Technical Recruiter (Open to Hardware Engineers Transitioning into Recruiting)

Gitai • Los Angeles, CA

20h • Onsite

About The Position

GITAI is seeking a Technical Recruiter, open to hardware engineers transitioning into recruiting, to expand its technical recruiting capabilities. The primary focus is to scale the initial technical screening of engineering candidates. This role requires strong engineering judgment to evaluate technical artifacts like portfolios, CAD, PCB work, hardware photos, and test results, rather than relying solely on resume keywords. The Technical Recruiter will also provide an independent perspective on the engineering talent market and challenge hiring managers when necessary. This is an onsite role based in Torrance, California, requiring close collaboration with engineering teams to sharpen judgment on technical talent and role fit.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Robotics Engineering, or a closely related engineering field.
• At least 1 year of professional experience performing engineering or hands-on technical work in a hardware-related field.
• Exceptional technical judgment; ability to look at an engineering portfolio for a few seconds and usually tell whether the candidate is worth advancing.
• Strong technical depth in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or both.
• Strong understanding of the engineering talent market and what differentiates exceptional engineers from average ones.
• Independent judgment and the ability to respectfully challenge hiring managers when necessary.
• Strong judgment of people; ability to quickly understand a candidate’s motivations, working style, level of ownership, and likely role fit from limited information.
• Hands-on experience using an applicant tracking system (ATS) to manage candidate pipelines and recruiting workflows.
• Working knowledge of basic U.S. employment compliance, with particular familiarity with California labor and employment requirements relevant to recruiting and hiring.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to operate quickly in an early-stage startup environment.
• Must be eligible to access export-controlled technical information in accordance with applicable U.S. export control laws (U.S. citizen, lawful U.S. permanent resident, or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or eligible to obtain necessary authorizations).

Nice To Haves

• Prior recruiting experience.
• Experience in space, aerospace, defense, robotics, advanced manufacturing, automotive, or another hard-tech industry.
• Experience working at an early-stage startup, particularly at a company from pre-seed through Series B.
• Professional recruiting experience, with hands-on responsibility for sourcing, screening, and managing candidates through the hiring process.
• Traditional recruiting experience is helpful, but technical depth and judgment matter more for this role.

Responsibilities

• Review engineering portfolios and identify candidates who should move forward.
• Evaluate actual project work, CAD, PCB designs, hardware photos, test results, and other technical artifacts to form strong judgments quickly.
• Understand what a candidate actually designed, built, tested, and owned, distinguishing genuine hands-on engineering depth from polished presentations or work primarily performed by a larger team.
• Identify where a candidate’s demonstrated technical strengths fit within GITAI’s mechanical, electrical, avionics, propulsion, manufacturing, robotics, and other engineering roles.
• Build enough technical context to make screening decisions independently.
• Protect engineering time by sending candidates into technical assessment only when there is strong evidence that they are worth the team’s attention.
• Learn from engineering teams, their work, and hiring outcomes to continuously improve technical judgment.
• Build a deep understanding of the engineering talent market and identify strong candidates that conventional resume screening may miss.
• Bring independent judgment to hiring discussions and respectfully challenge hiring managers when technical or market evidence supports a different conclusion.
• Apply a consistent, evidence-based technical screening standard across candidates and help GITAI maintain a high hiring bar as application volume grows.
• Manage candidate pipelines and recruiting workflows using an applicant tracking system (ATS).
• Ensure compliance with basic U.S. employment laws, with a focus on California labor and employment requirements relevant to recruiting and hiring.
• Observe how engineering teams work, how teams collaborate, and what each team actually needs to continuously sharpen judgment of technical talent and role fit.
• Travel occasionally for recruiting activities such as university career fairs, campus events, and other talent outreach.

Benefits

• 100% paid medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees, with 90% coverage for dependents
• Life insurance
• 401(k) plan with a company match
• 12 days of paid time off (PTO) annually
• 12 company holidays annually
• Free snacks and drinks
• Regular social events
• Stock options

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level