Talent Acquisition Lead

This is a hands-on, execution-focused role that sits at the heart of Penda’s hiring engine and works closely with the Talent Acquisition Manager to uphold process standards, support hiring managers, maintain pipeline health, and ensure every step of the recruitment journey is completed with care and discipline.

Key Responsibilities

Recruitment Execution

• Manages end-to-end recruitment for assigned roles, from role activation through to offer, in line with Penda’s Hiring System standards and agreed SLAs.
• Coordinates each stage of the hiring process, including job posting, shortlisting, assessment scheduling, interview panel logistics, and candidate communication.
• Conducts structured screening interviews and supports panel interviews to assess candidates against defined competency and culture-fit criteria.
• Ensures consistent, respectful, and timely communication with all candidates at every touchpoint in the process.
• Partners with hiring managers and HRBPs to align on role requirements, candidate progress, and hiring decisions.

Process Adherence & Quality

• Follows and applies Penda’s recruitment SOPs at every stage, flagging deviations and escalating process risks to the Talent Acquisition Manager.
• Confirms that all JDs meet the quality gate standard before a role is activated for recruitment.
• Applies defined assessment tools and evaluation criteria consistently across all roles to support fair and objective hiring.
• Tracks and updates candidate records in the ATS accurately throughout the recruitment cycle, maintaining data integrity at all times.
• Supports pre-boarding handover to the HRBP team, ensuring documentation is complete and the transition is clean and timely.

Pipeline & Talent Attraction

• Maintains active talent pipelines, particularly for high-volume and recurring clinical roles, ensuring Penda is never starting from zero on a critical hire.
• Executes sourcing strategies designed by the Talent Acquisition Manager, using job boards, professional networks, referrals, and community channels to attract qualified candidates.
• Participates in proactive outreach to potential candidates for hard-to-fill roles.
• Monitors pipeline health by role and flags early warning signs of sourcing challenges to the Talent Acquisition Manager.

Stakeholder & Hiring Manager Support

• Serves as the day-to-day point of contact for hiring managers on all active roles, keeping them informed on candidate progress, next steps, and timeline expectations.
• Coaches hiring managers on interview standards, evaluation criteria, and process expectations ahead of each panel.
• Tracks key recruitment metrics for assigned roles and ensures visibility through internal reporting channels.
• Proactively identifies process gaps or recurring friction points raised by hiring managers and escalates recommendations to the Talent Acquisition Manager.

Culture & Collaboration

• Role models the Penda Way by bringing integrity, care, and accountability into every candidate and stakeholder interaction.
• Acts as a credible ambassador for Penda during the recruitment process, ensuring every candidate leaves with a positive impression of the organisation.
• Contributes to a TA team culture of high standards, continuous learning, and shared accountability for hiring outcomes.

Success Looks Like

• Hiring is timely, high-quality, and aligned with Penda’s growth needs.
• Talent pipelines are strong, proactive, and expansion-ready.
• Hiring managers trust and rely on the TA team as strategic partners.
• Recruitment systems are efficient, structured, and data-informed.
• Candidate experience is consistently exceptional.

Requirements

Education & Qualifications

• Higher diploma in Human Resource Management, Business, Psychology, or a related field.

Experience

• 2–4 years of hands-on recruitment experience, with meaningful exposure to high-volume or clinical/healthcare hiring environments strongly preferred.
• Demonstrable experience managing recruitment end-to-end, from sourcing through to offer and pre-boarding handover.
• Experience conducting structured interviews and applying competency-based evaluation frameworks.
• Familiarity with ATS platforms and a track record of maintaining accurate recruitment records and data.

Skills & Personal Attributes

• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple open roles simultaneously without losing rigour or attention to detail.
• Confident communicator — able to engage professionally with candidates, hiring managers, and other stakeholders across different levels.
• Sound judgement in screening and assessing candidates against both competency and culture-fit criteria.
• Committed to process standards — follows SOPs consistently and holds themselves accountable to agreed timelines and quality gates.
• Data-conscious — tracks what matters, updates records in real time, and uses metrics to flag risks and drive improvements.
• Embodies the Penda Way: passionate, trustworthy, responsible, and genuinely invested in getting the right people into the organisation.