Talent All-Stars

When Jacquie Liddell stepped into her new role as VP of Talent Acquisition at Mass General Brigham, she had no idea her first day would coincide with the start of Massachusetts' COVID-19 lockdown.  

Instead of a typical onboarding experience, she was thrust into the heart of a healthcare crisis – and forced to quickly staff a field hospital, hire nurses at lightning speed, and streamline lengthy onboarding processes.

Jacquie learned a lot about leading a talent team through an unprecedented crisis, and she shares those lessons with us in this episode.

She also shares:

• How she leaned on vendor relationships to ramp up hiring
• The “recruitment pod” strategy they deployed to fill roles more quickly
• Why masterminding with industry peers has been critical to her success

Connect with Jacquie on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquieking

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? We’d be grateful for a rating or review on your favorite podcast app!

COVID-19 completely rewrote the recruiting rules – especially in the restaurant and retail sectors. So how can hospitality companies adapt and thrive, post-pandemic?  

Today, you’ll learn the playbook used by Marci Sigmund, VP of Talent Acquisition at Cracker Barrel, whose team hires up to 100,000 team members per year.

Marci shares:

• How she’s combating turnover across more than 650 stores
• How to use AI and assessments to match candidates with right-fit roles
• Why too little turnover can actually be a bad thing, and how to avoid that

This episode is a masterclass in leveraging data to drive talent decision-making at scale and creating a culture that prioritizes both employees and customers. Don’t miss it!

Connect with Marci on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcisigmund

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

💼 Dave’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davetravers/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

What are the keys to attracting and retaining top-notch talent in a highly competitive, demanding industry?  

We put that question to Lashonda Bighaus, VP of Talent Acquisition at AccentCare – a leading provider of hospice, personal, and home care with 30,000 employees nationwide.

In this episode, Lashonda shares her journey from staffing agency recruiter to leading a 50-person talent acquisition team; the very personal reason she felt pulled to hospice; and the tailored tactics she uses to motivate her recruiters.

She also shares:

• AccentCare’s approach to employer branding
• Why talent leaders must play to recruiters’ individual styles
• How "stretch assignments" fuel career growth

Connect with Lashonda on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lashonda-bighaus-1783ab30

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? We’d be grateful for a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.

What key themes emerge when you talk to some of the best and brightest talent leaders working today? Join host Dave Travers as he highlights our guests’ most valuable insights in this special “Best Of” episode.  

Featuring clips from top talent leaders at companies like eBay, FedEx, and Nike, Dave distills four key lessons to elevate your talent strategy heading into 2025.

You’ll learn:

• How business needs should drive your talent strategy
• The art of advocating for your team by understanding stakeholders deeply
• Why candidates should be treated like consumers in the hiring process
• Expert tips on how to get more out of interviews

Perfect for HR leaders, recruiters, and anyone passionate about building high-functioning teams, this episode is packed with actionable advice from the best in the business.

Enjoying the show? Please consider sharing it with a friend or family member, or leaving us a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

How do you create a talent culture that scales with your business growth?

Katie Czerepak, Head of Talent for Bain Capital’s Tech Opportunities Team, shares insights from her experience helping dozens of fast-growing teams source and develop talent. You’ll learn how she came to embrace a career in HR after initially resisting it, how she approaches conversations with CEOs, and why she’s such a big fan of highly adaptable generalists.

Katie also shares:

• Effective strategies for advocating for resources
• What makes a world-class recruiter
• Why she treats hiring managers as customers
• And much more

Connect with Katie on LinkedIn

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? Let us know by leaving a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.

How do you build a meaningful career in talent acquisition? For Paula Radloff, former VP of Talent Acquisition at Nike and Starbucks, it’s all about picking your spots and making bold moves.

In this episode, Paula reveals the career-defining lessons she’s learned while leading talent teams at some of the world’s most iconic brands.  

Paula also shares:

• Creating positive candidate experiences as company “branding”
• How executive search differs from high-volume recruiting
• Why timing and “daring to ask” are so important when making career leaps

Connect with Paula on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paula-m-radloff/  

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this conversation? Please leave us a rating or review on the podcast app you’re using to listen to this episode.

Great recruiting goes beyond numbers—it's about quality, relationships, and delivering value for both the business and candidates. But how do you build a recruitment process that achieves all three?

Becky McCullough, VP of Talent Acquisition & Mobility at HubSpot, shares her approach to measuring recruiter performance, improving the candidate experience, and driving efficient, high-quality hiring practices through periods of rapid growth.

Becky also talks about:

• What success looks like for recruiters
• How to implement a candidate experience survey that works
• Managing recruiter efficiency while maintaining quality

Connect with Becky on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beckymccullough/  

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

💼 Dave’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davetravers/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? We’d be grateful for a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.

When you’re a top executive at a company that moves 2% of the world’s GDP, talent is never far from your mind.

Brie Carere is the Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer at FedEx, and she joins Talent All-Stars for a wide-ranging conversation about talent acquisition, culture, change management, and more.

You’ll learn how FedEx’s leadership navigated hiring amid COVID-19, the “Purple Promise” that drives decision-making across the business, and how the company is improving the candidate experience – even for those who don’t ultimately land the job.

Brie also shares:

• Tips for making a business case to senior executives
• Why talent acquisition is no longer a one-way dialogue
• The biggest mistake she sees hiring managers make in interviews

Connect with Brie Carere on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briecarere/ 

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this conversation? Please leave us a rating or review on the podcast app you’re using to listen to this episode.

What’s the secret to bridging the gap between talent acquisition, HR business partners, and company leadership?

According to Kelly Culler, VP of Talent Acquisition and Senior Business HR Partner at Northwestern Mutual, it’s all about walking a mile in each other’s shoes.

In this episode, Kelly shares how she’s been able to successfully navigate TA and HR roles, and what she’s learned about empathy and psychology along the way.

Plus:

• Why recruiters must build skills that go beyond speed and execution
• What makes a great HR Business Partner
• Her secret to extracting a candidate’s authentic self in interviews

Connect with Kelly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyiculler/  

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? We’d be grateful for a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.

Zapier’s team is made up of more than 700 people across 42 countries. Yet the company has built a strong, distinctive culture and a nimble workforce that can adapt to shifting business needs. So how do they do it?

Zapier Chief People Officer Brandon Sammut joins us to answer those questions, plus:  

• The “4 B’s” Zapier uses to acquire new capabilities
• How they redeployed team members internally during a hiring slowdown
• Holding department execs accountable for their own talent development

Connect with Brandon on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-sammut-8147b76

Zapier: https://zapier.com/

Connect with us:

💻 All Episodes: TalentAllStars.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ziprecruiter/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziprecruiter

🎵TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziprecruiter

Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a rating or review on your favorite podcast app.