Senior Talent Acquisition Manager (All Genders)

YOU & AHEAD

At ahead, we’re transforming how millions of people snack - and we can’t do that without exceptional people. We’ve doubled our team size this year and are gearing up to expand even further.

We’re looking for a Senior Talent Acquisition Manager who understands that great hiring is more than sourcing CVs - it’s storytelling, market intelligence, stakeholder partnering, and shaping the team that will carry our mission forward.
You see people, not profiles: you understand motivations, career paths, and what makes someone thrive - not just match a job title.
You’ll be a central force in how we scale, who we hire, and how we compete for talent in some of the most competitive markets in Europe.

YOUR TASKS

• Own the Hiring Engine: You own end-to-end hiring for diverse, niche, and critical roles - assessing requirements, shaping role profiles, designing interviews, and closing candidates with clarity and confidence.
• Champion Active Sourcing: You actively hunt for A-Players, build deep talent pools, and run tailored outreach to maintain long-term relationships with high-impact talent. You know where the best talent lives and how to win their attention in competitive markets.
• Hiring Strategy & Prioritization: You translate business needs into structured hiring roadmaps, challenge assumptions when needed, and make decisions based on impact, data, and priorities - not noise. You partner with hiring managers and leadership, translating market insights into realistic expectations on talent availability, timelines, and hiring quality.
• Recruiting Analytics & Funnel Health: You own recruiting analytics and funnel health, monitor KPIs like time-to-hire, pipeline conversion, drop-offs, and acceptance rate, and implement measurable improvements. You experiment, iterate, and continuously raise the bar on quality and speed.
• Employer Branding & Talent Narrative: You strengthen ahead’s presence in the talent market. Together with Marketing and Brand, you shape how we speak about our mission, culture, and people - and ensure our roles attract exceptional candidates who resonate with who we are.
• Recruiting Process Optimization: You design scalable recruiting processes that drive quality, efficiency, and fairness. You refine interview stages, optimize workflows, and ensure a strong and positive candidate experience from first touchpoint to offer.

YOUR SKILLS

• You bring at least 3-5 years of hands on recruiting experience for diverse, niche roles- ideally in a fast-growing environment in recruiting consulting, agency or brand (Series A/B or 100→200+ scaling).
• Successful track record in active sourcing: mapping markets, using Boolean search, and building talent pools
• You’re comfortable with ATS (Personio or similar), sourcing platforms, and LinkedIn / Boolean tooling
• Deep understanding of recruiting metrics and KPIs with an eye on improvement and execution
• Experience with process improvement- internal pipelines, sourcing, candidate experience
• Experience with employer branding and know how to represent a company’s mission and culture in conversations, content, and outreach

What Makes Your Profile Complete:

• Clear communication and negotiation skills- ability to influence, challenge, and build trust.
• Proactive mindset and ownership of roles, projects from start to finish
• Strong command of English, both written and spoken. German fluency is preferred

AND WHY AHEAD?

Working at ahead is more than just a job - it’s your opportunity to develop as a professional and as a person, while shaping the future of snacking. Our mission is to make low sugar the new standard, and we pour that ambition into every product we create. You’ll become part of a team where international talent, startup drive, real impact, and true ownership come together.

• Hypergrowth Environment: If you're looking for greenfield, creative freedom, and real impact, you're in the right place. We're a team that is scaling fast - with purpose
• Great Workspace: A central office in the heart of Hamburg near the Alster, top equipment (MacBook), snacks, drinks, plenty of ahead products - and yes, a ping-pong table. We’re also pet-friendly, so you can always bring your furry friend along
• Amazing Team: Young, international, ambitious - inspiring colleagues who collaborate, support each other, and genuinely enjoy working together
• Career Growth: Develop through cross-functional projects, structured feedback cycles, and a steep learning curve in a dynamic, high growth environment. We offer a fair, attractive salary with role-dependent bonus opportunities
• Great Benefits: Fuel yourself with ahead snacks, drinks, and merch - we’ve got you covered. On top: a €50 monthly allowance to spend as you like - Urban Sports Club, mobility options, or vouchers from your favorite brands (IKEA, MediaMarkt, Lego and more)
• Vacation Days: Enjoy 28 vacation days plus two extra days off on December 24 (Christmas Eve) and December 31 (New Year’s Eve)
• Events & Offsites: Regular after-work hangouts and legendary annual team offsites you won’t forget

This role is based in Hamburg, with the flexibility of up to 2 home office days per week and the option to work from abroad for agreed upon periods. If this resonates with you, you can dive into the next steps as outlined below!

YOUR NEXT STEPS WITH US

Let’s get started! Here’s what the application process looks like:

Send us your resume and a few reasons why you want to be a part of ahead.

1. We will get back to you as soon as possible to schedule an interview.
2. After our initial meeting, you’ll work on a case study to give you a sense of the tasks you’ll be handling.
3. Meet our team and the founders, Johannes and Philip, during the interview process and case study presentation.
4. If both sides are happy, you can start as soon as possible!

Just reach out to us for a chat!

Disclaimer

ahead GmbH is an equal opportunity workplace and is devoted to providing equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, or gender identity.

About us

At ahead, we’re building the snack brand for a new generation – one that loves chocolate, cookies & gummies, but doesn’t love what sugar does to their bodies.
We use cutting-edge food tech to reinvent childhood favorites: no added sugar, no empty carbs – just full taste, better ingredients, and zero compromise.
The result? Everyday indulgence that actually fits your lifestyle.
Let’s make low-sugar the new normal. And fun again.
We’re growing fast, expanding across Europe, and looking for smart, driven, curious minds to join us.
If you’re ready to change how millions of people snack – for good – we’d love to meet you.