Program Talent Manager

About The Organization

MATS Research aims to find and train talented individuals for what we see as the world’s most urgent and talent-constrained problem: reducing risks from advanced artificial intelligence. Our mission is to solve the talent bottleneck in AI safety and security through training, credentials, and community. We believe that ambitious researchers from a variety of backgrounds have the potential to contribute to the fields of AI alignment, interpretability, governance, and security. Through our research fellowship, we aim to provide the mentorship, financial support, and community necessary to aid this transition. Please see our website for more details.

The Role

MATS is one of the largest talent pipelines in AI safety & security (250+ fellows per year and growing), and the Program Talent Manager role offers a high-leverage opportunity to expand and improve this pipeline. As the Program Talent Manager, you will own the full MATS Program applicant process, managing three high-volume cycles per year. You will interface with 50+ different mentors from organizations like Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Apollo, Redwood, and others to understand their talent needs. You will design the structure of our applications to strike a balance between providing high-signal to our different mentors while centralizing evaluation to the extent possible. You will coordinate the execution of the MATS application process, which includes outreach, reviewing applications, conducting additional evaluations, and preparing shortlists for mentors to select fellows. Your focus will be on attracting and selecting top-tier applicants and ensuring a high-quality mentor and applicant experience. This role is most similar to a Talent Acquisition Manager at other organizations.

Who We're Looking For

We welcome applications from people who are energized by building rigorous, scalable selection systems:

• Experienced Talent Acquisition / recruiting leads from tech, research teams, or nonprofits who have hired for technical or policy roles at volume
• Project/program managers who have run structured evaluations (work tests, coding screens, writing tasks, interviews) and coordinated many stakeholders

If you don’t perfectly match these profiles but can otherwise demonstrate that you’ll excel in this role, we still encourage you to apply!

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the MATS application process
  • 3+ times per year, 100+ fellows and 50+ mentors per cohort going forward
• Develop a thoughtful outreach strategy to expand the reach of MATS and attract top talent
• Interface with MATS mentors to understand talent needs for their research projects and guide them through the fellow selection process
• Create high-signal work tests for different application tracks
• Manage contractors and MATS staff to review applications and assist on the application process
• Continue to iterate on MATS’ approach to fellow talent acquisition by collecting feedback and thinking critically about talent needs in the AI safety & security ecosystem
• Report to the Program Lead (Juan Gil).

Essential Qualifications and Skills

• Excellent judgment in evaluating candidates for technical or policy roles
• Strong project management ability
• Strong stakeholder management ability
• Clear and proactive communication 
• Proactive and self-driven work ethic
• Strong understanding and alignment with our mission of reducing risk from the development of advanced AI

Desirable Qualifications and Skills

We expect especially strong applicants to have deep experience in at least one of the following areas:

• Previous experience as a Talent Acquisition Manager or Senior Technical Recruiter / Research Recruiter
• Technical AI context sufficient to vet top candidates for MATS
• Operating an ATS/CRM or Airtable/Fillout stack
• Familiarity with work-sample tests, structured interviewing, and writing clear rubrics & scorecards for applicant evaluation

What We Offer

• High-leverage opportunity to identify and help launch the careers of talented AI safety & security researchers
• Professional development and skill enhancement opportunities
• Collaborative and intellectually stimulating work environment
• Competitive salary (see below)
• Access to our office spaces in Berkeley, London, and other partnered office spaces
• Medical insurance, including dental, vision, and life insurance
• Traditional and Roth 401(k) options
• Visa support for excellent candidates
• Meals provided Monday-Friday

Compensation

Compensation will be $130,000 to $200,000 annually, depending on experience.

Working hours and location

40 hours per week. Successful candidates can expect to spend most of their time working in-person from our main office in Berkeley, California. We are open to alternative working arrangements for exceptional candidates.

How to Apply

Please fill out the form here]. If you use an LLM chatbot or other AI tools in this application, please follow [these norms. 

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, with priority given to candidates that apply by February 24. The anticipated start date for this role is no later than March 30, though preference will be given to candidates who can start sooner. We can make exceptions for great candidates.

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Join us in shaping the future of AI safety & security research!