Technical Talent Acquisition Principal

Overview Position Summary: The Technical Talent Acquisition Principal is a senior individual contributor and trusted advisor responsible for attracting, assessing, and closing high-impact talent across Technology, Data & Analytics, Product, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Quality Engineering, and emerging technology disciplines. This role leads full-cycle recruiting for complex, specialized, and business-critical positions and brings strong technical recruiting expertise to role design, market strategy, candidate evaluation, and selection decisions. Working in close partnership with technology leaders, People Business Partners, Compensation, and other stakeholders, the Principal translates workforce needs into practical recruiting strategies, builds durable talent pipelines, and improves the hiring experience. The role is expected to operate with a high degree of autonomy, use market and funnel data to guide decisions, and elevate recruiting practices across the team. Geo-Salary Information An in-person interview may be required during the hiring process State specific pay scales for this role are as follows: $83,670 to $161,815 (NJ, NY, WA, HI, AK, MD, CT, RI, MA) $76,064 to $147,104 (NV, OR, AZ, CO, WY, TX, ND, MN, MO, IL, WI, FL, GA, MI, OH, VA, PA, DE, VT, NH, ME) $68,457 to $132,394 (UT, ID, MT, NM, SD, NE, KS, OK, IA, AR, LA, MS, AL, TN, KY, IN, SC, NC, WV) In CA: Typical hiring range is $110,468.25 to $135,016.75   The expected base salary for this position will vary depending on a number of factors, including relevant experience, skills and location. Responsibilities Essential Job Functions: Serve as a strategic recruiting consultant to technology, data, product, security, and other business leaders; clarify hiring objectives, challenge assumptions when appropriate, and recommend practical talent strategies. Lead full-cycle recruitment for complex and specialized roles, including intake, role calibration, market mapping, sourcing, screening, interview coordination, selection, offer strategy, closing, and onboarding handoff. Partner with hiring leaders and People Business Partners to define job scope, level, competencies, required and preferred qualifications, interview plans, scorecards, and job marketing language. Develop and execute proactive sourcing strategies for active and passive candidates using direct sourcing, talent communities, referrals, professional networks, niche platforms, university relationships, events, social channels, and appropriately managed search partners. Build and maintain high-quality, diverse pipelines for current and anticipated needs; develop talent maps and relationships that support recurring and hard-to-fill technical hiring demands. Apply sufficient technical fluency to understand and communicate the capabilities required for software engineering, cloud and platform engineering, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data engineering, analytics, AI/ML, product, and quality engineering roles. Design or refine structured candidate evaluation approaches, including recruiter screens, technical assessments, coding evaluations, interview panels, competency-based questions, and debrief practices, in partnership with subject-matter experts. Use recruiting technology, automation, and AI-enabled tools responsibly to improve sourcing efficiency, research, communication, workflow quality, and decision support while protecting candidate data and maintaining human judgment. Analyze labor-market conditions, competitor activity, compensation considerations, talent availability, and pipeline data to advise leaders on hiring feasibility, tradeoffs, timing, and recommended actions. Monitor recruiting-funnel health and communicate clear updates on pipeline quality, conversion points, aging, risks, diversity reach, candidate experience, and progress against hiring priorities. Advise on offer strategy and closing; partner with Compensation, People Business Partners, immigration counsel, and leadership as needed to support approvals, negotiations, and compliant hiring decisions. Maintain accurate, timely, and complete candidate and requisition information in iCIMS and other approved systems; use data consistently to support reporting, auditability, and operational excellence. Represent Mercury’s culture, purpose, and employee value proposition in candidate interactions and external forums; strengthen employer brand awareness within technical talent communities. Identify process gaps and lead continuous-improvement initiatives that enhance recruiter effectiveness, hiring-manager capability, assessment quality, compliance, speed, and candidate experience. Share expertise through peer mentoring, recruiting playbooks, knowledge transfer, and cross-functional projects; serve as a role model for consultative, inclusive, and data-informed recruiting practices. Maintain current knowledge of recruiting trends, technical skill evolution, employment practices, and applicable requirements; handle confidential information with discretion. Qualifications Education Minimum:  Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Development, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field Preferred:  PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP, AIRS, or other relevant recruiting/HR certification. Experience Minimum:  8+ years of progressive, directly related experience in full-cycle recruiting, including significant experience recruiting for technical, data, product, cybersecurity, infrastructure, or other specialized roles. Demonstrated experience partnering directly with hiring managers and senior leaders in complex, fast-paced, or geographically distributed environments. Experience using applicant tracking systems, recruiting technology, sourcing platforms, and recruiting analytics or reporting tools. Preferred: 8+ years of technical or specialized recruiting experience, including e