Open to Head of Talent roles

I build the teams
that build the future.

12 years scaling talent at AI companies, consultancies, and ventures I founded from scratch. Based in Ottawa. Thinking like an operator, not a recruiter.

Book a 20-min call → See my work
30→120
Team scaled at YoppWorks
45→20
Days to hire, cut in half
30+
Tech clients served
47
Countries visited
The story

Not your typical recruiter.

I started as a recruiter. But I never thought like one. From day one I thought about hiring the way operators do: as a growth lever, as the single highest-leverage decision a company makes, not as a back-office function. That mindset eventually pushed me to build companies of my own.

Over 12 years I've built talent functions from nothing at companies that were figuring it out in real time. First people hire at YoppWorks. Talent lead at Replicant, a Series B/C conversational AI company in San Francisco. Founder of MetanoiaHR, where I've served 30+ tech clients who needed someone to build the whole system, not just fill a role.

I hold a Master's in Human Resources from the University of Toronto and a CHRL designation. What I'm most proud of isn't the credentials. It's that I've never once treated a hire as a transaction.

I've also built an AI recruiting product (Aria), created the Recruitment π framework validated by senior HR leaders including the former CHRO of LinkedIn, and I'm building Gather, a community concept that brings strangers together around intentional dinner tables. Connecting people is just what I do.

A few other things
47
Countries visitedIncluding solo trips through Latin America, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe. Travel is how I stay curious.
4
LanguagesEnglish, Farsi, and working-level French and Czech. Started learning Czech living in Prague while running a school's full hiring operation.
8K+
LinkedIn followersWriting about the future of work, AI in recruiting, and what actually makes teams great.
1
Core beliefThe best hire you ever make isn't the one who nails the job description. It's the one who makes everyone around them better.
How I think

Most companies hire for the role.
I hire for the next two.

"A job description describes what you need today. The right hire outgrows it in 6 months and pulls the whole team with them."

The biggest mistake I see companies make isn't moving too slow or too fast. It's hiring for the current moment instead of the trajectory. A candidate who perfectly fits the JD is optimized for now. But startups don't stay still. The people who thrive in them rarely look like the job posting.

My framework, Recruitment π, is built around three filters: Capability (can they do the job), Trajectory (are they growing faster than the role), and Chemistry (will they make the team around them better). Validated by senior HR leaders. Used across every engagement I run.

Recruitment π: Capability · Trajectory · Chemistry
Where I've done this

The work that shaped the thinking.

YoppWorks
2019 to 2022
Head of Talent
Built a people function from zero.
First and only talent hire at a Scala/functional programming consultancy. Built everything: recruitment, onboarding, L&D, D&I, health and wellness, international hiring (Global Talent Stream / LMIA), Co-Op program, and the company's first employee handbook, all while the team tripled in size.
30 → 120 headcount in 3 years Turnover cut from 10% to 5.5% Time-to-fill 34 → 23 days 4 hires in first 3 weeks
Replicant
2022 to 2023
Senior TA Partner
Talent at a Series B/C AI company.
Joined a fast-moving conversational AI company in SF (remote) and immediately made an impact: two offers in my first 3.5 weeks. Owned technical and non-technical hiring, launched the company's most successful employee engagement initiative in its history (half the company voluntarily joined), and introduced AI tools that saved the recruiting team an hour per day.
Time-to-fill 45 → 32.5 days Fastest onboarding in company history 1hr/day saved via AI tooling
MetanoiaHR
2023 to Present
Founder
Boutique TA consultancy for tech.
Founded a consultancy that does one thing: builds recruitment functions from scratch for tech companies with no existing hiring infrastructure. 30+ clients served. Authorized reseller partner for Ashby (ATS) and Juicebox (talent intelligence). Cut time-to-hire from 45 to 20 days across client engagements.
30+ tech clients Time-to-hire 45 → 20 days Ashby & Juicebox partner
Aria
2024 to 2025
CEO & Founder
Built an AI agent for recruiters.
Founded and led an AI product that automated recruiter admin work. Recruited and managed a team of 8: product designer, two AI developers, PM, Head of Growth, Head of Operations, and two advisors. Led all marketing and sales personally, built international partnerships across Mexico, Brazil, Peru, and the US.
30+ waitlist customers 7 Letters of Intent Team of 8 built from zero International partnerships
Side projects

Things I build when I'm not recruiting.

Framework · Active
Recruitment π
A practitioner framework for AI-integrated talent acquisition built around three filters: Capability, Trajectory, Chemistry. Validated by senior HR leaders including the former CHRO of LinkedIn. Being distributed through my LinkedIn content and direct outreach to startup founders.
Community · Active
Gather
A curated dinner experience that brings strangers together around intentional tables. The premise is simple: the best conversations happen between people who wouldn't otherwise meet. Building this in Ottawa with plans to expand. Because great community, like great hiring, is about chemistry.
Worldview · Ongoing
47 Countries
I've travelled to 47 countries: solo through Central Asia, living in Prague, building partnerships in Latin America. Travel isn't a hobby, it's a worldview. It's how I learned that the best talent doesn't look like what you expect, and the best teams are built by people who've seen enough of the world to know that.

Think we should talk?

I'm selectively exploring Head of Talent roles at AI startups. If you're scaling a team and need someone who's built this from scratch before, not managed it, built it, let's find 20 minutes.

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