About the Role
The Role
You would be the second founder, responsible for the candidate side of the organisation. That means working directly with advocates who want these roles: coaching them through applications and interviews, producing the guidance material they need, and identifying the roles worth pursuing.
How closely we work with food businesses themselves is still being decided. We may develop direct relationships with hiring managers, or remain focused on the candidate side. You would help make that decision.
Requirements
- At least 5 years of recruitment experience, agency or in-house.
- Experience coaching candidates rather than only placing them.
- Fluent English.
- A genuine interest in animal welfare or the shift to alternative proteins, and the patience this kind of change requires.
- Comfortable working without established structure while the organisation is built.
- A suitable home-working environment.
Desirable:
- Previous experience founding or building an organisation from the start.
- Understanding of how procurement, sourcing, and sustainability functions operate inside food businesses.
- Existing contacts in UK food retail, manufacturing, or food service.
An advocacy or campaigning background is not required.
Trial Project
Before the contract begins, we run a paid trial project. It is real work rather than an exercise, and it runs in both directions: you find out what the job involves, and we find out how you work.
The trial covers four things:
- Finding open roles in UK food businesses worth putting candidates forward for.
- Approaching advocates in the animal advocacy space who could be a fit for them.
- Working with those who are interested, through applications and interviews.
- Drafting some of the guidance material candidates need.
The trial is 8 days of work spread over five weeks, arranged around your existing commitments, paid at £190 per day.
Recruitment cycles run longer than five weeks, so this is not judged on placements made. What matters is the quality of the roles you find, how candidates respond to you, and the guidance material you produce.
We agree the scope, dates, and fee in writing before you start. Anything produced during the trial belongs to the organisation whether or not we continue, and any candidate relationships transfer to us at the end of it. We each then give a decision.
Terms
This is a contract engagement rather than employment. You would invoice monthly and be responsible for your own tax and National Insurance payments. The initial term is six months, with 30 days notice on either side and a review at three months.
The intention is for this to become a formal co-founder role with matched pay and shared decision-making, set out in a written agreement. As a non-profit, there is no equity or share of a future sale.
Guidance for Applying
Please email matt@sourcingstewards.org with a CV or LinkedIn profile and a covering letter that includes:
- Your recruitment background and where your strengths lie.
- One placement you are proud of, and what made it difficult.
- An example of a food business making a positive change for animals, either in its supply chain or in its protein mix, and your view on why it happened.
Please also include where you found this job role.
