Talent Acquisition Manager

Role & responsibilities

The Manager Talent Acquisition will be responsible for designing, leading, and executing comprehensive recruitment strategies to attract, assess, and hire high-quality talent across the pharmaceutical value chain. This role plays a critical part in ensuring the organization is staffed with skilled professionals who meet stringent regulatory, technical, and ethical standards required in the pharma industry.

The incumbent will manage end-to-end hiring operations, talent pipeline development, recruitment analytics, compliance, and team leadership, while continuously improving hiring efficiency, candidate experience, and quality of hire.

Key Responsibilities

Talent Acquisition Strategy & Workforce Planning

• Design and execute long-term and short-term recruitment strategies aligned with organizational growth, expansion plans, and skill requirements.
• Identify critical roles, niche skill gaps, and future talent needs across R&D, Quality, Manufacturing, Regulatory Affairs, Pharmacovigilance, Supply Chain, Sales, and Corporate functions.
• Develop proactive sourcing models to ensure readiness for scale-up, plant expansions, new product launches, and regulatory-driven hiring.

End-to-End Recruitment Operations

• Lead the complete recruitment lifecycle including manpower requisition validation, sourcing, screening, interviewing coordination, offer negotiation, pre-employment checks, and onboarding support.
• Manage hiring for entry-level, mid-level, senior, and leadership positions, including highly specialized scientific and technical roles.
• Ensure consistency, fairness, and transparency across recruitment processes.
• Maintain high standards of candidate engagement and experience throughout the hiring journey.

Sourcing & Talent Pipeline Development

• Build strong internal and external talent pipelines using job portals, professional networks, referrals, social media, industry forums, and direct sourcing.
• Create succession-ready pipelines for mission-critical roles.
• Strengthen employer branding through recruitment campaigns, digital presence, and campus initiatives.

Compliance, Governance & Risk Management

• Ensure all recruitment activities comply with pharmaceutical industry regulations, GxP standards, data privacy requirements, and applicable labor laws.
• Maintain audit-ready recruitment documentation and records.
• Ensure adherence to ethical hiring practices and confidentiality standards.

Campus & Early Career Programs

• Design and execute campus hiring strategies for pharmacy, science, engineering, and management institutions.
• Manage internship, trainee, and graduate programs to build future talent pipelines.
• Coordinate assessment centers, selection processes, and pre-joining engagement for campus hires.

Team Leadership & Capability Building

• Lead, coach, and develop the talent acquisition team to improve performance, sourcing capability, and hiring quality.
• Set clear goals, KPIs, and performance standards for recruiters.
• Foster a high-performance, metrics-driven recruitment culture.

Vendor & Recruitment Partner Management

• Identify, onboard, and manage recruitment agencies, search firms, and consultants.
• Monitor vendor performance, cost efficiency, service quality, and turnaround time.
• Negotiate contracts, fees, and service-level agreements.

Recruitment Analytics & Process Excellence

• Track, analyze, and report key recruitment metrics such as time-to-hire, cost-per-hire, source effectiveness, offer acceptance rates, and quality of hire.
• Use data insights to drive continuous improvement in recruitment processes.
• Lead the implementation and optimization of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and recruitment technologies.
• Standardize hiring practices and documentation across locations and functions.

Qualifications & Experience

Education

• MBA / Master's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related discipline.
• Educational background in Pharmacy, Life Sciences, or Engineering will be an added advantage.

Experience

• 10–15 years of progressive experience in Talent Acquisition or Recruitment.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in a leadership or managerial role.
• Strong, hands-on recruitment experience within pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO, or life sciences organizations.
• Demonstrated success in managing large-scale hiring, niche skill recruitment, and regulated-industry hiring.