Defense & Cleared Workforce Recruiter

About this role

Location: Remote, US-based only.

The Role

Join our customer's team as a Defense & Cleared Workforce Recruiter, where you'll play a pivotal role in building pipelines of highly qualified, security-cleared talent for mission-critical U.S. government work. In this specialized recruiting role, you'll leverage your expertise in federal, military, and veteran communities to source and place cleared professionals for impactful positions across the defense sector.

What You'll Do

• Manage full-cycle recruiting for a diverse set of cleared roles, including sourcing, evaluating, and closing candidates across multiple cleared domains and locations.
• Develop and nurture pipelines of security-cleared talent, encompassing federal civilians, military officers, veterans, enlisted/NCO personnel, and professionals with prior U.S. government experience.
• Leverage specialized cleared sourcing channels (ClearanceJobs, ClearedJobs.net) and military transition networks (SkillBridge, TAP, Hiring Our Heroes) to connect with top-tier candidates.
• Screen candidates for clearance level, status, and eligibility, ensuring all outreach and qualification processes remain fully compliant with federal guidelines.
• Coordinate clearance verification in partnership with Facility Security Officers (FSOs) and customer security offices, using self-reported information as a preliminary filter.
• Translate military experience (MOS/rate, service history) into role fit, building rapport and trust with transitioning service members and veterans.
• Partner closely with hiring managers to define requirements, set realistic timelines, and deliver an outstanding candidate experience from sourcing through offer.

What We're Looking For

• 5 to 8 years of full-cycle recruiting experience, with significant focus on cleared, defense, or government-contracting (GovCon) talent acquisition.
• Demonstrated success placing security-cleared candidates, with active sourcing experience in cleared talent pools and proprietary channels.
• In-depth understanding of U.S. security clearances (Secret, TS, TS/SCI, poly), including reactivation windows, reciprocity, and compliance boundaries in candidate conversations.
• Fluency in interpreting military/veteran backgrounds, including reading MOS/rate and engaging credibly with transitioning service members.
• Familiarity with clearance verification workflows and collaboration with FSOs or security offices.
• Expert sourcing, screening, and stakeholder-management abilities; adept at building pipelines for location-locked, hard-to-fill cleared roles.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; highly organized and metrics-oriented.
• U.S.-based recruitment professional

Preferred

• Experience recruiting for specialized domains such as maritime/navy, drone/UAS, or combat operators.
• Background as a military recruiter, FSO, or veteran.
• Familiarity with contingent, project-based, or RPO staffing models in the defense or federal sector.

Key skills

• Full-cycle recruiting
• Clearance fluency
• Cleared sourcing
• Military/veteran translation
• Compliance awareness