Talent Acquisition Manager

Company: Justrite Specialty Manufacturing

Location: Deerfield, IL (Hybrid - 2-3 days per week in office)

Compensation: $120,000 - $135,000 base + Bonus

The Manager, Talent Acquisition will lead our enterprise talent acquisition function. This is a hands‑on, player‑coach leadership role requiring direct ownership of senior‑level and hard‑to‑fill searches while refining the infrastructure, standards, and team capability needed to scale as a fast‑growing, Private Equity‑backed manufacturing company. The ideal candidate will transform the function from a reactive support model into a proactive, talent‑headhunting engine rooted in accountability and high‑performance culture.

This individual will bring a highly strategic, disciplined, and proactive approach to acquiring top‑tier talent. Serving as a trusted advisor to senior executives and business unit leaders, the successful candidate fosters a high‑performance culture focused on rigorous accountability, continuous improvement, cross‑functional collaboration, and an exceptional candidate/new‑hire experience. This role directly leads a team of three Talent Acquisition Specialists while managing key external partners, suppliers, and search agencies.

• Full Life‑Cycle Recruitment: Lead end‑to‑end recruitment efforts from targeted research and mapping through active sourcing, selection, offer alignment, and final negotiation.
• Stakeholder Advisory: Partner deeply with business leaders, hiring managers, and HR Business Partners to analyze future staffing demand, build tailored talent strategies, and fill roles with speed.
• Executive & High‑Impact Sourcing: Personally execute complex searches for leadership positions and specialized, technical engineering/manufacturing roles, minimizing reliance on outside headhunters.
• Team Development & Leadership: Mentor, manage, and scale a team of 3 TA Specialists; instill a proactive sourcing methodology, providing continuous coaching, professional development, and performance support.
• Process Continuous Improvement: Lead or oversee critical operational projects, employer branding initiatives, and compliance protocols across all recruitment pipelines.
• Data‑Driven Management: Track, analyze, and communicate performance metrics; establish proactive countermeasures when searches miss milestones or fall off track. Ensure absolute data integrity within the corporate ATS.
• Vendor & Budget Optimization: Standardize and manage all external search firm contracts, agency service levels, and the overall corporate recruitment budget to achieve optimized spend.

• Execution & Accountability: Plans and delivers measurable results. Operates with extreme urgency, discipline, and a strong bias for action. Uses data to guide decisions and course‑correct underperforming pipelines immediately.
• Resourcefulness: Passionately identifies paths over, around, or through barriers to success. Moves quickly to achieve high‑quality outcomes despite finite resources.
• Change Leadership: Actively intervenes to drive, stabilize, and energize positive organizational transformation. Leads the recruitment team and hiring managers by strong professional example.
• Effective Communication & Influence: Clear, highly professional, and strategic communication style that quickly establishes trust and aligns stakeholder expectations with company growth goals.
• Customer & Candidate Focus: Committed to building flawless internal client relationships and delivering an transparent, high‑touch experience for all active and passive candidates.

• 8+ years of proven, progressive experience in professional corporate talent acquisition, with at least 2+ years of direct people management experience.
• Demonstrated mastery of modern executive and passive recruiting methodologies, direct sourcing strategies, and sophisticated candidate negotiation protocols.
• Prior experience managing talent acquisition within a decentralized, matrixed, or Private Equity‑backed manufacturing environment is strongly preferred.
• Expert command of modern Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), advanced professional networks (e.g., Linked In Recruiter), and market intelligence tools.
• Deep understanding of recruitment best practices, compliance laws, employer branding principles, and structured assessment methodologies (e.g., Topgrading).
• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a closely related discipline is required.
• International recruitment experience is a plus.