Lead Recruiter

Position Summary

Talent Search Services (TSS) serves as Columbia University Human Resources' centralized recruitment function, partnering with schools and departments across the Morningside and Manhattanville campuses to recruit non-faculty Officer of Administration positions. The Lead Recruiter reports to the Director, Talent Management and will independently manage a diverse portfolio of requisitions across a broad range of functions and levels, including finance, development, human resources, administration, student-facing services, marketing and communications, and information technology roles.

This is a hands-on, full-cycle recruiting position for a professional who thrives in a dynamic and evolving environment. In addition to delivering talent, the Lead Recruiter will contribute to the refinement of workflows, templates, service standards, and recruiting practices that support the growth and scalability of TSS. The ideal candidate is experienced in sourcing passive candidates, advising hiring managers, and leveraging data and reporting to measure recruiting effectiveness and drive process improvement.

• Full-Cycle Recruitment
  • Independently manage a complex portfolio of requisitions from intake through offer and close across multiple schools, departments, functional areas, and organizational levels, including mid-level, senior-level, hard-to-fill, and leadership searches.
  • Conduct candidate screenings and interviews to assess qualifications, experience, and fit.
  • Advance candidates through the recruitment lifecycle within the Applicant Tracking System (ATS).
  • Partner with recruiting coordinators to facilitate interview scheduling and logistics.
  • Guide selected candidates through the offer process and ensure a positive candidate experience.
• Sourcing and Talent Pipeline Development
  • Develop and execute proactive sourcing strategies using Linked In Recruiter and other talent acquisition channels.
  • Identify, engage, and cultivate passive candidate pipelines for recurring and hard-to-fill positions.
  • Build and maintain talent communities to support future hiring needs and reduce time-to-fill.
• Hiring Manager Partnership and Advisory Services
  • Serve as the primary recruiting advisor for hiring managers across schools and departments.
  • Facilitate intake meetings to establish role requirements, qualifications, recruitment strategies, and timelines.
  • Provide consultation on market trends, talent availability, and candidate expectations.
  • Help hiring managers navigate and successfully engage with a centralized recruitment model.
• Applicant Tracking System (ATS) Management and Process Integrity
  • Maintain accurate, complete, and compliant candidate and requisition records within Talent Link.
  • Ensure candidates are appropriately dispositioned and recruitment activities are properly documented.
  • Uphold data integrity standards to support reporting, compliance, and audit requirements.
• Reporting and Recruitment Analytics
  • Create and distribute recruitment reports and key performance indicators (KPIs), including time-to-fill, pipeline health, funnel conversion rates, source effectiveness, and requisition status reporting.
  • Identify trends, inform decision-making, and improve recruiting effectiveness.
  • Develop, analyze, and present recruitment reports and KPIs, including time-to-fill, pipeline health, source effectiveness, funnel conversion, requisition aging, and stakeholder service trends.
• Process Improvement and Service Development
  • Apply advanced functional recruitment knowledge to identify process gaps, communicate issues, and recommend changes to recruitment practices, workflows, documentation standards, and service expectations.
  • Use recruitment data to identify search risks, process delays, sourcing gaps, and opportunities for improved service delivery.
  • Develop, refine, and implement intake templates, screening frameworks, sourcing plans, candidate evaluation tools, requisition tracking practices, and service standards for use across assigned client groups.
    
    Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency, and overall service delivery.
  • Operate effectively in an environment of growth and change while helping establish scalable best practices.

• Bachelor's degree required.
• Minimum of four (4) years of full-cycle recruiting experience.

• Experience recruiting within higher education or another large, complex, decentralized organization.
• Experience helping establish, build, or scale a new recruiting function, team, or operational process.
• Experience with Talent Link (Page Up) or a comparable enterprise Applicant Tracking System.
• Ability to create, analyze, and present recruiting metrics, dashboards, and workforce data.
• Knowledge of employment compliance requirements related to recruitment, including EEO/OFCCP guidelines and NYC Pay Transparency requirements.
• Strong stakeholder management, relationship-building, and consultative communication skills.
• Experience recruiting for mid-level, senior-level, and…