The Recruiting Future Podcast - Innovation In Hr And Recruitment

Many employers will claim to be people-centric organisations, but how many actually have the quality of employer experience to back this up? A high-quality employee experience dries value for businesses in many ways, including competitive advantage in talent acquisition, better retention, increased productivity and better service for clients and customers. So how do you build a genuinely people-centric organisation with an employer experience that delivers on its promises? My guest this week is Mayra Chimienti, COO of Mister Carwash, the largest car wash operator in North America. Mister Car Wash is a certified Great Place to Work that has built a category-leading employee experience. In the interview, we discuss: What it means to be a people-first business Employee experience and customer experience Building competitive advantage in Talent Acquisition Telling authentic stories and showing evidence in the recruiting process Retention, professional development and benefits The long term impact of the p

With so much unhelpful noise around the topic of the future of work, I'm taking a deep dive into the practicalities of what is actually going on over three podcast episodes. In the previous two episodes, I spoke to authors Julia Hobsbawm and Bruce Daisley about our physical relationship with the workplace; in this episode, I want to explore happiness at work. The John Lewis Partnership is a unique UK-based retailer jointly owned by its employees and founded on the premise of ensuring worker happiness. My guest this week is Lord Mark Price, the former UK Trade Minister who was CEO of Waitrose and Deputy Chairman of The John Lewis Partnership. Mark now works via his business WorkL to help employers increase workplace happiness using some of the lessons he learned during his time at John Lewis.  In the interview, we discuss: Lessons from The John Lewis Partnership The six core elements of happiness at work Why looking at averages is dangerous. How can employers build a happier workplace? Using happiness f

With so much unhelpful noise around the topic of the future of work, I'm taking a deep dive into the practicalities of what is actually going on over a series of three podcast episodes. In the previous episode, I spoke to author Julia Hobsbawm about some of the challenges of this emerging new phase of work, and I want to continue this theme in this episode. My guest this week is the perfect person to help me do this, and it is great to have him back on the show. Bruce Daisley is a speaker, author and workplace culture enthusiast. Previously a VP at Twitter, Bruce now hosts one of the world's most popular podcasts on making work better.  In the interview, we discuss: Critical issues in workplace culture Why flex is the new pay The danger of uncoordinated hybrid Productivity and worker satisfaction The intentional curation of culture Using the office as a tool How management infrastructure is changing The rise of the community manager Rethinking knowledge transfer Understanding the demands of top ta

All around the world, debates about hybrid and remote working rumble on as employers and employees experiment to find mutually agreeable and effective ways of working. There is a lot of noise in the debate around the future of work, and I really want to cut through this. With that in mind, I'm going to focus the next three episodes of the podcast on the future of work, exploring the real issues, looking at the practical solutions that are being put in place and taking an informed look at what the future might look like. My first guest in this mini-series is writer, speaker and consultant Julia Hobsbawm, author of the brilliant book "The Nowhere Office". In her book, Julia explores what is happening at the moment in the context of workplace changes over the last few decades and examines the current issues to help map the future.  In the interview, we discuss: Reimagining and reframing how we work The four phases of work since 1945 How the pandemic has accelerated trends that were already there The comple

I'm a firm believer in looking outside the talent acquisition universe to see what lessons we can learn from other disciplines and areas. Elite sport is always an interesting parallel as selecting and developing talent is a critical aspect of building a winning team. My guest this week is Mehdi Kordi, the coach of the Dutch national track cycling team. The team have had a massive amount of success in recent years, including winning three golds, a silver and a bronze at the last Olympics, despite having considerably fewer resources and less funding than some of their competitors. It was fantastic to hear first-hand from Mehdi how they have achieved this, and there are some very valuable lessons here from TA leaders everywhere. In the interview, we discuss: What makes a good coach Managing riders, employees and partners Getting the best out of people How do you spot talent? The importance of resilience The mental versus the physical The role of technology Running a world-class team with limited resour

Everything is changing very quickly in talent acquisition, and many employers are struggling to keep up with the ever evolving best practices that are driving results. It's a critical moment to get a helicopter view of what talent acquisition strategies are working and the successful attributes of the highest performing recruiting functions. My guest this week is Janet Mertens, VP of Research at The Josh Bersin Company. Her organisation has recently published an independent report on Human-Centered Talent Acquisition which looks at the strategies and tactics successful talent acquisition teams are deploying in these challenging times. In the interview, we discuss: The background and methodology of the research project A perfect storm in talent acquisition What business practices are having the most significant impact The critical business issues talent acquisition is addressing Being bold, creative and human-centered Intentional experience design What truly drives competitive advantage Attracting an

The current challenges talent acquisition teams face are well documented, and on this podcast, we explore the strategies and technologies that TA leaders are using to address them. The one thing we don't talk about enough collectively as an industry is the considerable effects two years of unprecedented pressure and disruption have had on everyone's mental health. While wellness, in general, is a big industry topic, there hasn't been much direct conversation on the importance of self-care and strategies to build resilience for Talent Acquisition leaders and their teams. My guest this week is Ben Gledhill, a Talent Acquisition leader who has done innovative work for several UK based organisations. Ben is one of the talent acquisition community's deep thinkers and, over the last two years, has done a lot of research into the importance of building individual resilience and the role it plays in the effectiveness of talent acquisition strategies. In the interview, we discuss: What it has been like to be a Hea

Last week I attended my first face to face HR and Recruiting Technology conference for two and half years. UNLEASH America took place in Las Vegas and was an incredible mix of great content and the opportunity to meet the really innovative technology vendors in our space. One of the most interesting keynote sessions was a panel debate on the ethics and legal responsibility for using AI in recruiting. The panel was hosted by my fellow podcasters, Joel Cheesman and Chad Sowash of The Chad & Cheese Podcast, so I caught up with them afterwards on the expo floor to find out more and get their views on the future of the industry. In the interview, we discuss: The return of face to face conferences and events AI and The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission What the future might look like A full transcript will appear here. Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcast

Effective storytelling is a crucial part of hiring, flowing through recruitment marketing, employer branding, assessment and onboarding but does your organisation have a strategy that sits behind it? Knowing what kind of stories to tell and how and where to tell them is something that brings a considerable competitive advantage. So how can we all get better at telling our stories compellingly and effectively? My go-to storytelling expert is journalist, writer and tech entrepreneur Shane Snow. I'm delighted to welcome him back to the show to do a deep dive into storytelling strategy. In a world of challenging talent markets and virtual hiring processes, this interview is a must listen for everyone. In the interview, we discuss: Why business storytelling is important and what it can achieve The four elements of a great story Storytelling in employer branding and recruiting The three different types of business story Why should people care? How and where do you tell a story? Weaving storytelling into ev

The one theme that has come over very clearly in the conversations I've had with talent acquisition professionals in the last 12 months is the relationship between speed and quality in the hiring process. Speed is currently a competitive advantage which means many employers are focusing intensely on speeding up their hiring process. However, quality of experience and quality of hire are still critical, so how do you speed up talent acquisition and improve quality at the same time. Earlier this year, Mervyn Dinnen and I joined forces with the team at Metaview to work on a piece of research to see if we could answer this question. We spoke to employers who are successfully improving both speed and the quality of the talent acquisition to distil the mindset, strategies and tactics they are using to solve this complex challenge. We recently published the results in a whitepaper, and I'm delighted to welcome Germaine Yokoyama-Heiliger to the show to discuss the findings. Germaine is a People Experience and Oper

Diversity in hiring is a critical issue for all employers, but many are still struggling with it. So who is doing it well, and how much of a role can recruiting technology play in diversifying talent pools. My guest this week is Shaun Daly, Head of Resourcing at The Open University. Over the last few years, The Open University has been increasing the diversity of its organisation by rethinking how it does hiring, building an inclusive employer brand and deploying point solution technology which helps to enable these strategies. In the interview, we discuss: Recruiting challenges at The Open University Operating with legacy systems Developing a compelling employer brand Anonymous recruiting and diverse interview panels Making the candidate experience more engaging Recruitment marketing automation Online events Talent pool segmentation Future innovations Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts. A full transcript will appear here shortly.

This is part two of my mini-series on personalization. So to recap, I feel very strongly that personalization is the new Megatrend in Talent Acquisition. Offering personalized recruitment marketing, candidate journies, assessments, feedback, onboarding, and communication will be critical objectives for employers over the next few years. Candidates are demanding it, the technology is here to facilitate it, and the amount of friction that will get removed from recruiting processes will be a win for candidates, recruiters and hiring managers. So what is possible, and how are employers dealing with the practicalities of personalization in talent acquisition? A few weeks ago, the awesome team at Paradox invited me to speak and record some interviews at their client board event in Scottsdale, Arizona. Paradox is a technology that is really driving the progress of personalization. It was very insightful to talk to some of their clients about the need for personalization in their TA processes and the change journie

Those of you who have read my book Digital Talent (available wherever you get your books!) will know that I feel very strongly that personalization is the new megatrend in talent acquisition. Offering personalized recruitment marketing, candidate journies, assessments, feedback, onboarding, and communication will be critical objectives for employers over the next few years. Candidates are demanding it, the technology is here to facilitate it, and the amount of friction that will get removed from recruiting processes will be a win for candidates, recruiters and hiring managers. Two weeks ago, the awesome team at Paradox invited me to speak and record some interviews at their client board event in Scottsdale, Arizona. Paradox is a technology that is really driving the progress of personalization. It was really insightful to talk to some of their clients about the need for personalization in their TA processes and the change journies they are taking their recruiters and hiring managers on to make personalizati

Employer branding has always been important, but it is now absolutely critical to employers if they want to connect, engage and influence in demand talent. Employer branding isn't easy and for larger organisations building a global employer brand is a significant undertaking. So how do you make the business case for employer branding, and how does employer brand activation work amid all of the challenges 2022 poses for employers? My guest this week is Marije van der Togt, Head of Employer Branding at Just Eat Takeaway.com. Marije is highly experienced at building successful employer brands across multiple countries and has a massive amount of valuable insight to share. In the interview, we discuss: Challenges of becoming one company with one story Evolving recruiting challenges How strong consumer brands create challenges for employer brands The importance of culture in candidate choice Why invest in a global employer brand? How employer brand strategy enables the business strategy Storytelling and

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. Episodes mentioned in this Round Up: Ep 425: Building A High Performing Talent Acquisition Team Ep 426: AI Driven Talent Intelligence Ep 427: The Job Board Market Ep 428: Strategies For The Great Resignation Ep 429: Open Hiring Ep 430: Developing People Analytics Ep 431: Talent Density Ep 432: Long Term Trends A full transcript will appear here shortly Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts

After over two years of unprecedented disruption, it has become evident that things have changed forever. However, many employers are still attempting to stick with the talent acquisition and employee experience strategies they had before the pandemic.  So what are the dangers of behaving as if nothing has changed, and how should companies now set their strategies for the long term? My guest this week is Amanda Black, Director of Inclusive Search at Good Works Consulting. Amanda has wide-ranging experience in talent acquisition and DE&I and has some expert insights to share on the long term impact of The Great Resignation. In the interview, we discuss: A disrupted talent market Shifts in the employer/employee model Revealing inequalities in the system Permanently changed expectations Long term solutions and The Great Opportunity How successful employers are shifting their employee experience Modelling and demonstrating values Are companies taking DE&I seriously? Listen to this podcast on Apple Podc

The challenges of 2022 are causing many organisations to think very differently about talent. The employers who are getting it right are looking holistically at talent acquisition, development, retention and attrition to create the opportunity to build a talent dense organisation. So what does this look like in practice, and how can your company get there? My guest this week is Taylor Roa, Director of Talent at Wistia. Wistia is a growing technology company with an incredible culture and a big focus on talent density. They also use video as their superpower to showcase their unique employer brand. In the interview, we discuss: Recruiting challenges at Wistia Meaningful work and culture versus cash and compromise Using video to represent the company culture authentically. Making a competitive advantage of putting people first Becoming a talent dense organisation Why retention is not about trapping people Being a business that it is good to be from How the pandemic has changed work Advice on getting

With a growing number of use cases, people analytics continues to develop both in sophistication and the amount of value it drives for employers. However, despite the quantum leap in recruiting technology we've seen in the last few years, I still feel that talent acquisition is significantly lagging behind where it should be in terms of data and analytics.  My guest this week is Vic Akosile, an HR Strategy Consultant at Humananalytics. Vic is a highly experienced people analytics specialist. He gives us an excellent overview of what is going on in the space and what talent acquisition leaders need to consider if they want to develop their data and analytics capability. In the interview, we discuss: The evolution of People Analytics Cutting edge use cases Increasing digital interactions mean increasing amounts of data. People Analytics in talent acquisition How to develop more sophistication in People Analytics What trends is technology driving Using sentiment and network analysis to help with retenti

Some of my favourite conversations in the last six months have been around inclusive hiring. Many people are doing brilliant work to support people from marginalised groups into the workforce, and I've learnt a lot from talking to employers like Timpson and organisations like The Bridge of Hope. In this episode, we're going to explore what happens when an employer removes all screening, all background checks and all education and experience requirements from their hiring to be more inclusive. What are the advantages, the challenges, and the results? My guest this week is Nykeba King, Global Head of Inclusion at The Body Shop. A few years ago, The Body Shop created an Open Hiring program to ensure they were being as inclusive as possible. It's a strategy that has produced some amazing results, and it is now giving them a unique competitive advantage in today's challenging talent markets. In the interview, we discuss: Recruiting challenges at The Body Shop What is Open Hiring, and how does it work? No bac

Whether it's the Great Resignation or the Great Reset, whatever you choose to call it, it is undeniable that employers are currently finding it extremely challenging to attract and retain talent. So which strategies should companies be exploring to improve their odds in such a difficult market?  My guest this week is Christine Wzorek, CEO and Founder of White Label Advisors. Christine is a highly experienced HR leader and has essential advice about building holistic human capital strategies to deal with these incredibly challenging times. In the interview, we discuss: What is driving the Great Resignation? Employer engagement, happiness and fulfilment Adapting to the new reality Why talent acquisition needs to mirror sales Treating candidates in a hospitality orientated way Transparency in reward strategies Scaling L&D with technology Levelling the playing field for diverse talent Gender equality The future of talent acquisition and HR Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.