Talent Acquisition Lead -UK

Talent Acquisition Lead -UK

Date: May 1, 2026

Location:Birmingham, GB

Company: GKN Aerospace Careers

Fantastic challenges. Amazing opportunities.

GKN Aerospace is reimagining air travel: going further, faster and greener! Fuelled by great people whose expertise and creativity sets the standards in our industry, we’re inspired by the opportunities to innovate and break boundaries. We’re proud to play a part in protecting the world’s democracies. And we’re committed to putting sustainability at the centre of everything we do, opening up and protecting our planet. With over 16,000 employees across 33 manufacturing sites in 12 countries we serve over 90% of the world’s aircraft and engine manufacturers and achieved sales of £3.35 bn.in 2023. There are no limits to where you can take your career.

Hybrid with travel to Bristol at least 1–2 days per week (up to 3 during peak periods)

We’re excited to offer a fantastic opportunity for a Talent Acquisition Lead to lead recruitment across our UK Civil business line.

Reporting to the Talent Acquisition Director (Civil) / Global Process Owner, this role is responsible for delivering best in class of hiring across three Bristol sites and our central offices. You’ll lead a small, high-performing team recruiting across a diverse portfolio – from high-volume and specialist engineering and technology roles to corporate functions, leadership, and early careers.

This is more than a delivery role—you’ll be a trusted partner to site leadership, HR, and key stakeholders, ensuring an exceptional recruitment experience. You’ll also act as a brand ambassador, helping position GKN Aerospace as an employer of choice. You’ll drive performance and continuous improvement, direct sourcing, upskilling across your business area and activate and drive the employer brand locally. There is also the opportunity to lead and support on projects across the Talent Acquisition space.

Part of a global community

You will be part of our global Civil Talent Acquisition team and wider Talent Acquisition community across the business, giving you the opportunity to collaborate internationally, contribute towards global initiatives and take part in occasional travel for team offsites.

What you’ll bring

This is a role where there is real scope to make an impact. We’re still evolving our Talent Acquisition approach, bringing the opportunity to influence and improve how we attract and hire talent.

We’re looking for someone who can balance hands on delivery with strategic thinking – someone who is passionate about what they do and motivated to make things happen.

Essential

• Demonstrable experience as a Talent Acquisition Lead/Manager (in-house or RPO) with the ability to hit the ground running.
• Experience of leading a small team delivering high-volume recruitment across multiple disciples within an engineering business.
• Able to travel to Bristol at least 1-2 days a week (up to 3 during peak periods).
• Strong expertise across the full recruitment lifecycle, including ATS and attraction strategies.
• Confident using data and insights to drive decisions and continuous improvement.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
• Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, up to senior leadership level.
• A natural relationship builder who fosters strong, collaborative partnerships.

Together we engineer the future

Everyone is welcome to apply to GKN Aerospace. Through our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging and by living our five powerful principles we’ve created a culture where everyone feels welcome to contribute. We’re also committed to providing an accessible recruitment process, so if you require reasonable adjustments at any stage during our recruitment process, please get in touch and let us know

We’ll offer you fantastic challenges and amazing opportunities. This is your chance to be part of an organisation that has proven itself to be at the cutting edge of our industry; and is committed to pushing the boundaries even further. And with some of the best training on offer in the industry, who knows how far you can go?

A Great Place to work needs a Great Way of Working

Everyone is welcome to apply to GKN. We believe that we can only achieve our ambitions through a coming together of diverse minds who enjoy collaborating in an inspirational environment. Through our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging and by living our five powerful principles we’ve created a culture where everyone feels welcome to contribute. It’s a culture that won us ‘The Best Workplace Culture Award’. By embracing and celebrating what makes us unique we encourage everyone to bring their full self to work.

We’re also committed to providing an accessible recruitment process, so if you require reasonable adjustments at any stage during our recruitment process please get in touch and let us know.

We are the place where human dreams, plus human endeavour, shape the future of aerospace innovation and technology.​
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