Executive Recruiter

CHAOS Industries is redefining modern defense with a multi-product portfolio that gives the ultimate advantage—domain dominance. The company's products are powered by Coherent Distributed Networks (CDN™), empowering warfighters, commercial air operators, and border protection teams to act faster, adapt rapidly, and stay ahead of evolving threats. 

CHAOS Industries was founded in 2022 and has raised a total of $1 billion in funding from leading investors, including 8VC, Accel, and Valor Equity Partners. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, San Diego, and London. For more information, please visit www.chaosinc.com .

Role Overview: We are seeking a seasoned and strategic Executive Recruiter to identify, engage, and close exceptional leadership talent for our growing organization. As a Senior Executive Recruiter, you'll partner closely with our executive team, hiring managers, and other key stakeholders to build strong pipelines of senior and executive talent aligned with our mission and values. If you're passionate about landing transformative leaders and contributing to groundbreaking advancements in defense technology, we want to hear from you!

Responsibilities:

Partner with executives, hiring managers, and the Recruiting Lead to deeply understand the leadership requirements, team dynamics, and strategic goals for each executive search

Develop and execute comprehensive search strategies for senior and C-suite level roles, leveraging market mapping, executive networks, referrals, and targeted outreach

Proactively identify, engage, and cultivate relationships with passive executive candidates through sophisticated sourcing and direct approach techniques

Manage the full-cycle executive search process, including in-depth candidate assessment, interview coordination, and offer negotiation

Serve as a trusted advisor to hiring managers and leadership, providing market intelligence, compensation benchmarking, and search strategy guidance

Partner with Recruiting Coordinators, HR, and Operations to ensure seamless and confidential search processes

Maintain and analyze pipeline metrics for executive searches, providing regular updates and insights to leadership stakeholders

Recommend and implement process improvements to enhance executive search effectiveness and efficiency

Build deep expertise in the competitive landscape, target companies, and industry trends to guide executive search strategy and inform leadership hiring decisions

Utilize data and analytics to influence senior-level hiring strategies, ensure data integrity, and track progress toward organizational goals

Work 4-5 days onsite out of our office in El Segundo, California

Minimum Requirements:

7+ years of proven experience in executive/leadership-level search, ideally within a startup, aerospace/defense, or fast-paced technical environment

Strong track record of successfully closing senior leadership and executive-level hires, including VP and C-suite roles

Experience with Greenhouse ATS

Experience partnering directly with C-suite or founder-level stakeholders on critical hires

Deep understanding of leadership competencies and organizational fit across functions such as engineering, operations, product, and business leadership

Proficiency in executive sourcing tools and techniques, including LinkedIn Recruiter, market mapping, and ATS platforms

Exceptional communication, negotiation, and relationship-building skills, with the ability to advise and influence senior stakeholders

Analytical mindset with experience using data to inform executive hiring decisions and optimize search strategy

A confident, discreet, and consultative approach to executive engagement and pipeline development

Demonstrated ability to manage confidential and high-stakes searches

Preferred Requirements:

Existing network of senior leaders and executives within aerospace, defense, or deep tec …