HR Associate – Talent Acquisition & Operations

ABOUT CRA

Combustion Research Associates (CRA) designs, engineers and manufactures custom-engineered systems for the Energy and Defence sectors. Headquartered in Noida, CRA delivers high-precision, mission-critical equipment where engineering excellence, quality and reliability are non-negotiable.

As the organization continues to scale, the Human Resources team plays a central role in building the talent, processes and workplace culture that support this growth — across our shopfloor and corporate teams alike.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The purpose of this role is to drive end-to-end recruitment and day-to-day HR operations for CRA, partnering closely with hiring managers and the HR Lead to build a strong, compliant and engaged workforce across blue-collar and white-collar teams.

Reporting to the HR Lead, you will manage full-cycle hiring, employee documentation, attendance and statutory compliance, and support the broader people agenda as CRA continues to grow. The ideal candidate is comfortable working in a fast-paced engineering/manufacturing environment and brings strong coordination, communication, Excel and execution skills.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Talent Acquisition

• Partner with hiring managers to understand manpower requirements and define job descriptions and candidate requirements.

• Manage end-to-end recruitment for junior, mid-level and senior positions, across both blue-collar and white-collar hiring.

• Lead recruitment for technical and shopfloor roles, including Project Engineers, Applications Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Production Engineers, Design Engineers, Technicians, Operators and other shopfloor positions.

• Source candidates through job portals, recruitment platforms, referrals, consultants, social media and other relevant channels.

• Screen and shortlist candidates, and coordinate interviews, assessments, technical rounds and managerial discussions.

• Manage candidate communication throughout the recruitment process, and coordinate offer roll-out, documentation and pre-joining formalities.

• Support onboarding and joining formalities for new employees.

HR Operations

• Manage day-to-day HR operations and employee queries, maintaining accurate and updated employee records and documentation.

• Coordinate employee joining, transfers, confirmations, promotions and separation-related processes, and maintain personnel files.

• Coordinate employee lifecycle activities from joining to exit, and support preparation of HR letters, certificates and other documentation.

• Manage and monitor daily employee attendance, coordinating with employees and managers on attendance-related requirements.

• Support and manage employee enrolment under EPF and ESIC, and maintain accurate PF/ESIC records.

• Keep track of applicable labour law and statutory requirements, escalating compliance gaps where required.

• Prepare monthly and periodic HR reports for management review.

• Plan and coordinate employee engagement activities, including celebrations, events, festivals and team-building initiatives.

Requirements

• Strong recruitment and candidate-handling skills, with

• experience across both blue-collar and white-collar hiring preferred.

• Minimum of 1 year of core HR (HR

• Generalist) experience required.

• Good understanding of basic HR operations and statutory

• compliance, particularly PF and ESIC.

• Strong knowledge of MS Excel, with the ability to work with

• large datasets, trackers and HR MIS.

• Hands-on experience with HR and recruitment platforms such

• as Keka, Zoho and WorkIndia preferred.

• Good understanding of attendance and leave management.

• Strong coordination and follow-up skills, with good written

• and verbal communication.

• Strong attention to detail and accuracy, with the ability to

• maintain confidentiality of employee and HR information.

• A proactive, organized and execution-oriented approach,

• comfortable working in an engineering/manufacturing and shopfloor environment.

• MBA/PGDM in Human Resources or equivalent qualification

• preferred.

• A graduate with relevant HR experience may also be

• considered.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation package

• Comprehensive group medical insurance

• Generous leave policy

• Mentorship from experienced HR professionals

• Front-row seat to building HR systems in a high-growth engineering business

• Clear path for advancement as our company grows

• Collaborative and dynamic work environment