Head of Talent Acquisition

Distyl AI develops AI native technologies for humans & AI to collaborate to power the operations of the Global Fortune 1000.

In just 24 months, we’ve rapidly grown to partner with some of the world’s largest enterprises—including F100 telecom, healthcare, manufacturing, insurance, and retail companies—delivering multiple AI deployments with $100M+ impact. Our platform, Distillery, along with our team of AI Engineers, Researchers, and Strategists, is pioneering AI-native systems of work, solving the most complex, high-stakes challenges at scale.

Distyl is founded and led by proven leaders from companies like Palantir, Apple, and top national laboratories. We work in deep partnership with OpenAI, jointly going-to-market at the largest enterprises and collaborating evaluating and testing the latest models. Backed by Lightspeed, Khosla, Coatue, industry leaders like Nat Friedman (former GitHub CEO), as well as board members of over 20+ F500s, Distyl is building the future of AI-powered enterprise operations.

What We Are Looking For

As Head of Talent Acquisition, you will own and scale our end-to-end hiring strategy, from executive leadership roles to deeply technical positions. You will be responsible for building a world-class recruiting function that enables the company to grow rapidly while maintaining an exceptionally high bar for talent.

In close partnership with the Head of People, founders and leadership team your mission is to translate business priorities into hiring outcomes, earn trust as a strategic advisor, and ensure we consistently attract and close top-tier talent. You will personally lead critical executive searches while also designing the systems, processes, and team needed to scale hiring sustainably.

This role requires a builder mindset, strong executive presence, deep technical recruiting fluency and comfort operating in ambiguity. You will be accountable for hiring outcomes and long-term talent foundation of the company.

Key Responsibilities

• Executive Search & Leadership Hiring: Own executive and senior leadership hiring, personally leading critical searches while managing and leveraging external search firms. Partner with founders and hiring managers on role definition, assessment, and closing and set the standard for executive hiring across the company.

• Hiring Strategy & Bar Setting: Own end-to-end hiring outcomes and set a consistently high bar across all roles, partnering closely with leaders to ensure rigorous assessment and strong hiring decisions.

• Leadership & Team Building: Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing Talent Acquisition team. Create clarity around roles, expectations, and performance while fostering a culture of ownership and excellence.

• Hiring Process & Infrastructure: Design scalable recruiting processes. Use data to diagnose funnel health, improve decision-making and continuously iterate on hiring effectiveness.

• Candidate Experience & Employer Brand: Ensure a high-touch, thoughtful candidate experience. Shape and communicate a compelling employer story in partnership with leadership and brand partners.

• Stakeholder Partnership: Build deep, trusted relationships with founders and hiring managers, serving as a trusted advisor throughout the hiring process.

What We Require

• Executive Search Experience: 10+ years of experience in Talent Acquisition and/or Executive Search, with proven experience leading executive search end-to-end either from a top search firm or in-house and a track record of closing senior leaders in competitive markets.

• People Leadership Experience: Proven experience leading and scaling Talent Acquisition teams, including hiring, developing, and managing recruiters, and operating as a player-coach in a high-growth environment.

• Technical Recruiting Expertise: Hands-on experience hiring technical talent, with the ability to partner credibly with technical leaders.

• Startup & High-Growth Experience: Experience building or scaling recruiting functions in a startup or high-growth environment, where ambiguity and speed are the norm.

• Strategic & Operational Strength: Ability to zoom out to define long-term hiring strategy while staying hands-on with critical searches and day-to-day execution.

• Exceptional Communication & Judgment: Strong executive presence, stakeholder management skills, and sound judgment in high-stakes hiring decisions.

• Thrive in Ambiguity: Comfort operating with incomplete information, prioritizing ruthlessly, and creating structure where none exists.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary and benefits package, including equity options, medical/dental/vision covered at 100% for you and your dependents, 401K plan, and perks such as commuter benefits and lunch provided in office.

• Opportunity to be part of a mission-oriented company to create practical adoption during the biggest revolution in human productivity.

• Opportunity to work on cutting-edge AI technologies and make a real impact on the adoption of LLMs in the enterprise space.

• Collaborative and supportive work environment, with a strong focus on personal and professional growth.

• Exposure to a diverse range of real-world industries and projects, providing unique challenges and learning opportunities.

Note: Distyl is a hybrid working environment and requires in-office collaboration 3 days a week from Tuesday through Thursday. This role is located in San Francisco, CA.