Head of Recruitment & Onboarding - Inverclyde

Head of Recruitment & On-Boarding
Location: Gourock, agile hybrid working, with an occasional presence across the network (hybrid: c.2 days in office/3 from home)
Salary + bens: Circa up to £70,000 + 37 days’ annual leave, family travel pass, flexible working, an incredible industry-leading pension and more!
Perm: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week

Syme Drummond is thrilled to partner exclusively with David MacBrayne (Calmac Ferries) on a retained basis to hire a transformational Head of Recruitment & On-Boarding. This is your chance to take the helm, modernise how we attract, select and welcome talent, and leave a lasting wake across a proudly Scottish organisation. With a new 10-year government contract on the horizon, you’ll have the stability and runway to reshape a vital, high-impact function.

What you’ll be doing

• Captain a brilliant in-house crew: lead a fantastic team of 5; lead by example, empower, set pace, standards and SLAs.
• Modernise the toolkit: optimise iTrent recruitment/on-boarding modules, streamline authorisations and fix pain points.
• Turn data into direction: stand up meaningful Power BI dashboards and coach managers supportively towards slick, compliant processes.
• Make waves with attraction & brand: refresh adverts, channels and EVP; partner with teams on multi-channel campaigns - from LinkedIn and SEO in Glasgow to local press, port posters and jobcentres across the Highlands & Islands.
• Build pipelines for the voyage ahead: shape apprentices/early-careers intakes and specialist hiring aligned to new vessel deployments.
• Keep us ship-shape: uphold fair, transparent and legally robust selection in a unionised, customer-facing environment, and be a visible leader across the office and network.

Essential experience required

• Proven senior in-house talent acquisition leader in a complex, unionised organisation; confident engaging stakeholders at all levels
• Track record re-engineering recruitment: mapping → simplifying → automating → measuring → improving, with clear SLAs and adoption by hiring managers.
• Systems & analytics: hands-on with iTrent (or equivalent HRIS) and Power BI; able to enhance tools, templates and automated comms so they’re truly fit-for-purpose.
• Employer brand & campaigns: audience-led thinking, tailoring your approach for the best outcomes.
• Leadership style: supportive, visible line manager who sets a positive tone, raises standards and makes recruitment a more visible, enabling function across the business.
• A sector background in maritime or transport is highly advantageous.

Ready to set sail somewhere new and exciting?

Come aboard, shape the function, and help recruit the people who keep Scotland’s islands connected. This is your opportunity to leave your mark - steady hand on the wheel, eyes on the horizon - and make waves that matter!

Click to apply or email Kelsie.patterson@symedrummond.co.uk for more information. All applications will be handled by Syme Drummond.