Recruiting Programs Lead

About the role

Applied Intuition is seeking a Recruiting Programs Lead to own two distinct but connected programs: our early career talent programs and our contingent workforce program. You will build the structure, compliance rigor, and scalability behind how we hire and manage talent outside the traditional full-time pipeline - from the students and new grads who become future full-time hires, to the contractors, temps, and agency workers who help the business flex and scale. This role requires real depth in both areas, not just program management generalist skills: you should already know how to run a university relations and internship pipeline, and you should already know the compliance landscape around contingent labor, particularly in California. You will also be a trusted advisor to stakeholders across the business - someone who can defend a process because it is the right process, not simply implement whatever is asked.

What you'll do

• Own and scale our early career talent program, including university relations, new grad hiring, and internship programs, building consistent, high-quality experiences across teams and locations.
• Manage the full early career recruiting lifecycle - from campus and university partnerships through offer and onboarding handoff - treating it as a cohesive, repeatable program.
• Build and manage our contingent worker program end to end, including vendor and staffing agency management, to ensure consistent, compliant, high-quality engagements across the business.
• Bring working knowledge of the compliance landscape around contingent labor in California, including how different worker classifications (contractors, temp, temp-to-hire, and other contingent types) need to be structured and managed to stay compliant.
• Manage contingent talent through a Vendor Management System (VMS), including requisitions, worker tracking, and spend visibility.
• Bring or build knowledge of other worker types and how to work with Employers of Record (EORs), extending the contingent workforce model beyond the U.S. as needed.
• Partner cross-functionally with Legal, Finance, internal applications, and Engineering teams to ensure early career and contingent programs align with business objectives and regulatory requirements.
• Analyze program data and metrics - time-to-fill, pipeline health, contingent workforce spend and compliance risk - to identify trends, bottlenecks, and opportunities for improvement.
• Drive automation across both programs (requisition approvals, candidate communications, vendor onboarding, training/compliance tracking, reporting) to reduce manual work and increase accuracy.
• Define and maintain the operational backbone for early career and contingent programs, including playbooks, SLAs, and documentation that enable scale.
• Lead stakeholder interviews and discovery to translate complex hiring needs into standardized program components and clear requirements.
• Collaborate with People Operations to ensure candidate and contractor experiences reflect Applied Intuition's standards and values.
• Partner with Data and Finance to model contingent workforce spend scenarios and forecast budget impacts against program goals.
• Identify and mitigate compliance risks specific to contingent labor arrangements, translating legal requirements into operational controls.
• Support the continuous improvement of onboarding, performance feedback, and offboarding processes for contractors and interns.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree and 6+ years of experience in recruiting operations and other teams including talent acquisition, or people program management roles with demonstrated stakeholder management experience.
• Proven track record of building and scaling an early career talent program, including university relations, new grad hiring, and internship programs.
• Proven success building and managing a contingent worker program, including vendor/staffing agency management and day-to-day use of a VMS.
• Solid understanding of employment law and compliance requirements as they relate to contingent workforce management, particularly in California.
• Strong program management background with the ability to design and optimize processes, integrate feedback, and communicate outcomes across all levels.
• Strong analytical mindset with experience using recruiting and workforce data to drive program improvements and decision-making.
• Experience working with cross-functional stakeholders in fast-paced, high-growth technology environments.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and projects simultaneously while maintaining attention to detail.
• Comfortable working independently and making sound decisions with incomplete information.
• Willingness to collaborate closely with Legal, Finance, and Engineering to ensure policies and procedures are both compliant and practical.
• Comfortable using enterprise software and learning Vendor Management Systems and HRIS tools quickly.
• Experience with data analysis in spreadsheets or similar tools to track program health and outcomes.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for influencing without authority.
• Commitment to building inclusive programs and partnering with diverse communities.

Nice to have

• Experience with Employers of Record (EORs) and extending the contingent workforce model outside the U.S.
• Familiarity with staffing agencies and relationships with multiple vendors.
• Experience in industries with high contingent workforce usage such as retail, manufacturing, or professional services.

Practical notes

This is an in-office role at our Sunnyvale, California location. Hours are full-time. We expect employees to primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week, while allowing flexibility for occasional remote work or adjusted start times to support personal commitments. Travel is not required for this role. Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship for this position. Please apply only if you meet the stated requirements.