Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London
Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM)

Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London

London Full-Time 60000 - 90000 £ / year (est.) No home office possible
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At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead the recruitment for our commercial team and shape our GTM strategy.
  • Company: Join a fast-growing startup revolutionising enterprise data management.
  • Benefits: Competitive salary, equity, generous holiday, and work-from-anywhere options.
  • Why this job: Be a key player in building a world-class talent function from scratch.
  • Qualifications: 3-7 years in recruiting, preferably in high-growth B2B SaaS environments.
  • Other info: Thrilling startup culture with direct access to founders and exciting growth opportunities.

The predicted salary is between 60000 - 90000 £ per year.

About Kernel

Kernel provides enterprise RevOps teams with agentic company data for their CRMs. We’ve raised a $14M Series A from top VCs and operators at Plaid, OpenAI, Slack and others to build the AI-native alternative to Dun & Bradstreet’s entity and hierarchy data. RevOps teams at companies like Navan, Gong, Mistral, and AlphaSense use Kernel to build and maintain confidence in their CRM company data, eliminating duplicates and broken hierarchies without inhumane levels of manual review. The result is territories that can be defended, credibility with sales and leadership, and AI initiatives that actually work because the underlying company data is trustworthy. Our data management platform combines entity-level intelligence with mass-action tooling to give RevOps teams the data quality and control needed to plan confidently and deploy AI successfully.

The Role

We are looking for a GTM-focused Talent Acquisition Lead to help us scale our commercial organization across Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, and Revenue Operations. Your north star will be building the team that takes Kernel to $100M+ ARR. You will own end-to-end recruiting for all GTM roles and act as a strategic partner to the CEO and leadership team. As we don’t yet have a Head of Sales in place, you’ll need to bring deep GTM expertise and the ability to consult on what "great" looks like at each level.

What You’ll Be Doing

  • Full-Cycle GTM Recruiting: Own the entire hiring lifecycle for all commercial roles — AEs, SDRs, CSMs, AMs and Marketing — acting as a trusted advisor to the business, not just a resume screener.
  • Strategic GTM Partnership: Work closely with the CEO and leadership to define role requirements, calibrate seniority, and build hiring plans. You’ll bring consultative expertise to help us make the right calls on talent, especially as we scale our GTM leadership team.
  • Sourcing Strategy: Move beyond inbound applicants. Hunt for high-quality candidates using creative sourcing strategies, including poaching talent from competitors, adjacent markets and passive networks.
  • Process Excellence: Build a data-driven hiring machine (scorecards, interview training, pipeline velocity, offer acceptance rates) that ensures a high bar for talent and an exceptional candidate experience.
  • Employer Brand: Act as the face of Kernel in the GTM market, helping us articulate our commercial ambition, product velocity, and customer obsession to attract A+ sales and CS talent.

What You Bring

  • 3–7 years of experience: You have a track record in fast-paced environments (agency or in-house), ideally within high-growth B2B SaaS or data/infrastructure companies.
  • GTM Fluency: You speak "Sales and CS." You know the difference between transactional and consultative selling, understand how to assess quota attainment, and can calibrate seniority across IC and leadership roles. You’ve hired AEs, SDRs, CSMs, and ideally GTM leadership before.
  • Sourcing Mastery: You’re expert at using modern tools (LinkedIn Recruiter, Ashby, Metaview) to find candidates who aren’t actively looking. You know how to map competitive landscapes and build passive pipelines.
  • Operational Mindset: You don’t just "do" recruiting; you build systems. You care about funnel conversion, time-to-hire, offer acceptance rates, and channel effectiveness.
  • Expertise: You bring expertise on market benchmarks, role design, and what "great" looks like at each level.
  • Ambition: You want to build a world-class GTM talent function from scratch and raise the bar with every hire.

Nice to Have

  • Experience in a startup environment (Series A-C stage)
  • Track record of recruiting for high-growth B2B SaaS GTM teams
  • Track record of hiring GTM leadership (VPs, Heads of)

This role may not be for you if you:

  • Need lots of structure or a large team to delegate sourcing to
  • Prefer large-company environments with slow hiring cycles
  • Don’t enjoy the "hunt" of outbound sourcing

This role is definitely not for you if you:

  • Prefer remote work (requires 4+ days a week in London office)
  • Don’t enjoy the pace of early-stage startups
  • Have side projects or want to manage a team immediately instead of building

What We Offer

We will do our best to offer you a ride of a lifetime. It will not be easy, but it will be thrilling.

  • Salary: £60,000 – £90,000 + equity
  • Holiday: 24 days holiday per year + bank holidays
  • Work-from-anywhere: 2 weeks
  • Pension plan
  • Equipment: Top-spec equipment and central London office
  • Office dinner: Free dinner at the office
  • Team events: Team events and dinners
  • Collaboration: Work directly with the founders to scale the systems that power enterprise AI

Visas & Relocation: We generally require candidates to have the right to work in the UK. However, for exceptional candidates, we may offer visa sponsorship.

Interview Process

  • Stage 1 – Intro Call with Arvin (Head of Finance and Operations). Overview of Kernel, your recruitment philosophy, and operational fit.
  • Stage 2 – Case-Based Interview: A deep dive into your sourcing strategy, focused on how you would tackle a specific GTM role at Kernel (e.g., Enterprise AE or Head of Customer Success).
  • Stage 3 – Calibration with Zak (Sales Development). Assessing your ability to partner with commercial teams and screen GTM profiles.
  • Final Stage – Founder Interview with Anders (CEO) and Marcus to assess cultural fit and values alignment.

If there is mutual fit, we move to references and offer.

Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London employer: Sarah Smith

At Kernel, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a dynamic and innovative work culture in the heart of London. As a Talent Acquisition Lead, you will have the unique opportunity to shape our commercial organisation while working closely with visionary founders and a passionate team. We offer competitive salaries, equity options, generous holiday allowances, and a vibrant office environment that encourages collaboration and personal growth, making Kernel an ideal place for those looking to make a meaningful impact in the fast-paced world of B2B SaaS.
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Contact Detail:

Sarah Smith Recruiting Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫

We think this is how you could land Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London

✨Tip Number 1

Get to know the company inside out! Research Kernel's mission, values, and recent achievements. This will help you tailor your conversations and show that you're genuinely interested in being part of the team.

✨Tip Number 2

Network like a pro! Connect with current employees on LinkedIn or attend industry events. Building relationships can give you insider info and might even lead to referrals, which can be a game-changer in landing that role.

✨Tip Number 3

Prepare for those interviews! Think about how your experience aligns with the GTM roles at Kernel. Be ready to discuss your sourcing strategies and how you can contribute to building a world-class talent function.

✨Tip Number 4

Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining the Kernel team!

We think you need these skills to ace Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London

Full-Cycle Recruiting
GTM Expertise
Sourcing Strategies
Data-Driven Hiring
Employer Branding
Consultative Skills
Operational Mindset
Market Benchmarking
Role Design
Candidate Experience
Pipeline Management
Sales and Customer Success Knowledge
High-Growth B2B SaaS Experience
Team Building

Some tips for your application 🫡

Show Your Passion for GTM: When you're writing your application, let your enthusiasm for GTM shine through! We want to see how your experience aligns with our mission at Kernel and how you can contribute to building a world-class team.

Tailor Your CV and Cover Letter: Don't just send the same old CV and cover letter. Make sure to customise them for the Talent Acquisition Lead role. Highlight your relevant experience in recruiting for GTM roles and any specific achievements that demonstrate your sourcing mastery.

Be Data-Driven: Since we’re all about data at Kernel, it’s a good idea to include metrics in your application. Talk about your past successes in terms of numbers—like time-to-hire or offer acceptance rates—to show us you’ve got an operational mindset.

Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to keep track of your application and ensures you don’t miss out on any important updates from our team!

How to prepare for a job interview at Sarah Smith

✨Know Your GTM Inside Out

Before the interview, brush up on your understanding of Go-To-Market strategies. Be ready to discuss how you would approach recruiting for various roles like AEs and CSMs. Show that you can speak the language of sales and customer success fluently.

✨Showcase Your Sourcing Skills

Prepare examples of your creative sourcing strategies. Discuss how you've successfully hunted for high-quality candidates in the past, especially from competitors or passive networks. This will demonstrate your ability to think outside the box.

✨Bring Data-Driven Insights

Be ready to talk about how you build systems for recruitment. Share metrics like funnel conversion rates and time-to-hire from your previous roles. This shows that you care about process excellence and can contribute to building a data-driven hiring machine.

✨Align with Kernel's Ambition

Understand Kernel's mission and be prepared to articulate how you can help scale their GTM talent function. Show your ambition to raise the bar with every hire and how your experience aligns with their goals for growth.

Talent Acquisition Lead (GTM) in London
Sarah Smith
Location: London

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