We are thrilled to announce the debut episode of our rebranded show, the ‘Work: Smart’ podcast, where we aim to help you be… well, more work-smart!

In our first episode, we invite Wendy Mayer, Vice President of Candidate Experience at Pfizer, to share her insights on the ever-evolving landscape of Candidate Experience before testing her work-smart behaviours.

If you want to put your work-smart questions to our guests you can email us at [email protected] or leave a voice note on Spotify.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be exploring the critical role Talent Acquisition plays in driving a company’s DEI initiatives and creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. We’ll look at innovative strategies that TA can use to increase workforce diversity and to create equity and inclusion.

Our guest today to help us dig into this topic is Rajeev Sharma, Director of Talent Acquisition, for APAC & MENA at Amazon. Prior to joining Amazon, Rajeev was the Head of TA for India and APAC at BNY Mellon, and before that, he worked in recruitment for Barclays Shared Services and BOA.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be exploring the topic of how to unlock the full potential of your TA team - to enable them to continually add value to your business and drive the best results. How do you set your team up for success? How do you organize them, develop them, keep them motivated and engaged, as well as aligned with key stakeholders, and the goals and priorities of the business?

Our guest today to help us dig into this topic is Charlotte Cantu, Head of Global Talent Acquisition at Tokio Marine HCC.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be digging into the topic of Internal Mobility, which is so important when it comes to attracting, engaging, and retaining talent. According to LinkedIn, employees stay 41% longer at companies that have a lot of internal hiring versus those that don’t. Yet so many companies prioritize external hiring and focus far less on internal hiring. Our guest today who will help us delve into this topic is Giorgio Benassi, Global Head of Talent, at the H&M Group. 

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be examining the topic of inclusive hiring, and how to build diversity, equity and inclusion into every step of your hiring process. Building on this, we’ll also dig into inclusive work practices.

Our guest today to help us unpack this topic is Christabelle Feeney, Director, Employers For Change.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be delving into the topic of sustainable talent, and how to build a dynamic and sustainable talent ecosystem that sets organizations up for current and future business success.

Our guest today to help us dig into this topic is Virginia Tirado, who is the Director of Talent Acquisition at Zalando. Prior to Zalando, Virginia was the Head of Commercial Technology Recruitment for EMEA at Amazon Web Services (AWS), and before that, the Head of Executive Recruitment for EMEA at Amazon.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be examining the evolving role of Talent Acquisition and the need to broaden TA beyond recruiting. We’ll explore how to build a more strategic and more holistic approach to TA as well as how to develop a comprehensive talent strategy.

In this episode of the Shortlist, we’ll be examining the relationship between Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. We’ll discuss whether equity should in fact trump everything else if you want to build a truly fair and inclusive workplace.

Our guest today to help us dig into this topic is Aubrey Blanche who is the Founder & CEO of The Mathpath and Senior Director of People Operations & Strategic Programs at Culture Amp.

With tech layoffs dominating the news headlines in recent months, the availability of talent has increased, however it’s still a tight labor market in most countries, and it continues to be difficult to hire great talent. 

For many organisations, it can require thinking outside the box. In this episode of the Shortlist, we’re going to examine the benefits of hiring globally and how this can be a game changer for many organizations.

The added value that international talent can bring to an organisation is significant in terms of skills, experience and international exposure as well as increased diversity and greater innovation. But how do you go about hiring international talent? Where do you start? 

Joining us on The Shortlist is Karin Bjorkman, Founder, Beyondo. Karin is a consultative partner and talent advisor, with more than 20 years of experience in international recruitment in The Netherlands and Sweden. She spent 17 years with Undutchables Recruitment Agency as a recruitment and executive consultant before setting up the Swedish arm of Undutchables. Last summer, Karin set up her own agency, Beyondo, connecting candidates to international job opportunities.

The core belief of diversity, equity, and inclusion is that people deserve to be treated fairly. However, all too often the onus of this falls on the individual to advocate for themselves, speak up, and fight for the recognition, change, and fairness we all deserve. Especially in the workplace. Imagine a world where this becomes less of an upward battle and more of a partnership between leadership and individual employees.