Senior Recruiter (Contract) at UP.Labs – California

About the Opportunity:We are looking for a highly skilled Senior Recruiter, on a contract basis, to join our team and help us hire world-class product, engineering, data, design, and business talent across our studio/internal venture teams. This role is ideal for an operator who thrives in ambiguity, moves with urgency, and understands the unique dynamics of building software companies from the ground up—whether inside a startup, venture studio, incubator, or accelerator.
You will partner closely with hiring managers to drive recruiting strategies, build high-quality pipelines, and deliver exceptional candidate experiences. The ideal person has recruited for manager/director-level and critical IC roles, can navigate ambiguity, understands the nuances of technical hiring, and knows how to balance strategic partnership with tactical execution.
If you are energized by fast-moving environments, complex problem-solving, and the opportunity to influence how companies are built, this role is for you. Note: This is a contract role, with a preference for candidates located in Los Angeles.
In This Role, You Will:

• Own full-cycle recruiting across Product, Engineering, Business & Growth, Data Science, and Design (Lead/Manager/Director-level).
• Partner with hiring managers to define role requirements, scorecards, competencies, and hiring strategies.
• Build top-of-funnel pipelines using creative sourcing techniques across LinkedIn, niche channels, outbound campaigns, talent communities, and warm networks.
• Lead structured interviews and candidate assessments; ensure consistency, clarity, and high-quality bar setting across interview panels.
• Navigate ambiguity as roles evolve; work fluidly in 0→1 environments where requirements shift and speed is paramount.
• Communicate candidate insights, market trends, and pipeline analytics to leadership; influence decision-making through data.
• Drive a best-in-class candidate experience from first touch to close.
• Maintain and optimize recruiting workflows, ATS usage, and operational processes to improve speed, quality, and efficiency.
• Represent the company brand externally—selling the mission, product vision, and venture studio model to world-class talent.

What You Bring:

• 6+ years of recruiting experience, ideally within a startup, venture studio, incubator, accelerator, or company that builds software ventures.
• Proven track record recruiting for technical roles (Software Engineering, Data Science/ML, Product, Design) and director-level leadership positions.
• Strong sourcing capabilities and proficiency with modern tools (LinkedIn Recruiter, Gem, etc.).
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous, and high-change environment; comfortable context switching and managing competing priorities.
• Strong business acumen and ability to understand how roles map to product, engineering, and GTM execution.
• Exceptional communication skills—clear, concise, and able to influence senior stakeholders.
• Highly organized, operationally minded, and committed to process excellence.

Location: Remote with offices in Los Angeles, CA and San Francisco, CA