HR Interviews Playlist

Recorded live from RecFest, this special episode of Chad and Cheese features Lord Wei, a member of the Science and Tech Committee in the House of Lords. It's not every day you hear from a political figure on the show! They dive into topics like AI regulation, workforce automation, and tech's role in recruitment. Don't miss it—follow Chad and Cheese for more unique insights.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

0:55 Transition from Tech into Recruitment

2:30 Lord Wei’s Short Bio

3:23 Predicting the Era of AI

5:14 AI is a Superhuman in Recruitment

6:29 AI is about Skills

7:52 AI Discovers Talent 

9:51 Flexibility is Key

13:45 Taking Advantage over Government

15:23 Redeploying People into New Jobs

18:33 AI Makes Hiring Fair

19:59 Talent Is What Counts

23:06 Gen Z                        

24:38 Bringing Migrants into the Workforce

26:05 Integration into Hybrid Future

Assessment is the one area of talent acquisition practice where we have proper peer-reviewed science about what is and isn't effective. Unfortunately, the use of science in assessment has tended to only happen in larger organizations and then not necessarily consistently.

AI has the potential to change everything, making assessment technology faster and more accessible to employers of all sizes. However, there are huge dangers here. Not only does AI bring with it the potential for more bias in the process, things are moving so quickly that it may well be that some tech solutions coming into the market are built without due consideration of the fundamental principles of science and psychology that should be applied to assessment. 

So, what steps can TA Leaders take to ensure their technology is fit for purpose and embed a more strategic approach to assessment?

My guest this week is Dr Charles Handler. Charles is the President & Founder of Rocket-Hire, an organization that designs, implements, and validates employee selection solutions. He is also a Futurist, working extensively to research and understand the impact of AI on the future of assessment.

In the interview, we discuss:

• How assessment has evolved over the last five years

• Making the science more accessible and assessments more user-friendly

• The importance of properly evaluating assessment technology.

• The opportunities and threats of AI

• Finding a positive way to respond to the growing use of AI by jobseekers

• Skills-based hiring

• How to think more strategically about assessment

• What does the future look like

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In this episode, Joel and Chad interview Jim Durbin, the Indeed Whisperer, about the challenges and future of job boards and recruitment marketing. They discuss the decline in traffic and revenue for Indeed, the potential expansion into temporary staffing, the importance of social media presence for job boards, and the CareerBuilder-Monster merger. Jim shares his insights on the industry and predicts that a tech company may acquire CareerBuilder and that ZipRecruiter may face challenges.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction of The Indeed Whisperer

02:30 - Indeed's Challenges and Potential Expansion

10:10 - Indeed's Delcine and the Importance of Social Media

13:28 - X as a LinkedIn Killer

19:19 - CareerBuilder-Monster Merger

28:04 - Acquiring CareerBuilder and Challenges for ZipRecruiter

Keywords

job boards, recruitment marketing, Indeed, temporary staffing, social media, CareerBuilder, Monster, predictions, ZipRecruiter, Job.com, Apollo, Randstad, Talent.com

In this episode, Joel and Chad interview Jason Putnam, Chief Revenue Officer at Plum, about the flaws of skills-based hiring and the future of work. They discuss the challenges of becoming a skills-based organization, the importance of soft skills in hiring and promotion decisions, and the need for clean and comprehensive data to drive talent management. They also touch on the role of credentialing and the potential demise of the traditional resume. Overall, the conversation explores the evolving landscape of talent acquisition and management in the face of rapid technological advancements.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction and Welcome

02:13 - The Flaws of Skills-Based Hiring

06:10 - The Challenges of Creating a Foundational Base for Skills-Based Hiring

09:24 - The Integration of Talent Acquisition and Talent Management

13:00 - The Importance of Transparency and Internal Mobility

15:09 - The Role of Credentialing and Ongoing Learning

24:28 - Optimism and Pessimism about the Future of Work

Keywords

skills-based hiring, future of work, soft skills, data, credentialing, resume, talent acquisition, talent management, AI, upskilling

One key aspect of any journey to becoming a skills-based organization is having effective skills assessment strategies in place. This doesn't just apply to hiring and leadership development. Some of the most cutting-edge organizations are using assessment as part of the onboarding process to help understand the development needs of new employees.

My guest this week is Simone Jacobi, Global Director of Talent Assessment at McKinsey. In our conversation, Simone talks about how McKinsey is gratifying assessments in its journey toward becoming a skills-based organization. 

In the interview, we discuss:

• What do skills mean at McKinsey?

• How McKinsey's talent acquisition process is evolving

• Broadening talent sources

• The advantages of gamifying assessment

• Onboarding and "Day One Readiness" assessments to help people become productive as quickly as possible

• Using Gen AI to Personalize Assessments

• Building individual skills profiles and mapping up skills development

• Reducing bias and using "Fairness Observers" when making people decisions

• What are the most essential skills for the future?

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Justin Henshaw, founder and CEO of Gage, joins the Chad and Cheese podcast to pitch his company. Gage is the first and only universal employment recognition system and engagement community built for shift and hourly workers. It allows employees to own and transfer their employment data, providing a complete and portable employment record. Gage also fosters community and connection among employees, allowing them to connect with peers, coworkers, and managers. The platform emphasizes engagement and rewards, with the goal of motivating and retaining shift and hourly workers. Gage is an employee engagement platform that aims to recognize and celebrate the hard work of every person in the workforce. The platform provides a gauge score to employees based on their reliability, trustworthiness, and performance. Gage's go-to-market strategy includes both a sales approach targeting mid to large enterprises and an organic approach with end users. The platform is primarily focused on the hourly workforce and younger generations who are not active on LinkedIn. Gage aims to become an industry standard and a language within businesses, where employees' gauge scores determine their pay and opportunities.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction and Background of Justin Henshaw

05:26 - Pitching Gage: The Universal Employment Recognition System

08:03 - The Name and Relevance of Gage

08:55 - Justin Henshaw's Entrepreneurial Background

09:55 - Funding and Future Plans for Gage

11:07 - Ownership and Privacy of Employment Data on Gage

13:30 - Engagement and Communication on Gage

14:58 - Building Community and Connection on Gage

15:55- Interface and User Experience on Gage

16:36 - Joining a New Company on Gage

19:02 - The Gauge Score: A Measure of Reliability and Trustworthiness

20:34 - Go-to-Market Strategy: Sales Approach and Organic Growth

22:41 - Targeting the Hourly Workforce and Younger Generations

27:07 - Becoming an Industry Standard for Employee Recognition

Keywords

Gage, employment recognition system, engagement community, shift workers, hourly workers, employment data, portable employment record, community, connection, engagement, rewards, motivation, retention, employee engagement, gauge score, go-to-market strategy, competition, integrations, pricing model, ultimate goal

Companies are hearing all of the efficiencies they can enjoy by using large language models (LLM) but have no clue where to start. Luckily, Adam Gordon, cofounder at Poetry, can answer some of those questions for TA leaders and recruiters while Chad & Cheese can attest to LLMs integrated into podcasting platforms. If you're new to LLMs, and using solutions like ChatGPT, or you're a seasoned pro, this episode is for you.

In this episode, the boys interview Angela Cheng-Cimini, the CHRO at Harvard Business Publishing, about hyper-individualization in the workplace. They discuss the importance of meeting employees where they are and providing a personalized employee experience. They also explore the impact of COVID-19 on workplace flexibility and the shift towards remote work. The conversation covers topics such as pay transparency, career progression, and the role of managers in shaping the employee experience. Angela emphasizes the need for organizations to adapt to the changing expectations of employees and create a culture of belonging and growth.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction and Welcome

03:00 - Hyper Individualization: Meeting Employees Where They Are

05:12 - Pay Transparency and Pay Equity

08:35 - Career Progression: Making It Visible and Accessible

13:07 - The Changing Attitudes Towards Becoming a Manager

21:30 - Navigating Politics in the Workplace

23:37 - The Challenges and Importance of Midline Leaders

Keywords

hyper-individualization, workplace flexibility, remote work, pay transparency, career progression, managers, employee experience, culture

Providing a quality candidate experience remains a significant challenge for many organizations. This challenge has been intensified in recent years by evolving candidate expectations, volatile talent markets, shrinking TA teams, and technology that has yet to be designed with the candidate in mind.

However, are we on the cusp of an era when technology, rather than making the candidate experience worse, can actually help provide the high-quality, personalized candidate experience we have all been seeking?

My guests this week are Luke Smith, Talent Acquisition & Experience Specialist at Toyota GB, and Euan Cameron, CEO at Willo. This discussion offers many great insights into what personalization is possible now and what will be possible in the future.

In the interview, we discuss:

• Toyota's customer-centric approach to candidate experience

• Automating the process

• Busting myths about video interviewing

• Giving candidates control and flexibility

• Reducing bias in Recruitment Marketing

• Wellbing the interview process

• Sentiment analysis

• What does the future look like?

Download Willo’s “Hiring Humans” eBook

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It has been a highly volatile few years for talent markets and hiring. So, how is all the uncertainty and disruption shifting employers' thinking around EVP and Employer Branding? Is it still considered as important as before, and what might the future direction look like?

My guests this week are Neil Harrison, an independent employer branding consultant, and Mike Heal, managing director at WDAD Communications. Neil recently collaborated with WDAD on qualitative research into the current EVP and Employer Brand landscape. The findings give some unique insights into the priority employers are giving to their employer brands and how things have changed since the pandemic.

In the interview, we discuss:

• The background to the research project and how it was carried out

• How things have changed in the last three years

• DE&I as a focus for employer branding

• Key metrics to get senior stakeholder buy-in and future investment

• Is employer branding still considered important by organizations?

• How happy are employers with the current state of their EVP?

• Building agility and flexibility into the brand research process to ensure relevancy

• Changing employee attitudes to work

• The evolution of employee stories

• The importance of belonging

• Differentiation and competitive benchmarking

• What does the future look like?

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