Recruiting Trailblazers

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with Hannah Jane. She has over 17 years in talent acquisition leadership and people operations.

She’s a Talent Business Partner for Team Union, which specializes not only in recruiting for startups, but also in creating processes, best practices, and policy to help companies succeed in the entire recruiting and hiring process.

Listen in as Hannah discusses the intake call and strategy, the interview process and how to coach your clients to perform effective and successful interviews, and outreach best practices.

Hannah shares how Team Union puts the saying “hire for attitude, train for skills” into practice at the first interaction between recruiter and candidate.

For her, it all comes down to an eagerness to ask questions that go beyond the superficial, with a genuine curiosity to understand the candidate’s personality and potential over simply their resumé.

She also breaks down Team Union’s recruiting template and how they educate their clients on avoiding redundancy and bias throughout the interview process.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [02:07] What Team Union offers as a fractional recruiting and HR partner

●      [03:47] Key objectives for the intake call

●      [08:59] Hiring for attitude, training for skills

●      [13:26] Getting clear on the growth trajectory of the candidate

●      [16:18] Team Union’s recruiting template

●      [19:01] Educating recruiters on often-overlooked goals for the interview

●      [21:04] The importance of transparency

●      [23:41] Tactical tentpoles to avoid duplication and bias

Key quotes:

●      “Let’s hire for ‘stickitivity’. Let’s find a way to match core wants, desires, and goals.”

●      “My approach is how it would be for any other relationship: This is a two-way street. Don’t give it just 50%. Give it 100%.”

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with Jared Watts, Director of Talent at Vantaca, a community-managed performance software company based in North Carolina.

Previously, Jared worked on the agency side in executive search and spent five years playing professional soccer in the MLS. He played for both the Colorado Rapids and the Houston Dynamo, and was the 33rd overall pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft.

He captained the Under 17 World Cup team in Nigeria and he won the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup when he was playing at Houston. He was also finishing his MBA during his soccer career!

Listen in as Jared talks about his storied career as an athlete and his transition into the world of recruiting. He explains why recruiting might just be the perfect job for ex-athletes and how sports psychology can profoundly help in the business of recruiting. Finally, he talks about the life of an agency recruiter versus an in-house one.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [02:15] What led Jared into soccer

●      [07:50] Lessons learned from playing professional soccer in the MLS

●      [11:39] Managing stress and anxiety as a professional athlete

●      [13:26] Getting clear on the growth trajectory of the candidate

●      [15:14] Applying the power of visualization to recruiting

●      [18:44] Focusing on daily wins

●      [23:50] Mindfulness practices

●      [27:57] Dealing with loss and failure

●      [30:43] Why the recruiting industry has a high turnover rate

●      [33:02] How to develop a winning mindset

●      [36:06] How recruiting for a software company is like recruiting for a D1 college sport

●      [39:54] Jared’s approach to the interview process

●      [42:20] Why recruiters always need the “agency mindset”

Key quotes:

●      “[In professional sports,] you’re only as good as your last performance. There are no days in which you can take shortcuts.”

●      “Just like in sports, recruiting is so much a mentality and the way that you react to situations that arise, whether that’s the pressures of performing or the ability to solve problems on the go, and solve them quickly.”

●      “Visualization is everything. You’ve got to be able to see yourself succeeding, whether in sports or in the business world.”

●      “It’s not about the recruiter. It’s about who you’re reaching out to and why they should be interested.”

●      “The sign of a great recruiter is how many people come back to you that you haven’t placed, and want to work with you again.”

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with Robin Choy, CEO of HireSweet, a talent acquisition platform built to empower outbound data-driven recruiting teams. He is the host of the A-Players podcast.

Robin wrote an excellent guide for recruiters called The Definitive Guide to Sourcing in Recruiting (https://content.hiresweet.com/the-sourcing-guide/), which breaks down the process into four key steps: preparation, sourcing, contact, and closing.

Listen in as Robin does a deep dive into all things sourcing as well as how ChatGPT can become a valuable tool for recruiters. He shares the importance of ascertaining your candidates’ unique value proposition via the intake call, and thinking of outreach like a funnel.

Robin gives his thoughts on finding the right balance between personalization and automation and what’s working today (and what’s no longer working) with regards to outreach.

Finally, Robin explains how recruiters can best use ChatGPT as a powerful tool in their kit.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [02:17] How to maximize your preparation as a recruiter

●      [07:59] Outreach best practices

●      [11:14] How to go about salary transparency

●      [16:58] Cold emailing versus InMail

●      [17:31] Considerations around personalization

●      [20:12] Automating connection requests and personalizing invites

●      [25:10] The importance of culture

●      [29:30] Crafting a great subject line

●      [33:57] The impact of ChatGPT in recruiting

●      [35:58] How to use HireSweet

Key quotes:
●      “Preparation is key to productivity. If you don’t look for the right person, you can be the best sourcer in the world and shortlist candidates, but they won’t be the right fit for the hiring manager because you didn’t spend enough time in the preparation phase.”

●      “If you send an email to someone, you should always send an invitation to connect as well.”

●      “ChatGPT won’t replace recruiters. But recruiters who know how to use ChatGPT will replace recruiters that don’t.”

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In this episode - Marcus presents a few very good reasons why Recruiters find In House recruiting so rewarding before he gives a few excellent reasons why you might consider a move back to Agency Recruitment!

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes once again speaks with Vanessa Raath, a freelance sourcer, a global talent sourcing trainer, an international keynote speaker, and a wildlife photographer. She recently founded the online educational platform, Vanessa Raath Academy.

Listen in as Vanessa shares what sourcers can do to be steps ahead of the competition once the economy regains its momentum.

She talks about automation tools that have risen in popularity in today’s market, and how to use them effectively without neglecting the human element in recruitment.

Vanessa says that while there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to tools and platforms, agencies must be willing to “skill up and start embracing HR tech” or risk being left behind.

She gives us her thoughts on the ChatGPT phenomenon and why she isn’t worried about AI taking her job. She also talks about the art of writing Boolean strings and why she believes that becoming proficient in Boolean is a must-have skill for every recruiter.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [01:44] How to stand out in today’s sourcing landscape

●      [05:17] How sourcing has become both harder and easier

●      [06:58] Go-to automation tools

●      [09:41] Personalization versus mass outreach

●      [11:39] About Vanessa’s free online academy

●      [16:05] How ChatGPT may impact the recruitment industry

●      [21:26] The art of writing Boolean strings

●      [24:20] How long it takes to learn Boolean from scratch

Key quotes:

●      “Focus on your pipeline and building communities so that, as soon as hiring starts again, you will be able to take the best talent into your organization.”

●      “Pick a niche and start building a network in that space, because that’s what’s going to set you up for success.”

●      “I don’t think there is one tool that is going to solve all of your issues. It’s the responsibility of the recruiter’s agency and internal to skill up and really start embracing HR tech, because if they don’t you’re going to be left behind.”

●      “ChatGPT is not going to get rid of recruiters and solve all of our world problems. But, it’s going to help us from a time perspective.”

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with Maddie Loomis, the Founder of Advanced Scope Talent. The company matches clinicians to great practices. Maddie describes herself as a “talent guru” and “a laughable CrossFit athlete”!

Listen in as Maddie discusses what it takes to start your own agency, drawing from her own experience establishing Advanced Scope Talent in 2021.

She breaks down the whole process, from establishing an LLC to finding leads by incorporating LinkedIn into your system (as well as LinkedIn’s limitations as an agency tool).

Maddie shares the tools and platforms that she uses for lead generation and outreach, and how she strikes that all-important balance between automation and personalization.

Finally, Maddie speaks to those who have been laid off, offering her best advice on staying motivated as a recruiter and why right now might actually be the perfect time to start your own agency!

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [01:54] Maddie’s career before founding Advanced Scope Talent

●      [04:35] Making the jump from employee to agency owner

●      [09:22] Why you can still start a business without all the skills in place

●      [12:36] Getting the business set up

●      [15:29] Finding and nurturing leads

●      [17:34] Maddie’s business development strategy

●      [18:55] Advanced Scope Talent’s value proposition

●      [22:58] Maddie’s biggest challenge when she started the business

●      [26:10] Staying confident in your professional skills following a layoff

●      [31:36] How Maddie reaches out to potential clients

●      [35:26] The power of consistency

Key quotes:

●      “I want to remain a trusted recruiter in this industry because it’s a small world despite how many recruiters there are.”

●      “I don’t just think about who we want to go after, but who we want to represent and who we are: How are we sending the message from an employer branding standpoint?”

Connect with Marcus https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcusedwardes/

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with returning Mark White, The LinkedIn Professional. He specializes in helping you unlock the value in LinkedIn—something he has been doing since 2009.

Mark delivers customized training to students across the globe, from workshops to virtual classes to 1-to-1 coaching sessions.

Listen in as Mark discusses how LinkedIn fared in 2022 and why he believes that LinkedIn’s recruiter platform should coexist with an agency ATS. He also discusses the limitations of relying purely on LinkedIn filters compared to the level of specificity granted by Boolean strings.

Likewise, Mark talks best practices regarding automation on LinkedIn, and where personalization always beats out taking shortcuts. Faced with more savvy users on LinkedIn 2023, he also shares how recruiters can stand above the noise and maximize their chances of getting InMail responses.

Finally, Mark speaks on personal branding on LinkedIn and how to complemen your unique strengths and personality as an individual with those of the company you represent.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [02:39] How LinkedIn fared in 2022

●      [05:36] Why LinkedIn isn’t the “perfect” solution

●      [09:40] Filters versus Boolean strings

●      [14:12] Using automation effectively on LinkedIn

●      [22:52] Creating a cleverer outreach strategy

●      [27:05] The power of voice messages

●      [29:30] The secret to getting a response on InMail

●      [36:10] Avoiding LinkedIn scams

●      [40:00] Personal branding on LinkedIn

●      [46:23] What to expect from Mark’s training programs

Key quotes:

●      “If you’re working for a company, always remember that the brand you’re putting out shouldn’t just be your own. Personal branding has to go hand-in-hand with your position within an organization.”

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with Billy Davis, known on LinkedIn as The Staffing Automation Guy! He’s an AI and automation product manager at Herefish by Bullhorn, where he helps recruiters increase revenue and efficiency by embracing automation.

Listen in as Billy defines staffing automation and how it differs from—but can be complemented by—AI. He breaks down what he calls the “three pillars of automation”: data health, self-service, and the ability to use information to fill knowledge gaps.

He gives his thoughts on the ChatGPT phenomenon and what the latest breakthroughs in the AI space could mean for the recruiting industry.

Finally, Billy explains why he encourages all agencies big and small to go for a “half-robot, half-human” approach to automation, in which there is a huge opportunity to scale without sacrificing the human element.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [01:46] Defining “staffing automation”

●      [05:26] Applying automation to different parts of the recruiting life cycle

●      [08:46] Why both big and small agencies need an automation strategy

●      [11:56] Why you can’t automate relationship development

●      [12:43] The biggest myth about automation and recruiting

●      [14:20] How to talk to agencies about employing automation

●      [17:51] How to use automation for sourcing

●      [19:19] Billy’s thoughts on ChatGPT and using AI for recruitment

●      [24:50] Billy’s favorite recruiting automation tools

●      [29:28] Herefish’s three-pronged mission

●      [32:04] Scaling with automation without losing the human touch

●      [36:51] Where LinkedIn fits into all of this

Key quotes:

●      “Staffing automation is an ‘if this, then that’ functionality. That unlocks a near-limitless amount of potential.”

●      “If you’re fully-automated, that’s not going to work. You can’t fully replicate or replace the consultative impact of a great recruiter.”

●      “Automation isn’t here to replace the recruiter. Automation is here to optimize and amplify the recruiter.”

●      “When you have confidence in your own data, then that’s the first place you look to source from.”

Connect with Marcus https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcusedwardes/

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In this episode, Marcus Edwardes speaks with James Ellis, Principal at Chicago-based Employer Brand Labs. He’s an author, keynote speaker, practitioner, and podcaster with a wealth of experience across multiple industries for almost a decade.

James wrote Talent Chooses You: Hire Better with Employer Branding. The book has been called “the Bible of employer branding”. He also manages the number one employer brand newsletter in the world, Employer Brand Headlines, which helps companies globally establish their brands and develop their ability to hire talent.

Listen in as James explains how to use employer branding to create the desire to be a part of the company among your ideal recruits, and why the best recruiters hire for attitude and ambition over merely skills.

James breaks down the keys to identifying your perfect candidate persona and improving the employee experience. With regards to building an employer brand, he discusses the art of putting together your unique Employer Value Proposition (EVP), the most important aspects about your brand that you need to highlight, and why it’s important to “localize” the company culture to your ideal recruit.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

●      [01:54] What is employer branding and what is its purpose?

●      [05:41] Identifying your perfect candidate persona

●      [08:01] Improving the current experience of your employees

●      [14:41] Beyond Glassdoor

●      [16:58] How to better describe the employer experience online

●      [21:16] The aspect of the employer brand you need to highlight

●      [30:06] Localizing your employer brand

●      [33:44] What makes a “good candidate experience”?

Key quotes:

●      “Individuals have a perception of what it must be like to work there. That perception comes from touchpoints of experiences.”

●      “The purpose of employer branding is to create desire among the target audience: the people you’re trying to hire.”

●      “Offering a white glove candidate experience works wonders in certain situations, but it’s not the end-all, be-all. A good candidate experience reflects the culture—the experience of working there.”

Connect with Marcus https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcusedwardes/

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A quick message from Marcus in lieu of an interview or solo podcast. Happy New Year!

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