Founding Talent Aquisition Lead

About Cloud9 Cloud9 is an AI-native luxury short-term rental operator. We turn long-term luxury rentals into exceptional short-term stays, delivering hotel-grade quality to guests while helping property managers unlock the top-line potential of their buildings. We run 60+ units across 13 Class-A residential buildings in Chicago, and we're expanding city by city across the U.S. We exist to reinvent hospitality with AI-driven execution. How we work: a small, AI-native team that builds 4:1 leverage. You work alongside Claude every day; AI is a co-pilot, not a buzzword. The team is distributed, some in Chicago, some in Latam. We move fast, decide fast, and cut politics. We don't hire to fill seats. We hire to pull levers that move numbers. Outcomes beat effort beats intentions. We run on C.L.O.U.D.9, our culture operating system: C · Customer Obsession. If they're not raving, we missed it. L · Leadership Through Ownership. No passengers, only drivers. O · Operational Excellence. How we do one thing is how we do everything. U · Urgency With Intelligence. Act now, iterate later. D · Do the Right Thing. Character over convenience. 9 · The 9x Mindset. 10% better is safe; 9x better is unforgettable. About the Role We're looking for a Founding Talent Partner who operates like a talent entrepreneur—not a recruiter waiting for applications to arrive. You'll partner directly with the CEO to build the teams that will define Cloud9's next stage of growth. You'll hire across engineering, AI, operations, hospitality, commercial, and business functions while building a recruiting engine capable of consistently attracting top performers. This role combines talent acquisition, talent operations, and people partnership. You'll own sourcing, inbound conversion, hiring processes, candidate experience, and become the go-to person for recruiting and people-related matters across the company. You find talent others miss. You create pipelines before they become urgent. You move fast without sacrificing quality. What You'll Do Partner with Leadership on Critical Hiring Work directly with the CEO and hiring managers to define hiring priorities across the business. Act as a strategic thought partner on talent decisions, organizational needs, and hiring plans. Help identify and attract the people who will have the highest impact on company growth. Build A-Player Talent Pipelines Own recruiting across technical, commercial, operations, hospitality, and business functions. Develop proactive sourcing strategies that consistently generate high-quality candidate pipelines. Map talent markets, identify target companies, and build relationships with exceptional candidates before positions become urgent. Own Inbound Recruiting Review and qualify inbound applications daily. Continuously improve job descriptions, employer branding, and candidate messaging to increase applicant quality. Treat inbound recruiting as a conversion funnel, measuring quality, speed, and outcomes. Source Creatively and Relentlessly Leverage LinkedIn, Ashby, referral networks, WhatsApp communities, industry groups, university programs, niche communities, and emerging sourcing channels. Test new sourcing approaches continuously and double down on what works. Use AI tools to increase sourcing efficiency and candidate engagement. Run a High-Velocity Recruiting Process Maintain strong pipeline coverage across all active roles. Coordinate interview processes and ensure fast candidate communication. Keep hiring teams aligned and moving quickly through decisions. Identify risks early and proactively solve bottlenecks before they impact hiring outcomes. Act as the Internal People Partner Serve as the primary point of contact for day-to-day recruiting and people operations matters. Support onboarding, employee experience initiatives, and basic HR processes. Partner with external providers to ensure compliance with Colombian labor regulations and hiring practices. Build Recruiting Systems Create scalable recruiting workflows, templates, scorecards, dashboards, and reporting. Track funnel performance, conversion rates, hiring velocity, and sourcing effectiveness. Use data to improve recruiting outcomes across the organization. What Success Looks Like Day 30 Develop a deep understanding of Cloud9's hiring needs and talent priorities. Own active recruiting processes with minimal oversight. Establish sourcing plans and pipeline targets for priority roles. Become a trusted recruiting partner to leadership. Day 90 Multiple critical roles actively progressing through the pipeline. Consistent sourcing and inbound review systems operating effectively. Recruiting metrics and reporting established. Hiring managers view recruiting as a competitive advantage. Month 12 Cloud9 has a predictable recruiting engine capable of supporting company growth. Strong talent pipelines exist across key functions. The company has successfully hired multiple high-impact contributors across technical and business teams. Recruiting processes are scalable, data-driven, and highly efficient. What We're Looking For Required Experience 3–6+ years of recruiting experience in startup, technology, agency, or high-growth environments Experience hiring across multiple functions, including technical and non-technical roles Strong sourcing capabilities and experience building candidate pipelines from scratch Experience managing high-volume inbound applicant reviews Excellent written and verbal communication in English and Spanish Familiarity with ATS platforms such as Ashby, Greenhouse, Lever, or similar Traits We Value You thrive in fast-paced environments where priorities change quickly You take ownership and move without waiting for instructions You are highly organized and can manage multiple searches simultaneously You enjoy solving difficult hiring challenges You think creatively about talent acquisition and candidate engagement You are comfortable working under pressure and maintaining high standards You leverage AI tools daily to improve productivity and recruiting outcomes Role Setup Location: Bogotá, Colombia Schedule: Onsite Type of Contract: Colombian Labor Contract (local employment and benefits) This Role Is NOT For You If You believe recruiting starts and ends with posting jobs You are uncomfortable sourcing candidates proactively You need constant direction to prioritize your work You struggle to manage multiple hiring processes simultaneously You avoid difficult conversations or hiring decisions You prefer highly structured corporate environments over fast-moving startups You are uncomfortable being accountable for hiring outcomes Why This Role Is Different You'll partner directly with the CEO on some of the company's most important decisions You'll hire across every major function in the business You'll help shape the talent strategy of a growing company You'll have significant ownership and visibility from day one You'll build systems and processes rather than simply follow existing ones You'll develop broad recruiting, people, and business exposure rarely available in traditional recruiting roles Why Cloud9 If you want to own a number, move fast, and build with AI instead of around it, this is the place. Small team, real leverage, high standards, and the people who build the systems get to run them as we scale city by city. If you want a comfortable seat where effort counts more than outcomes, we are not it. Cloud9 does not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.