Talent Acquisition Lead

Position Overview

The Talent Acquisition Lead is a high-impact, strategic hiring leader who anchors Volvo Group's ability to attract, assess, and secure exceptional talent across multiple business units. This role goes well beyond transactional recruitment—it is a seat at the table with business leaders, translating workforce strategy into executable hiring frameworks, championing an innovative and data-driven approach to sourcing, and simultaneously inspiring a high-performing recruiter team.

The ideal candidate demonstrates enterprise-level TA capability: they design systems, not just fill roles. They are independently driven, comfortable operating in ambiguity, and deeply accountable for outcomes. They bring a consulting mindset to business partnering and a builder's instinct to Employer Branding and University Relations.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Business Partnering

• Act as a trusted strategic adviser to business unit heads and senior leaders on all talent acquisition matters across multiple Volvo Group entities in India.
• Translate complex, often ambiguous business growth plans into structured workforce and hiring strategies with defined timelines and measurable outcomes.
• Lead multiple concurrent strategic TA initiatives, ensuring alignment with Volvo Group's global P4P (Performance for Purpose) framework and long-term sustainable performance goals.
• Proactively identify talent gaps, succession risks, and pipeline requirements; present data-backed proposals to leadership to address them.

Team Leadership & Capability Building

• Directly lead, coach, and mentor a team of 3–5 recruiters, nurturing a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and high-frequency quality dialogue.
• Set individual performance targets aligned with team KPIs; conduct regular feedback conversations that reflect the growth mindset principles embedded in Volvo Group's performance philosophy.
• Identify skill development opportunities for team members; build internal capability so the team evolves from transactional executors to consultative TA professionals.
• Foster an environment where team members own their priorities and development, consistent with Volvo's Long-term Sustainable Performance model.

Employer Branding & Talent Marketing

• Design and execute business-level Employer Branding strategies related to talent attraction that position Volvo Group as an employer of choice across engineering, technology, and operations talent pools in India.
• Develop differentiated value propositions for each business unit, translating global Volvo branding into locally resonant, segment-specific messaging.
• Leverage digital channels, professional networks, content campaigns, and events to build Volvo Group's employer brand presence among target talent communities.
• Monitor brand perception metrics and candidate sentiment; iterate strategies based on data.

Data-Driven Attraction & Process Excellence

• Build and maintain data-driven attraction strategies using market intelligence, talent mapping, sourcing analytics, and competitive benchmarking.
• Design, own, and continuously improve hiring frameworks and processes that reduce time-to-offer, improve quality-of-hire, and enhance candidate and hiring manager experience.
• Track and report on key TA metrics: offers vs. target, cycle time, diversity %, vendor dependency, employee referral %, and source effectiveness.
• Introduce innovative sourcing methodologies, assessment approaches, and technology solutions that keep Volvo Group ahead of the talent competition.

Stakeholder Management & Communication

• Engage senior leaders and key stakeholders with confidence; present TA strategy, progress, and risks clearly at leadership forums.
• Manage vendor/agency relationships with a clear preference for direct sourcing and reduced vendor dependency; hold partners to defined SLAs and quality standards.
• Ensure compliance with Volvo Group's hiring governance, DEI commitments, and statutory obligations (including apprenticeship legislation).

Qualifications & Experience

Educational Background

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Human Resources, or a related field (required).
• MBA/PGDM in HR or General Management from a reputed institution.
• Certifications in TA tools, sourcing techniques, or HR analytics are an added advantage.

Experience

• Around 15 years of progressive Talent Acquisition experience, with at least 3–4 years in a lead or manager role overseeing a recruiter team.
• Demonstrated experience hiring across multiple business units or product lines within a large, matrixed organisation—preferably in the automotive, engineering, manufacturing, or technology sector.
• Hands-on experience designing and running university relations programs and campus recruitment at scale.
• Track record of building or significantly improving Employer Branding programs with measurable impact on candidate quality and application volumes.
• Experience working with senior business leaders as a strategic TA adviser, not merely as a transactional recruiter.

Technical Skills

• Proficiency in Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS); experience with SAP SuccessFactors or equivalent enterprise HRMS is preferred.
• Strong capability in sourcing platforms: LinkedIn Recruiter, Naukri, iimjobs, Boolean search, and social media talent intelligence.
• Competence in TA analytics and dashboarding; ability to build and interpret recruiter performance metrics and hiring funnel data.
• Familiarity with Indian statutory apprenticeship frameworks (NATS, NAPS, PMIS) is a distinct advantage.