At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead and shape Early Careers recruitment strategies for graduates and apprentices.
- Company: Join a collaborative, growth-focused organisation with ambitious expansion plans.
- Benefits: Enjoy competitive salary, bonus schemes, and enhanced pension plan.
- Other info: Be part of an exciting growth journey with excellent career development opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on future talent development in a supportive environment.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in managing Early Careers talent acquisition teams.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 75000 £ per year.
The Opportunity
Bristol, Reading or Oxford (preferred). Due to an internal promotion, we are hiring a Talent Acquisition Manager – Early Careers for our UK business. This high-impact leadership role sits within a collaborative, growth-focused organisation with strong long-term ambitions and continued expansion plans in the UK. Working in an agile model (3 days in-office, 2 from home), you will lead a team of four and shape how graduate and apprentice talent is identified, engaged, and developed. This is an opportunity to continue to build a best-in-class Early Careers function that drives organisational impact, strengthens our employer brand, and supports the business in achieving its high growth ambitions.
About The Role
Reporting to the Head of Talent Acquisition, you’ll lead the strategy, delivery, and performance of Early Careers recruitment across graduate and apprenticeship programmes. You’ll manage and develop a team of recruiters, fostering a high-performance culture focused on quality, inclusion, and candidate experience. As a senior partner to business leaders, you’ll help influence workforce planning and future skills strategy, ensuring early talent pipelines align with long-term needs. You’ll own the full recruitment lifecycle, driving process excellence, governance, and continuous improvement through data and insight, while ensuring hiring is consistent, scalable, and compliant.
Your Impact
You will continue to shape how future talent enters and develops within the organisation, across both graduate and apprenticeship programmes. By combining strategic insight with strong leadership, you will ensure early careers hiring becomes a key driver of sustainable growth.
About You
- Proven experience managing and leading Early Careers (Graduates/Apprentice) talent acquisition teams within large, complex organisations (1,000+ employees).
- Experience leading high performing recruiting teams, with the ability to coach and develop high-performing teams.
- Deep understanding of UK Early Careers markets, academic cycles, and apprenticeship frameworks.
- Experience partnering with senior stakeholders and influencing workforce planning.
- Track record of designing fair, structured, and scalable assessment processes.
- Experience building employer brand across universities, schools, and external partners.
- Data-driven, with the ability to translate insight into action.
- Comfortable managing complexity, competing priorities, and escalations.
- Strong commercial awareness with a focus on measurable impact.
Why Join Us
- We put people first: We're proud of our friendly, inclusive and collaborative environment where everyone feels valued and driven to succeed.
- We are driven to achieve: Named in the top 50 companies to work by Glassdoor 2025.
- Recognised by Corporate Knights as one of the world's top 10 most sustainable companies 2025.
- We do what is right: Industry leading training and development as well as paid for professional subscriptions.
- We are better together: A supportive and collaborative team environment and wider ERG network.
- Growth: We're on an exciting growth journey across the UK - we want you to be part of it!
- Great Benefits: Competitive salary, bonus schemes, enhanced pension plan, annual leave with the option to buy/sell additional days, private medical insurance, group income protection.
Talent Acquisition Manager - Early Careers employer: Stantec
Contact Detail:
Stantec Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Talent Acquisition Manager - Early Careers
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Get out there and connect with people in the industry. Attend events, join online forums, and don’t be shy about reaching out on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can put in a good word for you.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for interviews by researching the company and its culture. Understand their values and how they align with your own. This will help you tailor your responses and show that you’re genuinely interested in being part of their team.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice makes perfect! Do mock interviews with friends or family to get comfortable with common questions. The more you practice, the more confident you’ll feel when it’s time to shine in front of the real interviewers.
✨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, we love seeing candidates who are proactive about their job search!
We think you need these skills to ace Talent Acquisition Manager - Early Careers
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV is tailored to the Talent Acquisition Manager role. Highlight your experience in managing Early Careers recruitment and any leadership roles you've held. We want to see how your skills align with our growth-focused ambitions!
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: Your cover letter is your chance to shine! Use it to tell us why you're passionate about early careers recruitment and how you can contribute to our team. Be sure to mention specific achievements that demonstrate your impact in previous roles.
Showcase Your Data Skills: Since we’re all about data-driven decisions, make sure to highlight your experience with data analysis in recruitment. Share examples of how you've used insights to improve hiring processes or candidate experiences. We love seeing numbers that back up your success!
Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to apply through our website for a smoother application process. It’s the best way for us to keep track of your application and ensure it gets the attention it deserves. Plus, you’ll find all the info you need about the role there!
How to prepare for a job interview at Stantec
✨Know Your Stuff
Make sure you understand the ins and outs of early careers recruitment. Brush up on the latest trends in graduate and apprenticeship hiring, and be ready to discuss how you can shape a best-in-class function. Familiarise yourself with the company’s values and how they align with your own.
✨Showcase Your Leadership Skills
As a Talent Acquisition Manager, you'll be leading a team. Prepare examples of how you've successfully managed and developed teams in the past. Think about specific situations where you fostered a high-performance culture or improved team dynamics.
✨Data is Your Friend
Be ready to talk about how you've used data to drive recruitment strategies. Have examples of how you've translated insights into actionable plans. This role requires a data-driven approach, so demonstrate your ability to analyse and leverage data effectively.
✨Engage with Stakeholders
This position involves partnering with senior leaders, so prepare to discuss your experience in influencing workforce planning. Think of examples where you've successfully collaborated with stakeholders to align talent acquisition with business needs.