Director Of Talent Jobs (NOW HIRING)

About the Company

Our client is a modern hydration brand built for real life, not just athletes. Their RTD sports drink launches nationally in early 2026, led by serial founders behind one of the most significant exits in recent CPG history, alongside a senior team with deep experience across Poppi, Vita Coco, Nutrabolt/C4, Health-Ade, Amplify, and Frito-Lay.

About the Role

There is no inherited system to maintain and no policy manual to enforce. As Director of Talent, you'll own everything people-related: recruiting, culture, org design, compensation, performance, and compliance, while also serving as an executive partner to the founders during the early stage (calendars, travel, board prep, correspondence). That EA function is time-bound; as the company scales and a dedicated EA is hired, your full bandwidth shifts to people strategy. This is a rare opportunity to set the cultural, structural, and operational foundation for a brand built to win.

Responsibilities

• Build the talent engine from scratch.
• Design and own full-cycle recruiting (corporate, commercial, field, and executive) across direct and agency channels.
• Establish sourcing strategy, interview process, and offer standards before headcount demand outpaces infrastructure.
• Architect the organizational structure.
• Partner with the co-founders to map the org against commercial milestones, sequence key hires, and ensure every role is built around accountability and output.
• Own culture as a competitive advantage.
• Define and embed cultural values into every touchpoint: hiring, onboarding, performance conversations, and team rituals.
• Lead compensation benchmarking and total rewards.
• Build a comp philosophy grounded in data (Radford, Mercer, option comps), design a total rewards framework competitive enough to win executive talent, and maintain consistency as the company scales.
• Stand up HRIS and ATS infrastructure.
• Select, implement, and own the people tech stack (Rippling, Greenhouse, Lattice, or equivalent), with reporting that gives founders and board a clear view of headcount, cost, and team health.
• Design and run onboarding.
• Build an experience that cuts ramp time, communicates culture immediately, and sets expectations before day one.
• Establish performance management frameworks.
• Build a review cycle, feedback culture, and goal-setting infrastructure that works for a lean, fast-moving team.
• Drive DEI strategy and inclusive hiring.
• Build sourcing and evaluation processes that produce diverse slates by design.
• Own the employer brand narrative.
• Manage HR compliance and employment law.
• Own multi-state compliance, benefits administration, and classification decisions, and know when to escalate to counsel.
• Serve as executive partner to the founders (early-stage).
• Manage travel, calendars, board prep, investor correspondence, and project tracking.
• This function phases out when a dedicated EA is hired.
• Build retention strategy.
• Track engagement signals, run stay conversations proactively, and build career architecture that keeps strong performers through the growth phase.
• Own talent reporting.
• Maintain a monthly people dashboard (open roles, time-to-fill, retention, cost per hire) and translate it into decisions.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive talent and people leadership, with at least 3 years in CPG, beverage, or consumer brand environments, with both corporate and brand-side recruiting required.
• Full-cycle recruiting ownership: sourcing pipelines, executive hires, agency management.
• Experience standing up or significantly rebuilding a people function, not inheriting a mature one.
• HRIS and ATS fluency: implemented or owned systems (Rippling, Lattice, Greenhouse, or equivalent) and built reporting from them.
• Compensation benchmarking and total rewards design: comp philosophy, market analyses, defensible offer decisions.
• Working knowledge of multi-state employment law, benefits administration, and HR compliance.
• Experience in a founder-led or early-stage environment where org design was a daily conversation.
• Executive-level discretion with sensitive information.
• Comfort with high-trust administrative support (calendars, travel, correspondence) when the moment requires it.

Required Skills

• Beverage or better-for-you CPG experience hiring across field sales and corporate functions OR experience scaling at high-growth company known for Talent Density.
• Experience building employer brand from scratch
• EA or chief-of-staff background supporting founders or C-suite.
• Exposure to board/investor communications, QBR prep, or executive reporting.
• Familiarity with equity, option grants, and comp structures in venture-backed startups.

Leadership Profile

Builder. Trusted completely. Recruits with conviction. Wired for high-growth. Treats culture as a product. Ego matched to the mission.

Pay range and compensation package

• Base Salary: $150,000–$175,000
• Annual Bonus: 15%, tied to hiring milestones, retention, and people KPIs
• Equity: Meaningful stake; structure and vesting TBD
• Benefits: Full medical, dental, vision; PTO; 401(k)

Equal Opportunity Statement

Our client is committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.