt a caretaker role over a recruiting queue. Youll lead our Talent Acquisition and Employer Branding function a team of five TA Partners and a TA Enablement & Analytics Partner and build the operating model that makes hiring a genuine competitive advantage.

Youre joining at a pivotal moment. The TA function is operational and delivering but quality consistency and hiring manager capability havent yet caught up with our ambitions. Our ability to scale from Series A through commercialization depends on hiring the right people at the right pace into the right roles across fusion science laser engineering software operations and G&A. You wont inherit a finished machine. Youll build one.

Team Leadership Lead and develop five TA Partners and the TA Enablement & Analytics Partner setting clear expectations building capability and creating a high-performing team culture that delivers without you in every decision.

Hiring Standards and Rigour Build and maintain the TA operating standards: hiring processes interview frameworks scorecards and decision criteria applied consistently across every function. Raise the bar on quality not just throughput.

Capacity Planning Drive capacity planning in close partnership with Finance and department heads ensuring TA is resourced and sequenced ahead of demand never the bottleneck to a planned hire.

Hiring Manager Enablement Equip leaders to run structured fair hiring processes through training coaching and tooling reducing dependency on TA for process guidance and raising the quality of hiring decisions.

ATS and Data Own the ATS end to end: configuration data integrity adoption and continuous improvement. Use pipeline data and KPIs to identify bottlenecks drive process changes and report progress that drives decisions rather than decorates them.

Employer Branding Build a consistent differentiated presence in our target talent markets LinkedIn Glassdoor job boards events and content in partnership with Marketing so inbound quality improves quarter on quarter.

10 years of progressive talent acquisition experience with meaningful time leading and developing recruiting teams

Experience in a scaling tech deep-tech or engineering-heavy environment hiring for specialised hard-to-fill roles

Fluent with AI in your daily recruiting work sourcing screening content analytics and able to raise your teams bar on it

A KPI-driven operator: structured interviewing assessment design capacity planning and hiring manager enablement are core methods not buzzwords

Hands-on ATS ownership: configuration vendor management reporting and driving adoption across recruiters and hiring managers

Strong working knowledge of GDPR as it applies to candidate data and of German employment law in hiring

Fluent in English; German is a meaningful plus

Youve built or significantly rebuilt a TA operating model standards processes and team structure in a company that doubled headcount

Youve made employer branding work in a competitive talent market with results you can point to

You have a point of view on what great talent acquisition looks like and its grounded in outcomes not activity

Youre drawn to mission-driven companies and want your work to connect to something larger than the next quarter

Own the function that most directly gates the growth of one of the most ambitious clean energy ventures in the world

Build the hiring engine that carries a science-driven company from Series A through commercialization

A leadership team that treats People as a strategic function not a support desk

Competitive compensation equity participation and benefits reflective of the talent bar we hold

Innovative Technology & Mission: Be part of a cutting-edge company working on groundbreaking research in clean energy and scientific discovery.

Career Development: We invest in our people. This is an opportunity to join an early growing company at the forefront of new technology where youll have the opportunity to develop and grow your career.

Collaborative Culture: Work with great people in a dynamic international environment with top-tier scientists engineers and professionals passionate about solving global challenges.

Ownership: Take ownership from day 1 and drive impact by making decisions solving challenges and shaping the future of our company.

Your Success is our Success: We offer a competitive salary and company ownership in the form of stock options giving you a direct stake in our success and ownership in what we build together.

Vacation Days: We support your work-life-balance by granting you 30 days of vacation per year.

Snacks and Drinks: Our office fridges are never empty. Enjoy our healthy snacks and drinks. Our Darmstadt office even offers a canteen with delicious lunch options daily.

Retirement Plan: If you decide for a private pension plan we will finance 20% on top of your monthly contributions plus loyalty incentives.

Events: We organize regular events to foster team bonding encourage collaboration and build a strong supportive company culture. Connect with colleagues across departments share ideas and have fun together both in and outside of the workplace.

Mobility with NAVIT: We partner with NAVIT to support your flexible commuting needs whether its a public transportation ticket taxi rides or car-sharing you choose what fits your lifestyle.

Fitness with Wellhub: We care about your health. Get access to a wide range of gyms fitness studios and wellness services across Europe through our partnership with Wellhub.

Focused Energy is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive environment. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race color religion sex sexual orientation gender perception or identity national origin age marital status protected veteran status or disability status.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance Focused Energy will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Compensation offered will be determined by factors such as location level job-related knowledge skills and experience. Certain roles may be eligible for incentive compensation equity benefits.

Required Experience:

Director