Recruiting Future with Matt Alder - What's Next For Talent Acquisition, HR & Hiring?

The rapid evolution of AI is reshaping talent acquisition, but many TA teams are struggling to keep pace. While AI offers the potential to revolutionize processes, reduce friction, and improve candidate experiences, adoption rates remain low. At the same time, businesses are under pressure to boost productivity and efficiency, leaving TA teams vulnerable to being left behind—or worse, having changes imposed on them without their input.

So, how can talent acquisition leaders embrace AI and use it to align themselves with broader corporate objectives?

My guest this week is Adam Godson, CEO of Paradox, a pioneer in conversational AI for talent acquisition. Adam shares valuable insights from working with industry leaders like McDonald’s and Chipotle, exploring how AI is transforming recruitment at scale. He discusses how TA leaders can harness AI to future-proof their organizations, deliver tangible ROI, and create hiring systems that prioritize speed, efficiency, and better candidate experiences.

In the interview, we discuss:

• Developments over the last 12 months

• What are employers who use conversational AI for hiring achieving?

• How McDonalds reduce time to hire from 21 days to 3 days

• How AI is massively improving the candidate experience

• The use of AI in high-volume hiring gives us a glimpse into the future.

• AI adoption is being driven by its impact on the bottom line.

• The importance of good system and experience design

• What will TA teams of the future look like?

• The challenge of challenging recruiting norms

• The opportunity for TA Leaders

• What is going to happen in 2025

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology.

This episode is about Influence.

The importance of data is universally recognized in TA, but the real opportunity lies in going beyond basic metrics and using data to shape business strategy. Forward-thinking TA leaders are moving beyond operational dashboards to connect hiring decisions with business outcomes like revenue generation and team performance. This shift requires not just better metrics but a fundamental change in how we communicate value to the organization. The challenge is that many teams remain stuck at the operational level, measuring activity rather than impact.

So, how can you be more strategic about data and analytics?

My guest this week is Leandro Cartelli, founder of a staffing and recruiting agency specializing in Latin American talent. With nearly 20 years of experience working in recruiting and talent acquisition, Leandro brings deep insights into building data-driven TA functions. In our conversation, he shares his framework for evolving TA metrics through three maturity stages and explains how connecting recruiting data to business outcomes transforms organizational influence.

In the interview, we discuss:

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology.

This episode is about Talent and Technology.

Timely and effective measurement of the quality of hire has long been a significant frustration for talent acquisition, with meaningful data often trapped in subjective performance reviews that arrive too late to be of any help.

But what if AI could help connect interview assessments, onboarding metrics, and performance data in ways that reveal which hires are going to succeed, creating real-time feedback loops that continually improve hiring decisions?  

So, how exactly can employers build these types of connected systems?

My guest this week is Mark Linnville, Head of Talent at Garner Health. In our conversation, he reveals how to identify accurate leading indicators for quality of hire, why authentic interview experiences help predict performance, and how AI helps connect the dots we've been missing.

In the interview, we discuss:

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology.

This episode is about Talent.

While we're seeing a growing awareness of ageism, the reality is that it is regularly ignored as an inclusion factor. The impact of this is staggering. AARP estimates that ageism costs the US economy $850 billion in lost GDP annually, and research shows that intergenerational teams consistently outperform age-segregated ones in terms of productivity and innovation. Yet, unlike other forms of discrimination, age bias is openly accepted in hiring via things like age-coded job descriptions and ATS systems that filter by graduation dates.

So what will it take for organizations to recognize that age discrimination isn't just morally wrong - it's actively destroying their competitive advantage?

My guest this week is Maureen Wiley Clough, host of the 'It Gets Late Early' podcast and advocate against ageism on a mission to expose this universal form of discrimination. In our conversation, she reveals practical strategies for both employers and job seekers to combat age bias while building truly inclusive workplaces that work for everyone.

In the interview, we discuss:

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Influence and Technology.

Talent Acquisition leaders are navigating a uniquely challenging period, juggling rapid advancements in AI with ongoing operational demands. The opportunity to automate routine tasks is clear, but the real challenge is determining where AI ends and human intervention begins. 

With AI technologies rapidly reshaping the recruitment landscape, how can employers ensure they deploy AI strategically rather than superficially? 

My guest this week is Chris Riche-Webber, VP Business Intelligence and Analytics at SmartRecruiters. Chris shares valuable insights into defining clear outcomes for AI deployment, experimenting effectively, and building genuine trust with technology vendors.

In the interview, we discuss: 

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Foresight and Talent

Some of the most significant innovations in talent management and talent acquisition originated in the tech sector. From Edison's revolutionary use of teamwork to Netflix's principle of Talent Density, cutting-edge thinking about technology has often also involved cutting-edge thinking about talent.

What might the history of technology teach us about the future impact of AI on talent practices?

My guest this week is Jamie Dobson, CEO of Container Solutions and author of the forthcoming book, “Visionaries, Rebels and Machines,” on the history of technology. In our conversation, Jamie identifies some of the talent innovations the tech sector has given us, shares how he applied some of this thinking to his own business, and we discuss what the future might look like

In the interview, we discuss:

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Talent and Foresight.

We're no longer dealing with a world that's simply volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous - we've arguably entered something far more challenging: a reality that's brittle, anxious, nonlinear, and incomprehensible. This shift is turning traditional workforce planning completely on its head. Three-year strategic plans become meaningless when entire job categories disappear in months, when AI capabilities jump overnight, and when market conditions change faster than planning cycles can adapt.

So how can employers develop effective talent strategies in highly uncertain times, and how might talent acquisition step up to take a strategic role?

My guest this week is Toby Culshaw, VP of Strategy for Talent Intelligence at Lightcast. In our conversation, Toby explains how real-time talent intelligence is needed to build talent strategies that can respond to rapid change and why TA teams are uniquely positioned as invaluable sources of business intelligence.

In the interview, we discuss:

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Hi there, welcome to episode 711 of Recruiting Future with me, Matt Alder.

Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Talent and Technology.

The recruitment technology landscape is experiencing a perfect storm. Perfect match candidates aren't completing applications due to frustrating processes. At the same time, recruiters are being overwhelmed by candidates using AI tools to generate thousands of low-quality submissions. Traditional matching algorithms provide limited transparency into the decision-making process, thereby creating legal and compliance risks. Meanwhile, cost-per-application models continue to charge for clicks rather than actual conversions, leaving employers paying for candidates who never complete the process.

How can TA teams navigate this impossible environment while improving outcomes for everyone involved?

My guests this week are Simon Van Hijfte, Marketing Manager at Adecco Belgium, and Ritu Mohanka, CEO at VONQ. Simon shares how Adecco is transforming their recruitment process with AI agents and the impressive results they're achieving - from improved candidate satisfaction to enhanced recruiter efficiency. We also all discuss the shift from opaque matching systems to transparent point-based scoring, how AI agents are solving the broken candidate experience, and why this people-first approach is delivering better business outcomes across the board.

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Technology.

The AI transformation in recruiting presents both unprecedented opportunities and significant threats. It's a complex situation where the same technology that promises to solve long-standing recruiting challenges is also creating new ones. The use of AI by candidates is driving up application numbers, and Gartner predicts that by 2028, one in four job applications will be fake or fraudulent.

So, how can employers ensure they are reaping the benefits of using AI in the hiring process while effectively mitigating the risks? 

My guest this week is Meredith Johnson, Chief Product Officer at Greenhouse. In our conversation, Meredith shares her insights on building ethical AI systems that enhance rather than replace human judgment. We discuss creating fraud detection capabilities that protect hiring quality and designing embedded AI experiences that maintain the transparency and trust required for great hiring.

In the interview, we discuss:

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Recruiting Future is a podcast that helps Talent Acquisition teams drive measurable impact by developing their strategic capability in Foresight, Influence, Talent, and Technology. 

This episode is about Influence and Technology.

When employers invest in talent acquisition technology, they are expecting efficiency gains and improved hiring outcomes. Yet, many organizations find themselves struggling with implementations that fail to deliver promised results and don't align with the organization's broader business objectives. So, what's the key to building transformation strategies that actually work and provide the measurable value that TA teams need?

My guest this week is Sarah Smart, Co-Founder of HorizonHuman. Sarah is a former TA leader who now consults with enterprises around digital transformation. She has seen both the successes and failures of large-scale technology implementations firsthand and has practical insights to share on what makes the difference between a successful transformation and a costly disappointment.

In the interview, we discuss:

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