Human Resources Manager

HR Manager

Build the people function for a deep-tech defence company from the ground up: hiring, systems, and the culture that holds as we scale.

About Ci4:

Ci4 builds autonomous unmanned maritime platforms and the AI autonomy stack that runs them. We work with the Indian Navy and are backed by investors who believe sovereign defence tech is one of the defining bets of the decade. We are small, hands-on, and growing fast. The people who join now shape how the company actually works, not just what it ships.

What we are looking for:

We need someone who has built the people engine for a startup before, who knows what to put in place at 25 people so it still works at 100 and more, and who can recruit hard technical talent in a competitive market. You will own people operations and recruiting end to end, and you will design the systems the rest of the organization will run on for years.

What you will own:

Recruiting and Talent

• Run hiring end to end: roles, sourcing, screening, interview loops, offers, and closing.
• Recruit for hard technical roles (engineering, autonomy, RF, hardware) and senior hires.
• Build a repeatable hiring process and a structured interview kit that managers actually use.
• Manage agencies, referrals, job boards, and our talent pipeline.

People Operations and Systems

• Stand up and run an HRMS for attendance, leave, onboarding, and records.
• Own onboarding and offboarding so day one and the last day both feel handled.
• Coordinate payroll inputs and keep statutory compliance clean (PF, ESI, PT, TDS).
• Write the policies we are missing, in plain language, and keep them current.

Culture, Performance and Org Design

• Build a lightweight performance and feedback rhythm that fits an engineering culture.
• Support levelling, role definition, and the IC career ladder as we grow.
• Run engagement and retention work that is real, not theatre.
• Be the trusted first point of contact for the team on people matters.

Requirements

• 5+ years in HR, with at least 2 of those inside a startup that was scaling.
• You have built HR systems and processes from scratch, not just operated someone else's.
• Hands-on recruiting experience, ideally hiring technical or hardware talent.
• Strong working knowledge of Indian labour and statutory compliance.
• Comfort with ambiguity and a bias to act. You decide, ship, and adjust.
• Clear, plain writing. Your policies and emails are easy to read.

You get bonus points if:

• You have worked at a deep-tech, hardware, or defence startup.
• You have hired through a fundraise or a fast headcount ramp.
• You have set up an HRMS end to end and have a tool you swear by.
• You have built a career ladder or levelling framework before.