Talent Acquisition Partner, Space Systems

Planet•San Francisco, CA

8d•Hybrid

About The Position

Planet's Space Systems organization designs, builds, and operates the satellites that image Earth every day. Behind every spacecraft is a team of engineers — hardware, embedded, RF, mission operations, flight software, optical and payload, mechanical, and ground systems — whose work directly determines how much of the planet we see and how clearly we see it. As a Senior Talent Acquisition Partner, Space Systems, you will own the hiring strategy and execution for one of Planet's most technically demanding and mission-critical functions. You will partner directly with engineering and operations leaders across the Space Systems organization to build pipelines, run searches, and deliver hires from individual contributors through senior engineering leaders. This is a permanent, full-time role based in our San Francisco office, reporting to the Senior Manager, Talent Acquisition. You'll work closely with sourcing partners and other members of the Talent Acquisition team to execute against Planet's most strategic technical hiring priorities. This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our San Francisco office 3 days per week.

Requirements

6+ years of full-cycle technical recruiting experience, with at least three years sourcing and closing senior engineering hires.
Demonstrated ability to run a complex requisition portfolio across multiple engineering disciplines, including hard-to-fill technical specializations.
Highly consultative orientation with senior hiring leaders — comfortable challenging assumptions, recalibrating profiles, and offering candid pushback when market signals warrant it.
Track record of closing senior engineering hires (Staff, Principal, Director-level) end-to-end, including navigating complex offer dynamics.
Mastery of LinkedIn Recruiter, Boolean search, GitHub, and modern sourcing platforms, with practiced fluency in an applicant tracking system such as Greenhouse.
Quantitative grasp of recruiting performance metrics — pass-through rates, pipeline velocity, time-to-fill — and the diagnostic instinct to know when a search needs a different angle.
Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to engage credibly with deeply technical engineering audiences from IC through executive leadership.
Self-directed operating style — comfortable owning ambiguous searches, prioritizing across competing pod demands, and operating with full autonomy on most decisions.

Nice To Haves

Direct recruiting experience in satellite, aerospace, defense, hardware, deep-tech, or adjacent technically demanding industries.
Familiarity with the engineering disciplines that staff a satellite company — RF, embedded systems, flight software, mission operations, mechanical, propulsion, optical and payload, GNC, and ground systems.
Experience hiring for organizations that build and operate physical hardware at scale, not exclusively software.
Familiarity with AI-assisted sourcing tools, automation workflows, or candidate intelligence platforms that complement traditional recruiting work.

Responsibilities

Own a full requisition portfolio for Planet's Space Systems organization — from early-career engineering hires through Staff, Principal, and senior engineering leadership searches.
Build deep partnerships with Space Systems hiring managers and senior leaders, operating as a consultative subject matter expert on the satellite and aerospace talent market.
Run structured intakes that translate ambiguous technical needs into actionable search strategy — including profile calibration, market mapping, and target list development.
Drive full-cycle execution: sourcing strategy, candidate screening and assessment, panel design, debrief discipline, and offer close.
Partner closely with sourcing partners across the team to keep pipelines healthy for Planet's hardest-to-fill technical roles — including disciplines such as FPGA, RF, embedded systems, flight software, and mission operations.
Calibrate compensation and offer strategy in partnership with People Business Partners, particularly for senior IC and leadership hires where market dynamics shift quickly.
Maintain accurate, complete data in Greenhouse to support reporting, forecasting, and pod-level visibility across the Talent Acquisition team.
Bring the broader Space Systems, aerospace, and deep-tech talent landscape into Planet — including competitive intelligence, market shifts, and emerging skill sets that should shape how we hire.