The Recruiting Future Podcast - Innovation In Hr And Recruitment

Three and a half years on from the first pandemic lockdowns, the debate about returning to the office still rages on. However, despite all the noise this year, as some large well-known companies tried yet again to force their employees back to the office, many employers have embraced the reality of remote and hybrid and are working hard to adjust and deal with the challenges of having a distributed workforce.  Culture and connection are often cited as reasons companies want to bring people back to their offices, particularly when supporting the new generation entering the workforce. So, what are remote and hybrid organizations doing to address these challenges without invoking a mandatory return to the office?  My guest this week is Dena Singleton, Chief People Officer at Kajabi. Kajabi strongly focuses on developing its culture and building connections within its organization, and Dina has some excellent advice to share. In the interview, we discuss: The unique market that Kajabi serves TA challenges J

The last 18 months have seen colossal talent market disruption in the tech industry, with large-scale layoffs continuing as the companies attempt to rebalance after a post-pandemic hiring frenzy. So how has this ongoing disruption affected start-up and scale-up businesses in the tech sector, and what lessons could the wider talent acquisition community learn from the way talent strategies are being reshaped My guest this week is Lorraine Buhannic, SVP & Head of Talent at VC firm Juxtapose. Lorraine advises Juxtapose's portfolio companies on the talent strategies they need to hire, develop and retain high-performing talent in these very volatile times.  In the interview, we discuss: Current market challenges Recruiting CEOs Developing a board-level community of talent Why talent is even more critical in a downturn The compression of middle management The long-term implications of losing experienced managers Why the most interesting jobs are often at early-stage companies Removing silos in the talent

Transforming TA into a strategic function that can prove its long-term value to the business has been a critical topic on the show this year.  AI, uneven talent markets and challenging economic factors continue to cause widespread market disruption, and TA leaders need to drive their function in a more strategic direction. As we race towards 2024, I will continue to seek out strategic thinkers who can share the insights we need to move the industry forward. My guest this week is Marcel Rütten. Marcel is a consultant, author, podcaster, conference organiser and former Global TA Leader who knows what it takes to build a highly strategic TA function. In the interview, we discuss: Talent market trends Proving TA's strategic importance to the C-Suite Aligning TA strategy with business strategy Uncovering the real issues in hiring and retention Tools and technologies Root cause analysis  The balance between time, cost and quality Using data to analyse candidate behaviour What impact will generative AI h

The rapid development of AI and the increasing sophistication of skills-based hiring methodologies are two potent forces shaping the future of talent acquisition.  So what kind of future can we look forward to, and will we see the increase in talent mobility and the decrease in bias that we need to make hiring more equitable and ensure employers have better access to the talent they need? My guest this week is Ben Porr, Chief Customer Officer at Harver. Ben is a highly experienced I/O psychologist who has been working to reduce bias in the hiring process. Ben's knowledge and experience have given him expert insights that can help us understand what the future of talent acquisition looks like when you combine the power of AI with the potential of skills-based hiring. In the interview, we discuss: The biggest challenges in the talent market Bottlenecks in the hiring process The evolution of skills-based hiring Increasing talent mobility Strategies to reduce bias Combing pieces of evidence  Does AI inc

Talent Acquisition is in a state of fast-accelerating disruption, and it has never been more critical for TA leaders to demonstrate the strategic value of their function. However, in the current volatile environment, many organisations are still struggling to get the essential elements of recruiting right. So what should TA teams be focusing on to make sure they are fit for purpose in an uncertain future? My guests this week are Kurt Bridge and Christian Le Loux from Macramé Consulting. Kurt and Christian are both highly experienced TA Leaders. They have much advice to share on building the right foundations for talent acquisition and implementing effective data-driven recruiting. In the interview, we discuss: How do TA Teams innovate Fractional leadership and scalability Building a foundation to be strategic Operating models, workflows and experience What is data-driven recruiting? Proving strategic value to the organisation Combating short-termism What will TA look like in the future? Listen to

AI and recruiting have been extensively discussed this year in podcasts, blogs, conferences, webinars and LinkedIn posts. However, the one angle I've not seen covered is what it is like to recruit for AI professionals.  Such a new industry means a severe shortage of experienced talent, and AI companies must work hard to outsmart their talent market competition. My guest this week is Lauren Saltus, a Senior Recruiter at Runway, an AI research company focused on the creative sectors. In our conversation, Lauren shares her experience of refocusing to become a specialist AI recruiter and discusses some of the critical factors that influence talent in this area. There are some great insights here, not just for AI recruiting but for anyone who is operating in a market where there is a significant skill shortage. In the interview, we discuss: The current state of tech recruiting and why AI recruiting is different Accelerator programs to develop deeper talent pipelines Creating a research brand to attract tale

Round Up is the monthly show on The Recruiting Future Podcast channel that highlights episodes you may have missed and gives you my take on some of the key learnings from the guests. Episode mentioned in this Round Up: Ep 557: The Complexity of Talent Acquisition Ep 558: Making Talent Acquisition Magical Ep 559: Wellness, Culture, Recruiting and Retention Ep 560: Hiring For The Future Ep 561: Building The Foundations Of Skills-Based Hiring Ep 562: Vulnerability At Work Ep 563: How Will AI Change TA? (Live at RecFest) Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

This time last year, most of us hadn't heard of generative AI, but it has dominated our industry discourse in 2023. The dramatic emergence of generative AI has illustrated how fast disruption is accelerating and has made us think deeply about the future of talent acquisition. Back in July at RecFest, Tony de Graaf, Global Director of Hiring Success at SmartRecruiters, invited me to join him for a fireside chat about the potential impact of generative AI on TA. Even though three months is a long time in AI, this is still a very relevant discussion where we attempted to unpick what is happening and understand how AI is shaping the future of talent acquisition. In the interview, we discuss: The AI hype cycle Does AI take away tasks or jobs? The pressure for change that is coming from the top of organizations Strategic workforce planning and hiring for future skills Moving from being operational to being strategic The transformation of marketing Democratized access to technology Is this the end of recru

Showing your vulnerability is becoming a common theme in personal development as a way of fostering good mental health and a route to building resilience and reducing anxiety. Leaders are often told to show vulnerability at work, but the dynamic between doing this in your professional life is somewhat different than in your life outside of work. So, how can leaders use their vulnerability to motivate their teams, and what skills do they need to learn to do so? My guest this week is Jacob Morgan, Futurist, Speaker and Author of a new book called Leading With Vulnerability. I've always been a fan of Jacob's writing. In our conversation, he talks about the art of leading with vulnerability and shares some insights about the skills we will all need for the uncertain future of work. In the interview, we discuss: What is vulnerability at work? Adding leadership to vulnerability Taking action to create positive outcomes Creating connections Warmth and competence The importance of intention Motivation and g

Having covered both topics extensively on the podcast this year, I'm very much of the opinion that the move towards skills-based thinking will be more disruptive to recruiting norms than the rapid adoption of generative AI. The adoption of skills-based hiring and the move towards skills-based organizations is still happening slowly. However, as more organizations question blanket requirements for college degrees, new upskilling and reskilling initiatives are emerging that could help move the needle quicker. My guest this week is Michelle Westfort, Chief University Officer at InStride. InStride works with businesses to use skill-based hiring to expand talent pools by partnering with employers to construct career education paths to provide employees with the skills they need to do their jobs. In the interview, we discuss: Why some employers are moving away from degrees Do employers understand skills-based hiring? Diversifying talent pools with more equitable hiring processes Understanding the skills need

The business world is changing quickly, and the skill sets that employees need are constantly shifting, developing and evolving. So, how can companies develop strategic workforce plans and build long-term talent pipelines in such an unpredictable and fast-changing environment? My guests this week are Jennifer Longworth, Director of People and Culture at Entuitive, and Ugo Orsi, Chief Customer Officer at Digitate. Jennifer and Ugo have a unique combination of perspectives on how AI is shaping the workforce of the future and some solid practical advice to share In the interview, we discuss: Current talent challenges Hiring for the skills of the future The importance of a growth mindset Building trust and motivation The current use and future potential of AI The emotional impact of the AI Powerful automations Embracing change management and curiosity Adoption issues within middle management Ageing populations and reducing labour markets Thinking instead of executing Strategic workforce planning In

Recruiting and retaining the right talent continues to be highly challenging for many organisations. Understanding the key drivers here is critical for any company that wants to achieve a competitive talent advantage. It's starting to become clear that the impact of prioritising wellbeing on an organisation's culture is significant enough to have a powerful influence on hiring and retention. So, what can employees do to move the needle here quickly? My guest this week is Beth Ridley, founder and CEO of The Ridley Consulting Group. Beth works with CEOs to achieve thriving workplace cultures and embed diversity, equity and inclusion values into their business. She has some brilliant insights to share on the relationship between wellness, culture, recruiting and wellbeing and also offers some highly actionable advice. In the interview, we discuss: Culture and leadership Diversity as an asset Applying an inclusive lens to leadership The role of culture and wellness in attraction and retention How can recr

This special episode was recorded at the first ever Recruiting Future Podcast live event at the HR Technology Conference in Las Vegas. I was blown away by how many people came along and shared their views on the future talent acquisition. On such a magical night (we even had a magician doing card tricks), it seemed fitting to ask people what we need to do to make talent acquisition more magical. Here is a selection of the brilliant insights shared with me and my guest co-host Jenny Cotie Kangas from White Rock Consulting. Topics covered include: Automation and human interaction Candidate and employee experience Skills based hiring Speed and engagement Hidden pools of talent Influence and persuasion Co-operation and collaboration Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

When discussing talent market challenges and recruiting technology trends, we often refer to talent acquisition as a homogeneous activity with common challenges and processes. However, many organisations have highly complex hiring operations that deal with challenges that can be as unique as the employers themselves. My guest this week is Lisa Scales, Talent Acquisition Director at Royal Mail. As well as being one of the UK's largest employers, Royal Mail also hire 18,000 seasonal workers every Christmas. We discuss everything from supply chain management to sophisticated recruitment marketing and social mobility. Lisa gives us a fascinating insight into a highly complex hiring strategy.  In the interview, we discuss: The recruiting challenges at Royal Mail Scaling up Outsourcing and driving results via third parties Appealing to a younger generation of workers Purpose-driven work Using recruitment marketing to shift perceptions Social mobility and reflecting your customer communities Recruiting 18,

Round up is the monthly show on The Recruiting Future Podcast channel that highlights episodes you may have missed and gives you my take on some of the key learnings from the guests. Episode mentioned in this Round Up: Ep 547: Generative AI – A Deep Dive Ep 548: Rethinking Background Checks Ep 549: Rethinking Work, Jobs and Recruiting Ep 550: Promotion, Motivation, Commitment and Retention Ep 551: Interviewerless Interviewing Ep 552: Hiring Innovation in LATAM and Asia Ep 553: The Strategic Value of Talent Acquisition Ep 554: Perfect Business Storytelling Ep 555: Using Skills To Predict Job Performance Ep 556: How AI Is Transforming Recruiting Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts

We've talked about generative AI a lot this year and its incredible potential to change and disrupt talent acquisition. A lot of our industry conversation has been about creating with Large Language Models to generate recruitment marketing content and automate interactions with candidates. However, the impact of AI goes much deeper than this, and its effect on the speed of vendor innovation is highly significant. AI is already changing the way candidates are found, and matches are made and has the potential to make boolean searching and keyword matching obsolete in a very short space of time. So what is the art of the possible here, and how can TA Leaders ask the right questions of vendors to ensure they are dealing with genuine products that are ethical and legally compliant? My guest this week is Mark Chaffey, CEO of Hackajob. Hackajob has integrated generative AI into its technology to vastly improve matching between candidates and roles. At the same time, they have a strong focus on using AI to improve

When we're talking about the future of talent acquisition, Generative AI has been taking all of the limelight this year. However, arguably, although it grabs fewer headlines, the steady evolution of skills-based hiring is potentially even more disruptive to traditional recruiting norms. There is an enormous amount of data, science and research going into understanding the relationship between skills and job performance, and the results are smashing some of our longest-held assumptions about hiring. My guest this week is Andy Nelesen, Global Head of Talent Acquisition Solutions at SHL. SHL has done an enormous amount of work to establish the link between skills and performance, and their research has revealed 12 skills that universally predict success. There is also a significant discrepancy between the skills employers ask for in job ads and the skills the science shows they actually need, so this is a must-list interview for everyone who wants to hire more effectively. In the interview, we discuss: Why u

Are you going to be at the HR Technology Conference in Las Vegas on Tuesday, October 10th? Recruiting Future has teamed up with the lovely people at Hackajob to host an early evening soiree that we're calling Hack A Pod.  We will be crowdsourcing a live episode of The Recruiting Future Podcast on the roof terrace of BrewDog Vegas's very own Scottish brewpub, and one of the best viewing points there is to watch the sun set over the Vegas strip. So please come along to join in or just watch and mingle with some great people. We've got free drinks, food, and even a magician to keep you entertained. Not only that, BrewDog is only a short walk or an even shorter taxi ride from The Mandalay Bay, where the conference is being held. We've only got limited capacity, so to find out more and register for your free ticket, go to mattalder.me/vegas

Regular listeners will know just how essential I believe it is for talent acquisition to learn the art and science of storytelling. Being able to craft stories that resonate isn't just part of effective recruitment marketing; it is vital to building internal stakeholder engagement and developing more influence to move TA up the corporate strategic value chain. So why is effective storytelling so powerful, and how can we all build our skills in this area? My guest this week is Karen Eber, CEO of the Eber Leadership Group and author of a new book called The Perfect Story: How to Tell Stories That Inform, Influence and Inspire. The book deals with the science and structure of good storytelling in business and is full of advice that can help everyone tell more powerful and engaging stories. In the interview, we discuss: What happens to your brain when you listen to stories? Being memorable and engaging Why business storytelling is so important Understanding your audience Conflict as fuel to drive the narr

The talent acquisition landscape is changing rapidly. 2024 has been difficult for many people in the profession, with many layoffs and an incredibly tough job market for recruiters. At the same time, advances in AI and automation technologies are driving types of change that we couldn't have imagined a few years ago, and post-pandemic labour shortages are still a reality in many talent markets. All this disruption is forcing employers to think differently about jobs, work, skills and recruiting, creating an incredible opportunity for talent acquisition to illustrate its long-term value to the business. So what role does TA play in the future, and how can TA leaders prove its strategic value when many of their teams are being downsized? My guest this week is Jessica Zwaan, COO at Whereby. Jessica is a cutting-edge HR thinker and has written a book detailing how People Ops should be run using product management principles. In our conversation, we talk about the future role of TA, and Jessica offers practical