Director of Talent Acquisition (f/m/d)

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About the role

About Focused Energy Focused Energy is building the future of clean energy through laser-driven inertial fusion. Backed by our $240M Series A — the largest fully secured Series A in the global fusion industry — we are scaling rapidly across multiple geographies. Based in Germany and the US, we have brought together the top scientific and engineering minds using proven technologies to unlock fusion power at commercial scale. Focused Energy is working to realize game-changing scientific innovation that promises to deliver a clean, sustainable and abundant source of power globally. Location: Role is Hybrid and based in either Berlin or Darmstadt, Germany, with remote flexibility. Your Role We're hiring a Director of Talent Acquisition to own how this company hires. This isn't a caretaker role over a recruiting queue. You'll lead our Talent Acquisition and Employer Branding function — a team of five TA Partners and a TA Enablement & Analytics Partner — and build the operating model that makes hiring a genuine competitive advantage. You're joining at a pivotal moment. The TA function is operational and delivering, but quality, consistency, and hiring manager capability haven't yet caught up with our ambitions. Our ability to scale from Series A through commercialization depends on hiring the right people, at the right pace, into the right roles — across fusion science, laser engineering, software, operations, and G&A. You won't inherit a finished machine. You'll build one. What You'll Do Team Leadership Lead and develop five TA Partners and the TA Enablement & Analytics Partner — setting clear expectations, building capability, and creating a high-performing team culture that delivers without you in every decision. Hiring Standards and Rigour Build and maintain the TA operating standards: hiring processes, interview frameworks, scorecards, and decision criteria applied consistently across every function. Raise the bar on quality, not just throughput. Capacity Planning Drive capacity planning in close partnership with Finance and department heads, ensuring TA is resourced and sequenced ahead of demand — never the bottleneck to a planned hire. Hiring Manager Enablement Equip leaders to run structured, fair hiring processes through training, coaching, and tooling — reducing dependency on TA for process guidance and raising the quality of hiring decisions. ATS and Data Own the ATS end to end: configuration, data integrity, adoption, and continuous improvement. Use pipeline data and KPIs to identify bottlenecks, drive process changes, and report progress that drives decisions rather than decorates them. Employer Branding Build a consistent, differentiated presence in our target talent markets — LinkedIn, Glassdoor, job boards, events, and content — in partnership with Marketing, so inbound quality improves quarter on quarter. Who You Are • 10+ years of progressive talent acquisition experience, with meaningful time leading and developing recruiting teams • Experience in a scaling tech, deep-tech, or engineering-heavy environment, hiring for specialised, hard-to-fill roles • Fluent with AI in your daily recruiting work — sourcing, screening, content, analytics — and able to raise your team's bar on it • A KPI-driven operator: structured interviewing, assessment design, capacity planning, and hiring manager enablement are core methods, not buzzwords • Hands-on ATS ownership: configuration, vendor management, reporting, and driving adoption across recruiters and hiring managers • Strong working knowledge of GDPR as it applies to candidate data, and of German employment law in hiring • Fluent in English; German is a meaningful plus What Sets You Apart • You've built or significantly rebuilt a TA operating model — standards, processes, and t

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