Executive Talent Scout / Executive Recruiter

Location: Remote (U.S.)
Preferred Location: Eastern Time Zone preferred; Portsmouth, NH proximity is a plus for occasional onsite visits

Contract Duration: 6+ Months
Overview
We are seeking a highly experienced Executive Talent Scout to support strategic leadership hiring across our global organization. This role will focus on identifying, mapping, engaging, and attracting senior-level talent, including Executive Director and Vice President populations.
This is not a high-volume recruiting role. We are looking for someone who operates with the rigor and sophistication of a retained executive search consultant. The successful candidate will excel at market intelligence, executive research, candidate mapping, and long-term relationship building while serving as a trusted advisor to hiring leaders and HR stakeholders.
The primary focus will be sourcing and attracting executives with strong pharmaceutical and biotech backgrounds, complemented by manufacturing experience.
Key Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end executive talent scouting efforts for Executive Director and Vice President level positions.
• Develop comprehensive market maps and talent landscapes for critical leadership roles.
• Identify and engage passive executive talent through direct sourcing, networking, industry associations, conferences, and research-driven outreach.
• Create candidate pipelines and succession-focused talent pools aligned to business priorities.
• Conduct in-depth executive research, competitor intelligence, and organizational mapping.
• Partner closely with Talent Acquisition, HR Business Partners, and business leaders to define target talent profiles and sourcing strategies.
• Maintain active engagement with prospective candidates, ensuring a positive experience and keeping individuals warm throughout extended search processes.
• Provide market insights regarding talent availability, compensation trends, competitor movement, and executive hiring strategies.
• Utilize assessment methodologies and structured evaluation approaches to help identify high-potential executive talent.
• Maintain accurate candidate and search activity documentation within Workday or similar ATS platforms.
• Deliver regular reporting on pipeline activity, market findings, and search progress.

Required Qualifications

• Extensive experience in executive search, executive recruiting, talent scouting, or leadership hiring.
• Proven success recruiting senior leadership talent, including Executive Director and Vice President level positions.
• Strong expertise in talent mapping, organizational research, competitive intelligence, and passive candidate identification.
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain long-term relationships with senior executive candidates.
• Experience conducting market analyses, candidate assessments, and executive-level interviews.
• Exceptional stakeholder management and business partnering skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with executive-level presence.
• Experience utilizing LinkedIn Recruiter, executive talent databases, and other advanced sourcing tools.
• Familiarity with Workday or equivalent Applicant Tracking Systems.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience within pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences, or related regulated manufacturing industries.
• Strong network of executive talent across the life sciences sector.
• Retained search firm or executive search consulting experience highly preferred.
• Understanding of executive assessment methodologies and succession planning practices.
• Manufacturing leadership recruiting experience in addition to pharmaceutical or biotech expertise.

What Success Looks Like

• Delivery of high-quality executive candidate pipelines for strategic leadership roles.
• Comprehensive market maps and talent intelligence that inform hiring decisions.
• Strong candidate engagement resulting in positive executive-level candidate experiences.
• Trusted advisor status with hiring leaders and HR stakeholders.
• Effective identification and attraction of hard-to-find executive talent within pharma, biotech, and manufacturing sectors.

Additional Notes

• Focus will primarily be on Executive Director and Vice President level searches.
• Advertising activity is generally limited to positions below Grade 15; therefore, proactive sourcing and direct talent engagement will be critical.
• The ideal candidate brings a consultative, research-driven approach and operates more like an executive search partner than a traditional recruiter.
• Fully remote opportunity with flexibility, though some overlap with Eastern Time business hours is preferred.
• Occasional travel to Portsmouth, NH may be beneficial but is not required.