Building talent programs that actually work requires co-creating with the business.

Blair Bennett, SVP of Global Talent Acquisition at PepsiCo, joins Shannon to share how her team approaches large-scale recruiting strategy with intention and collaboration. 

She walks through the process of building a global interview framework, explains why involving stakeholders early creates better outcomes, and unpacks the balance between structure and flexibility across a company of 320,000 people.

You’ll also learn about co-designing with users in mind and the often-overlooked strategic value recruiters bring to the business.

Key takeaways:

1. Co-design drives engagement: Bringing hiring managers and internal partners in from the start leads to stronger adoption, more thoughtful feedback, and deeper buy-in across the organization.
2. Start with the problem, not the tool: It’s easy to get distracted by shiny solutions. The real impact comes from solving clear business challenges first, then layering in technology where it fits.
3. Pilot thoughtfully and globally: Testing new frameworks with diverse teams across geographies and hiring levels ensures they hold up at scale and reveal where iteration is needed.
4. Recruiters hold unique value: Talent acquisition bridges internal goals and external insights, giving recruiters a unique perspective that shapes culture and business success.

Timestamps:
(00:00) Introducing PepsiCo’s approach to candidate experience

(01:09) Blair Bennett’s career path and mission in talent acquisition

(02:16) Why co designing talent programs is essential

(05:38) Starting with business problems, not shiny HR tools

(08:13) Prototyping and piloting global interview frameworks

(09:20) How pilot groups are selected and engaged

(11:21) Structuring project ownership and change management

(13:10) Earning credibility with collaborative recruiting changes

(17:17) Getting executive support through informed involvement