Talent Acquisition Specialist

Job description

Summary Bridge Defense is seeking a driven and highly organized Talent Acquisition Specialist to support full-cycle recruiting across our growing organization. This role will be responsible for identifying, attracting, and hiring exceptional talent across Engineering, Services, Corporate, and other mission-critical functions, with a strong emphasis on technical and cleared professionals supporting the national security community. The Talent Acquisition Specialist will partner closely with HR, leadership, and hiring managers to understand workforce needs, develop effective sourcing strategies, build strong candidate pipelines, and manage candidates from initial outreach through accepted offer. This is a hands-on recruiting role requiring proactive sourcing, effective candidate engagement, strong pipeline management, and the ability to successfully manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment. In addition to day-to-day recruiting, this position will contribute to broader talent acquisition initiatives, including recruiting strategy, compensation and market research, university and early-career recruiting, recruiting analytics, and other programs designed to support Bridge Defense's continued growth. What You'll Own Proactively identify and engage passive engineering candidates through LinkedIn Recruiter and other sourcing channels. Develop thoughtful, personalized candidate outreach that reflects the position, mission, and individual candidate's experience. Conduct recruiter screens to evaluate candidate experience, technical alignment, compensation expectations, availability, location, clearance requirements, and overall fit. Build and maintain pipelines for current and anticipated hiring needs. Partner closely with engineering leadership and hiring managers throughout the recruiting process. Coordinate interviews and maintain consistent communication with candidates and interview teams. Drive candidates through the recruiting process efficiently while maintaining a strong candidate experience. Support offer development, candidate closing, and pre-employment transition activities. Maintain accurate candidate records and recruiting activity within Rippling. Track recruiting metrics including pipeline activity, sourcing effectiveness, time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and hiring outcomes. Support compensation and talent-market research for technical positions. Support university recruiting, internship programs, career fairs, and early-career talent initiatives. Recommend improvements to sourcing strategies, recruiting processes, candidate experience, and recruiting tools. Support additional recruiting priorities as organizational needs evolve. Required Qualifications Bachelor's degree required. 3+ years of professional recruiting experience, with demonstrated experience recruiting engineering, software, infrastructure, cybersecurity, or other highly technical talent. Demonstrated experience managing the full recruiting lifecycle, including sourcing, screening, interview management, offers, and candidate closing. Strong experience proactively sourcing and engaging passive candidates. Experience using LinkedIn Recruiter and applicant tracking systems. Ability to understand technical job requirements and effectively evaluate candidates during initial recruiter screening. Strong written and verbal communication skills. Demonstrated ability to manage multiple active requisitions and candidate pipelines simultaneously. Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and follow-through. Ability to operate independently in a fast-paced and evolving environment. Must be authorized to work in the United States. Preferred Qualifications Experience recruiting within defense technology, government contracting, national security, or a high-growth technology company. Experience recruiting candidates with active U.S. government security clearances. Familiarity with security clearance requirements and the cleared talent market. Experience recruiting software engineers, infrastructure engineers, SREs, DevOps engineers, cybersecurity professionals, or similar technical positions. Experience supporting university recruiting, internships, or early-career talent programs. Experience with Rippling Recruiting or Rippling ATS. Experience conducting compensation or technical talent-market research. General Factors Must be able to manage multiple priorities and deadlines with limited supervision. Occasional travel may be required for team meetings, events or other business initiatives. Hours beyond a 40-hour work week may occasionally be required during month-end closing, audit periods, or acquisition activities. Location This is a hybrid position, with a combination of remote work and onsite work at our Washington, D.C. office, which may transition to the Rosslyn/Arlington, Virginia area in the future. The position requires availability during our core operational hours of 9:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday with 2-3 days on-site work. Compensation The anticipated salary range for this role is $60,000 - $75,000 annually, depending on experience, education, certifications, government contracting expertise, and overall qualifications. This position is eligible for a performance-based annual recruiting bonus which will be based on established recruiting and hiring objectives. The bonus program is designed to reward successful hiring outcomes while maintaining a strong focus on candidate quality, hiring-manager satisfaction, recruiting efficiency, and retention. Equal Employment Opportunity Bridge Defense is an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We are dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where all employees can thrive. Online applications, please. When we review candidates' information, we look for the best matches for the position based on the qualifications listed in the job posting. If your skills and experience appear to match an open position, a recruitment services professional or a hiring manager may contact you. Bridge Defense is an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. It is the policy of the company to provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, national origin or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. If you are a qualified disabled veteran or individual with a disability and need reasonable accommodation to use or access our online system, please contact us at 202-436-9222. About Bridge Defense. Bridge Defense is redefining how modern defense technology is delivered. Based in Washington, D.C., we are built for the dynamic mission environment facing the Department of Defense, the Intelligence Community, and federal law enforcement agencies. We provide full-spectrum national security solutions that combine secure infrastructure, cleared talent, and mission-ready software to meet evolving defense challenges. Our services include secure software development in classified environments and the design and implementation of advanced IT and cybersecurity capabilities ranging from secure cloud architectures and enterprise infrastructure to data center operations, scientific analysis, cutting-edge cyber defense, and intelligence analysis. We are led by technologists and veterans with firsthand mission experience, which enables us to understand both the operational realities and the innovation needed to succeed. Our approach is agile and outcome-based, delivering results in weeks rather than months whenever possible. At Bridge Defense we value people, integrity, and excellence. We foster an environment where innovation thrives in support of traditional mission requirements. Our team members receive competitive compensation, robust benefits, professional development and certification opportunities, and clear paths for growth while working on the nation’s most critical projects. Core Values: Innovation & Responsiveness : We push beyond legacy models with efficient, tech-led solutions built to scale and evolve. Trusted Performance : Security, compliance, and deep experience in delivering to demanding environments guides all we do. Mission Focused Expertise : From veteran leadership to cleared engineers, our people understand both the technology and the mission.