What does good hiring look like when you’re operating at global scale?

In this episode, Johnny speaks with Kelly Tompkins from Accenture about designing hiring processes that actually work in the real world. They explore why “one size fits all” breaks down quickly, how to stay consistent on candidate experience, and why trust is a metric worth measuring.

If you’re balancing scale, speed, and fairness, this conversation offers a grounded way forward.

When does outsourcing actually make sense in talent acquisition?

In this episode, Johnny sits down with Gemma Milner (PwC) to unpack one of the toughest decisions TA leaders face: build in-house or partner externally. From cleaning messy data to redesigning the entire hiring model, Gemma shares what it really takes to make a confident, evidence-based call.

If you’re weighing flexibility, cost, and experience, this conversation brings clarity to a complex decision.

What does it take to move from scattered AI experiments to a structured, scalable TA strategy?

In this episode, Johnny speaks with Kerstin Wagner (Deutsche Bahn) about how her team built an AI roadmap without losing innovation. From recruiter-led prompt libraries to internal AI hubs and governance, this is a practical look at balancing compliance, scale, and creativity.

In this episode, Johnny speaks with Mary Kay Baldino, Head of Global Talent Acquisition at Morningstar, about what it really takes to build AI into a recruiting function. Mary Kay shares how her team mapped over 100 process inefficiencies before touching a single tool, how Morningstar's AI Academy is building genuine capability across TA, and why getting governance right up front made everything move faster. It's a practical, honest look at AI transformation done with intention.

In this episode, Johnny speaks with Michael Kulak, Global Director of Talent Acquisition at Warner Bros. Discovery Games, about the "great unbundling" of the recruiter role. From AI system managers to candidate concierges, Michael explores how specialization is reshaping TA teams — and why leaders who move too fast risk hollowing out the talent pipeline. A candid conversation about where human skill still wins, and what TA leaders owe their teams in a time of real uncertainty.

Most teams don’t have an AI problem. They have a workflow problem.

In this episode, Johnny speaks with Phil Mellows-Facer (BMS Performance) about what actually changes performance in a tough market. From cutting CV screening time to increasing reply rates from 30% to 81%, Phil shares how focusing on real bottlenecks, not shiny tools, transformed recruiter productivity and candidate experience.

What does the future recruiter actually look like?

Johnny sat down with LinkedIn's Adam Hawkins, at LinkedIn Talent Connect UK, to unpack the shift from recruiter to talent strategist. This isn’t just about new tools. It’s about a structural change in how hiring works.

They explore why data, trust, and advisory skills now sit at the core of the role, what work is disappearing, and where human value is increasing.

If you’re still hiring like it’s 2023, this is worth your time.

What happens to careers when AI changes not just how we work, but how work itself is structured? In this episode of Hiring Excellence, Johnny sits down with Aneesh Raman, Chief Economic Opportunity Officer at LinkedIn and co-author of Open to Work. They explore why careers now look less like ladders and more like climbing walls, what “skills-first” really means in practice, and how talent leaders can build hiring systems that are more adaptable, human, and fair in the AI era.

Are TA teams focusing on the wrong metric?This episode, originally recorded as part of a SocialTalent Live session, features Johnny in conversation with Kevin Blair on why productivity has become a trap for talent acquisition.Instead of doing “more with less,” Kevin argues for a shift towards capacity and a more strategic, value-led role for TA.

Lean TA isn’t about cutting for the sake of it. It’s about clarity, consistency, and focus.

In this episode of the Hiring Excellence podcast, Johnny speaks with Robert Rice, Global Head of TA at ERM, about reshaping a 70-person TA team into a more focused team of 40 while strengthening process, improving data integrity, and moving upstream into commercial workforce planning.

This is a grounded look at structure, discipline, and practical AI use in a global organisation.