Head of People & Talent

We are looking for a magical, full-spectrum People leader, someone who can flex between strategic partner and hands-on operator, and who thrives in the high-intensity environment of a frontier-technology company. 

As Head of People & Talent, you will build Valar’s People engine from scratch: recruiting, talent development, culture, people operations, onboarding, performance systems, compensation frameworks, and leadership development. You’ll work directly with the CEO, President, and functional heads to craft the team, culture, and operating systems that will define the next decade of the company. 

This is a dream role for someone who loves building, who is obsessed with talent quality, and who cares deeply about culture as a strategic weapon. 

What You’ll Own 

• Build and lead Valar’s People function: recruiting, HRBP, onboarding, training, culture, performance, and People Ops. 
• Architect our hiring strategy and build a world-class recruiting machine to scale engineering, nuclear, and ops talent. 
• Develop compensation frameworks, leveling guides, performance systems, career ladders, and manager enablement. 
• Own employee experience from first touch through long-term growth. 
• Drive culture: rituals, communication systems, leadership norms, values integration, and engagement. 
• Stand up compliant people processes (payroll, benefits, HRIS, documentation, workplace practices). 
• Coach leaders, support healthy team dynamics, and serve as a trusted advisor at all levels. 

Who You Are 

• A flexible, emotionally intelligent, high-bandwidth operator who can shift effortlessly between strategic conversation and day-to-day operations. 
• Obsessed with talent quality, culture shaping, and building high-performing teams. 
• Deep experience in high-growth companies, ideally in hard-tech, climate, aerospace, or rapidly scaling engineering orgs. 
• Someone who thrives in an environment where speed, autonomy, and ownership are the norm. 
• The kind of leader who can build from scratch, iterate quickly, and help Valar remain one of the most compelling places to work in climate and advanced energy.