Technical Recruiter, Production (Contract)

About the Role 

We build at scale, and we need recruiters who understand what that actually takes. As a member of Anduril's Air Dominance and Strike Production Recruiting team, you'll own hiring for our Air Dominance and Strike program, the manufacturing engineering, production, and supply chain talent that turns designs into deliverable systems on the factory floor. 

This is hands-on, full cycle recruiting on a small team where no task is too big or too small. You'll partner directly with operations and program leaders to define what "good" looks like, then go find it, pitch it, and close it. We'll give you the autonomy and tools; we expect you to bring the bias for action. The best people in this role think like operators: they invent and simplify broken processes, they identify problems early and show up with solutions instead of getting lost in the details, and they put ego aside to do whatever the mission needs. 

We're looking for someone who genuinely understands production, who can speak the language of the floor, translate a hiring gap into its impact on throughput and revenue, and earn the respect of straight-shooting manufacturing and supply chain leaders. If you're hungry, roll up your sleeves by default, and have a real passion for talent acquisition, you'll fit right in. 

This role is onsite in Costa Mesa, CA or Ashville, OH. It is open to contract only, with eligibility to convert. The ideal candidate brings startup, manufacturing, and/or relevant domain experience. 

What You'll Do 

• Move fast with a system. Source, track, and maintain a high volume of candidates without dropping the ball, keeping open lines of communication with stakeholders at every step. 

• Speak production fluently. Get into the business and onto the floor to understand the product, the technical roadmap, and the team's manufacturing reality, i.e., takt times, cycle times, throughput, yield, so you can pitch the opportunity credibly to operators. 

• Connect headcount to outcomes. Translate a missing role into what it costs the line in throughput and revenue and use that to drive urgency and prioritization with hiring managers. 

• Be a trusted partner, not an order-taker. Build deep trust with operations and program leaders through consistency and a strong operating rhythm; influence talent strategy while executing on deliverables. 

• Close exceptional talent. Develop a sharp understanding of the mission, learn to pitch the team and opportunity, and bring offers across the line, including with candidates who are strong negotiators in their own right. 

• Run on data. Track and analyze pipeline and performance data to find areas of opportunity and turn it into a data-driven narrative that builds momentum. 

• Invent and simplify. Build recruiting strategies that scale with the company, implementing referrals, process improvements, and automation where they move the needle. 

• Master your tools. Act as a subject-matter expert in prospecting, information retrieval, data extraction, web-scraping, process automation, and candidate management. 

• Interview with judgment. Conduct candidate interviews and anticipate hiring-manager preferences, demonstrated through high interview-to-offer ratios. 

• Engage passive talent. Source through LinkedIn Recruiter, Gem, Boolean strings, referrals, and SOBO campaigns. 

• Protect the candidate’s experience. Deliver a consistent, positive experience throughout the process with proactive communication and engagement. 

Core Requirements 

• 4+ years of sourcing for technical roles and engaging top-tier talent. 

• 3+ years of client-facing experience working with Hiring Managers and Directors, taking new requirements, reviewing profiles, and reporting pipeline progress. 

• A deep network and real fluency in manufacturing engineering, production, and/or supply chain. You understand the language of manufacturing (takt times, cycle times, throughput, yield) and have historically recruited roles like Manufacturing Engineers, Manufacturing Test Engineers, Design Engineers, Purchasers, Buyers, and Industrial Engineers. 

• Operationally minded. You can hold your own with straight-shooting operations and manufacturing leaders, identifying problems early and bringing solutions rather than getting buried in detail, and earn their respect. 

• Strong closing and negotiation skills. You can articulate how you've successfully closed hard-to-win talent in the past and can negotiate offers with candidates who are themselves seasoned negotiators (e.g., buyers and purchasers). 

• Experience working with government contractors, DoD agencies, and IC agencies. 

• Experience hiring candidates with U.S. security clearances. 

• Working knowledge of applicant tracking and HRIS systems. 

• Working knowledge of interview techniques and applicant-screening methods, and comfort with a wide variety of sourcing avenues. 

• A consultative track record, guidance that has led to better hiring outcomes, a positive candidate experience, and the respect of peers and clients. 

• Clear, effective communication to understand candidate motivation, drivers, and fit, plus disciplined management of multiple candidate funnels. 

• Self-sufficient and able to operate with little direct supervision. 

Supply Chain Depth (Strongly Desired for those who will focus in Supply Chain 

Supply chain talent is in high demand on this team. The strongest candidates for this need bring: 

• A clear picture of what a successful supply chain organization looks like inside a manufacturing company, ideally from automotive, aerospace, or similar environments, including what great leaders, program managers, buyers, and procurement specialists look like. Experience supporting CapEx organizations translates well here, too. 

• Awareness of which commodities currently face market constraints, and a track record staffing procurement, buyer, and purchasing roles against those constraints. 

• Understanding of the procurement cycle, including RFP and RFQ processes. 

• Proven ability to close and negotiate, buyers and purchasers are strong negotiators, so we need a recruiter who can negotiate offers just as strongly. 

Preferred Requirements 

• Experience at an agency or fast-paced startup supporting manufacturing, supply chain, or production environments. 
• Hands-on experience working in production and/or supply chain.