Forward Deployed Recruiter (Startups)

Overview

• Job Title: Forward Deployed Recruiter (Embedded Startup Talent Partner)
• Project Duration: 6+ Months (with potential to extend or roll onto a new high-growth client)
• Compensation: $6,000 - $10,000 / month (Retainer)
• Location: Remote US

The Opportunity

• At AEP Hawaii, we don't do transactional recruiting. We parachute elite talent partners directly into the trenches of venture-backed startups (Seed through Series D+). We are looking for a scrappy, highly strategic Forward Deployed Recruiter to embed with one of our high-growth startup clients. In this role, you will get a client email address, drop into their Slack, and act as their internal Head of Talent/Senior Recruiter. You will be stepping into an environment that is moving fast. Your job isn't just to fill seats; it's to build the recruiting engine, bring order to chaos, and act as a true strategic advisor to founders and early-stage leaders.

Responsibilities

• From 0-to-1 and Beyond: Own the full-cycle recruiting process for highly competitive technical and GTM roles. You are the architect of the candidate experience from the first cold outbound message to the closing call.
• The Founder Whisperer: Work directly with founders, CTOs, and early engineering managers. Help them define what they actually need, calibrate their expectations against the market, and build structured interview scorecards so they can hire effectively.
• Build the Engine: Clean up their ATS (Greenhouse, Ashby, Lever), build hiring workflows, and train their interviewers on best practices.
• Evangelize the Vision: Be a masterful storyteller who can pitch a founder's vision and pull top-tier passive talent away from FAANG or established unicorns.
• Data-Driven Chaos Management: Track pipeline velocity, conversion rates, and bottlenecks, telling founders exactly what needs to change to hit their aggressive headcount goals.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of full-cycle tech recruiting experience with a heavy emphasis on scaling venture-backed startups (e.g., taking a team from 10 to 50, or 50 to 200).
• Comfort in ambiguity: you know how to build the plane while flying it.
• Technical chops: you know the difference between React and Ruby and where to find top engineers outside of standard LinkedIn Recruiter searches (GitHub, X-Ray, tech communities).
• Strategic pushback: gravitas to look a CEO in the eye and say the equity percentage won't land a Senior Staff Engineer and back it up with data.
• Ownership mentality: represent AEP Hawaii's standard of excellence while fully integrating into the client's culture.

Engagement Details

• Format: 1099 Contractor / B2B Consulting Engagement.
• Retainer: $6,000 - $10,000 per month based on experience and complexity of the startup's hiring plan.
• Duration: 6 months initially. Our best partners seamlessly roll from one successful startup engagement right into the next one within our portfolio.