Director of Talent Acquisition

About Helion

We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone. 

Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised over $1 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors SoftBank and Lightspeed to propel us forward. Our last prototype, Trenta, completed 10,000 high-power pulses and reached plasma temperatures of 100 million degrees Celsius (9 keV). We are now operating Polaris, our next prototype on the path to the world's first fusion power plant. 

This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait.

What You Will Be Doing:

As the Director of Talent Acquisition at Helion, you’ll own all of recruiting, talent operations, and leadership recruiting. You’ll lead and grow a team of managers, recruiters, and sourcers, while building the systems, data, and processes that make our hiring engine scale. You’ll work directly with executives and hiring managers to set priorities, drive accountability, and deliver the technical, leadership, and business talent we need. This role is hands-on in both execution and enablement - building the function while ensuring an excellent candidate and hiring team experience. The position is based onsite at our Everett, WA office and reports to the Director of Talent & People Operations.

You Will:

• Build and lead a Talent Acquisition org that includes recruiters, sourcers, managers, and talent operations specialists
• Own Talent Operations: headcount planning, recruiting systems, reporting, interviewer training, and talent brand
• Partner with executives and senior leaders to align hiring plans with company roadmap and milestones
• Ensure the candidate and hiring team experience reflects Helion’s values, while embedding D&I best practices at every stage
• Implement the latest AI-driven recruiting technology
• Manage talent programs that accelerate our mission to deliver fusion to the world

Required Skills:

• 10+ years of recruiting experience, including leading the recruiting function at a high-growth company
• 5+ years of experience building and scaling teams of recruiters, sourcers, and managers
• Experience shaping and executing strategies to attract and close top passive talent in competitive markets
• Strong use of recruiting data and analytics to set strategy, drive accountability, and measure business impact
• Hands-on experience building systems, programs, and workflows that improve efficiency, candidate experience, and long-term outcomes
• Direct experience running or overseeing leadership recruiting, including VP/C-level searches and managing external partners

#Li-Onsite

Total Compensation and Benefits

Helion's compensation package includes a competitively benchmarked base salary, meaningful equity grants, and comprehensive benefits. Final compensation is determined through a holistic evaluation of your experience, qualifications, and our commitment to internal equity - ensuring fairness and transparency across our teams. We are committed to fostering a fair and equitable environment in every aspect of our operations, including compensation.

This is an exempt salaried role.

Annual Base Pay$200,000—$240,000 USD

Benefits

Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to: 

• •    Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families 
• •    31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days) 
• •    10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break 
• •    Up to 5% employer 401(k) match 
• •    Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance 
• •    Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks) 
• •    Annual wellness stipend  

Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.