Start Smart

The Start Smart podcast has a simple premise: The best way to succeed in talent acquisition is to begin by using the latest data to pinpoint the characteristics that matter in the workforce. So, what’s the key data point for today’s recruiters? It’s that Millennials are now the largest single cohort in the workforce. They make up more than one-third – 35 per cent, in fact – of all workers, and by 2030, just six years from now, they will comprise 75 per cent of the working population. Said another way, the policies, processes, practices and technology employers have used to recruit what used to be the largest workforce cohort – Boomers – must now be reconfigured for Millennials and GenZs.In this episode of Start Smart, I am joined by Heather Tenuto, CEO of TheMuse.com and FairyGodBoss.com, two linked sites that focus on serving next-gen professionals and the employers that are actively recruiting them. We cover a broad range of social, cultural and workforce topics and hone in on why TheMuse has positioned itself as “the first values-based career platform” for net-gen workers and how employers can use “authentic employer brand storytelling” to connect with them. It’s a fascinating conversation, so listen in.

In one recent survey, over two-thirds of the respondents said they thought that AI would replace them on-the-job.  Among many HR and Talent Acquisition professionals, there’s been a similar level of anxiety and sometimes even fear about the impact of the technology.  So, what I wanted to explore in this episode of Start Smart is how recruiting teams can capture the benefits of AI without trashing recruiters in the process.My guest for the show is Adam Godson, the President & Chief Product Officer at Paradox.ai.  We explored several aspects of the topic, including: Are recruiters’ fears justified? Should they worry about the impact of AI on their jobs?What are the best ways for employers to acquire and implement the technology, so that it helps rather than harms recruiters?, and What can individual recruiters do to make sure they’re on top of AI and not crushed by it?  It’s a fascinating conversation with a guy who’s been both a recruiter and a technologist, so his insights are on point and extremely helpful.

The Start Smart podcast with Peter WeddleA recent survey found that only half of all business leaders use feedback loops to keep track of the changes among their customer base. If that’s true on the consumer side of a business, it’s probably also true in talent acquisition. And that’s problem. Talent technology is almost always acquired to improve KPIs – to see an upgrade in recruiter performance – and it’s next to impossible to reach that goal without the effective use of feedback loops. Happily, there’s no one more expert in applying feedback loops than my guest for this episode of Start Smart, Maury Hanigan, the CEO of SparcStart.Maury and I crammed about two hours of discussion into our 30 minute show, so we covered everything from the difference between using a feedback loop when implementing talent technology and simply monitoring a new product’s introduction. We discussed who should be invited to participate in a feedback loop for a new technology-based tool and the steps involved in setting it up as well as the benefits that can accrue to both the recruiting team and the employer from doing so. It’s a conversation that explores both the strategic and tactical aspects of feedback loops and the challenges and opportunities that come from using them to implement talent technology. Take a listen!

In this episode of Start Smart, the TAtech podcast that focuses on maximizing the ROI you derive from technology by beginning with its effective implementation, Peter’s guest is Oliver Feakins, Founder & CEO of TrackFive, a company that manages job boards in healthcare, transportation and other fields.The acquisition of new technology is often justified by the assumption that “it will free recruiters up to do what they do best.”  Oliver and I discuss just what skills that activity encompasses – in recruiters performing at their peak – and the thorny question of whether they’re prepared to take on that role.  After all, if recruiters have been unable, at least to date, to use those skills, isn’t it possible – maybe even likely – that they have atrophied or worse disappeared altogether.  In addition, is there any evidence that recruiters actually want to take on that activity, since doing so may change practices in which they are now competent and comfortable?  It’s a fascinating exploration of change management – join us!Links mentioned:TrackFiveConnect with Oliver on LinkedIn

In today's episode, we have a very special guest, Mona Tawakali, the Chief Strategy Officer at Recruitics. Join us as Mona shares invaluable insights and strategies for successfully implementing technology in talent acquisition. We'll explore the importance of user adoption and satisfaction, the role of technology within organizations, and the key factors that lead to successful implementations. From user-centric design to addressing feedback and gaining buy-in from stakeholders, Mona will guide us through the intricate process of integrating technology in a way that maximizes its potential and drives long-term success. So grab your headphones and get ready to Start Smart!Links mentioned:RecruiticsConnect with Mona on LinkedIn

In this episode, we delve into the facts and findings from the 2023 Talent Acquisition Research Report by Symphony Talent.  Based on a survey of 300+ individuals in large employers (2,000+ employees), it explored their process and practice challenges and needs as they deal with the shifting expectations and behaviors among job seekers.  The report organized the findings into two sections: The current state of talent acquisition (which, based on the report, definitely needs some improvement) and talent acquisition technology and services (with respondents indicating a strong commitment to the addition of new products).As is our custom, we focused our discussion on three of the report’s more interesting findings.  First, we examined the view of the survey’s respondents that the process is the problem in recruiters’ ability to get their work done efficiently and effectively.  Next, we talked about the astonishing finding in the report that a significant segment of the survey population still doesn’t have an employee value proposition, even though other surveys have found that such a statement is essential in attracting top talent.  And third, we discussed TA teams’ growing reliance on talent technology and the key drivers in their selection of a solution provider.  As always, we try to tease out the key implications of the data for recruiters, and hope you find our conversation helpful.Links mentioned:The 2023 Talent Acquisition Research ReportTAtech Talent Technology Implementation Management Handbook & Job AidMentioned in this episode:This episode is brought to you by Acquire ROIAcquire is a brand-new solution that’s just been released by Keloh, an established recruitment marketing and technology agency. It is a programmatic jobs distribution with easy apply, developed to address the shortcomings and pain points within the programmatic recruitment marketing space. Say goodbye to logging into different platform accounts to manage your jobs and candidates, and say hello to Acquire’s one-stop shop. For more information, check out the link below: AcquireROI.com

In this episode of the podcast, we took a look at the recent report by Sapient Insights Group that presents the results of their 25th Annual HR Systems Survey.  As its title indicates, the research covers the entire HR systems field, so we focused on the findings related to talent technology.  The data were collected from 2,515 organizations in 65 countries.  Those organizations represented industries ranging from professional services and healthcare to manufacturing and retail/wholesale, with better than half of them (59%) employing 500 or more workers.As we usually do, we pulled out and discussed three summary findings: Unlike what happened during economic slowdowns in the past, the vast majority of the larger organizations in the survey plan to increase their tech investments in the next year.  In addition, the #1 area in which they plan to invest is talent technology, in effect putting the horse before the cart because you can’t manage the resources you don’t have.  And finally, an astonishingly large number of the respondents were not reporting key metrics up the chain of command, which could derail their plans for continued investment in talent technology.  As always, there was plenty of food for our conversation, so we hope you’ll join us and listen in.Links mentioned:25th Annual Sapient Insights HR Systems SurveyMentioned in this episode:This episode is brought to you by Acquire ROIAcquire is a brand-new solution that’s just been released by Keloh, an established recruitment marketing and technology agency. It is a programmatic jobs distribution with easy apply, developed to address the shortcomings and pain points within the programmatic recruitment marketing space. Say goodbye to logging into different platform accounts to manage your jobs and candidates, and say hello to Acquire’s one-stop shop. For more information, check out the link below: AcquireROI.com

A recent whitepaper published by AMS entitled “Exploding Digital Myths in Talent Acquisition” grabbed our attention as it sets out to debunk some of the most common misperceptions found among today’s recruiters.  Shelia and I focused on the first of five myths the company will eventually address: ‘Talent technology will replace the need for recruiters and sourcers.’  It’s a concern that, like the cockroach, never seems to be finally and forever squashed.Our discussion looked at both some of the issues embedded in the myth and the views that are feeding it.  AMS reports, for example, that recruiters believe technology will reach a tipping point within the next decade (and therefore during their careers) when smart machines will generate more revenue for companies than even the smartest human workers.  So, we explored whether that outcome will cause huge reductions-in-force among employers and thus eliminate the need for recruiters.  In other words, technology may not replace recruiters and sourcers, but it could make them irrelevant.  And, that’s just the first of three topics we cover in this 30-minute episode of the podcast.  Take a listen! Links mentioned:Exploding Digital Myths in Talent Acquisition - AMSMentioned in this episode:This episode is brought to you by Acquire ROIAcquire is a brand-new solution that’s just been released by Keloh, an established recruitment marketing and technology agency. It is a programmatic jobs distribution with easy apply, developed to address the shortcomings and pain points within the programmatic recruitment marketing space. Say goodbye to logging into different platform accounts to manage your jobs and candidates, and say hello to Acquire’s one-stop shop. For more information, check out the link below: AcquireROI.com

TA organizations large and small are constantly being stretched and pulled by the new and always morphing expectations and behaviors of candidates.  In response, some and perhaps many of those organizations are now looking to reset the model with which they establish their functional capabilities and the mix of roles and skills required to execute them.  In this episode of the podcast, we take a look at one such model, a paradigm that was developed by WorkTech and described in its report entitled “Future Proof Your Talent Acquisition Strategy: The New Model for Talent Acquisition Leadership.We began the show by discussing the five priorities or needs of modern TA organizations that WorkTech identified in the survey and interviews it conducted for its report.  It then used those priorities to determine the “specialists” that would be needed to augment recruiters in its new model for a talent acquisition organization.  As we analyzed the structure, it seemed reasonable in concept but, we concluded, probably well beyond what most TA organizations could afford.  In addition, as the report notes, creating such a high-powered organization also revives the question of where it should reside in the enterprise.  The report offers one view, Peter counters with a very different one, and Shelia argues that the question is irrelevant if the rationale for what the future TA organization should be can’t be effectively communicated to the CEO with numbers.  It’s a though-provoking conversation about a very interesting and important bit of research.Links mentioned:‘Future Proof Your Talent Acquisition Strategy’ – WorkTechMentioned in this episode:This episode is brought to you by Acquire ROIAcquire is a brand-new solution that’s just been released by Keloh, an established recruitment marketing and technology agency. It is a programmatic jobs distribution with easy apply, developed to address the shortcomings and pain points within the programmatic recruitment marketing space. Say goodbye to logging into different platform accounts to manage your jobs and candidates, and say hello to Acquire’s one-stop shop. For more information, check out the link below: AcquireROI.com

Shelia was unable to be here for this episode of the podcast, but we were very fortunate to have Thad Price, CEO of Talroo, join the conversation.  Our topic was flexibility at work and a report by McKinsey & Company entitled Americans are embracing flexible work—and they want more of it.  The report was based on a survey of 25,000 Americans, so the findings are limited to their view of this workforce trend.  Nevertheless and as is apparent from the report’s title, McKinsey concludes that flexible work is no longer a temporary pandemic response, but rather is now an enduring feature of the modern world of work.We take a look at that claim – especially as it’s manifested in the current push to work from home (WFH) among both employees and job seekers – and how employers can respond to the fact that over 40% of all workers labor in jobs where WFH is simply not feasible, yet still want the individual autonomy it provides.  We also examine McKinsey’s findings that flexible work programs may inadvertently undercut companies’ DE&I goals particularly for women and “older” workers and discuss the implications of the larger trend of what Peter calls “sovereign work” – the accelerating desire among workers to be the masters of how their job is integrated into their lives.  As always, it’s a thought-provoking 30 minutes so give it a listen.Links mentioned:'Americans are embracing flexible work—and they want more of it’ – McKinseyTalrooConnect with Thad Price on LinkedInMentioned in this episode:This episode is brought to you by Acquire ROIAcquire is a brand-new solution that’s just been released by Keloh, an established recruitment marketing and technology agency. It is a programmatic jobs distribution with easy apply, developed to address the shortcomings and pain points within the programmatic recruitment marketing space. Say goodbye to logging into different platform accounts to manage your jobs and candidates, and say hello to Acquire’s one-stop shop. For more information, check out the link below: AcquireROI.com