HR AI and Automation Lead (all genders)

About Us STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionising the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop and manufacture high performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost effective. This provides our operators with a decisive edge in highly contested environments. We’re focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems - not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe - today. Your mission You will own the practical application of AI and automation across HR at STARK. Your goal is to reduce administrative work, improve data quality and give employees and managers faster access to reliable support. You will identify opportunities, build and deploy solutions, and measure their impact across recruiting, people operations and workforce planning. Working with HR leadership, IT, Security, Legal and Finance, you will make these solutions reliable enough for everyday use in a defence technology environment. Responsibilities Own the HR AI and automation roadmap. Prioritise projects by business value, process readiness, data sensitivity and implementation effort, with a clear owner and success measure for each. Build and maintain workflows for recruiting handovers, onboarding, employee changes, approval routing and reporting. Select standard automation or AI according to the task and reliability required. Develop an HR knowledge assistant using approved policies and guidance. Ensure answers reference current sources, respect access permissions and escalate uncertain or sensitive questions to the right person. Connect HR systems and collaboration tools through approved integrations. Improve data consistency, resolve failed handovers and preserve the authoritative source for each record. Improve workforce reporting with reliable headcount, hiring and process data. Help HR and Finance reconcile position approvals, recruitment activity and employee records. Evaluate tools and vendors with IT, Security and Legal. Define access controls, data handling, retention and monitoring before deployment, with accountable human review for decisions affecting candidates or employees. Test output quality, permissions and failure scenarios. Maintain documentation, alerts and recovery procedures so deployed workflows remain dependable as systems and policies change. Train HR colleagues and managers, support adoption and report results through time saved, turnaround times, error rates, usage and operating cost. Qualifications Around five years or more in HR technology, HR operations, business systems or automation, with ownership of projects from problem definition through implementation. Evidence of AI or automation solutions you have deployed and maintained, including the problem solved, adoption achieved and measurable operational results. Practical ability to bu