Talking TA

Hosted by Denise Chaffin

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Latest episode

Aug 2026

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About the show

Welcome to Talking TA, your go-to podcast for talent acquisition insights. Hosted by Denise Chaffin, join us for conversations with HR and recruitment experts. Uncover trends, best practices, and strategies to elevate your recruitment game. Expect insider discussions, exploration of talent acquisition techniques, and insights into pressing HR issues. Stay ahead with Talking TA—your key to building and retaining a top-tier team.

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60 recent

August 20, 2026Episode 9042 min

Rebooting Hiring: Why Recruiters Must Become Business Partners | Katrina Collier

Katrina Collier is a recruiting keynote speaker and author of Reboot Hiring and The Robot-Proof Recruiter, focused on restoring human connection to the hiring process. As AI changes recruiting, the value of the recruiter is changing with it. The differentiator is no longer simply finding candidates, but understanding the business, challenging assumptions, and helping hiring managers make better decisions. Katrina Collier joins Denise Chaffin to explore how talent acquisition can move from order-taking to true business partnership. They discuss recruitment alignment, hiring-manager relationships, employer reputation, AI-generated resumes and bias, candidate engagement, and why technology can amplify broken hiring processes instead of fixing them. Listeners will be talking about what makes recruitersvaluable now: stronger business acumen, better questions, human judgment, and the confidence to challenge whether a role should even be filled before recruiting begins. Timestamps: (00:00) Why Recruiter Value Is Changing(01:17) Meet Katrina Collier(02:29) Reboot Hiring and the Robot-Proof Recruiter(04:33) Why Talent Acquisition Still Struggles for Influence(08:00) Should You Even Be Hiring?(10:29) Becoming a Business Partner(14:03) Rethinking Common Hiring Assumptions(15:29) Why Human Outreach Still Matters(21:13) Top Talent Doesn't Need Your Job(23:01) Reputation Over Employer Brand(24:00) AI Resumes and Recruiting Bias(29:27) Articulating the Real Hiring Need(38:04) Speaking the Language of Business(39:00) Three Takeaways for Recruiters

July 23, 2026Episode 8935 min

The Strong Will Survive: Recruiting Through the Shift | Drea Codispoti

Drea Codispoti is Director of Network Operations at Top Echelon, where he helps recruiting agencies build stronger partnerships and use their networks more productively and profitably. Recruiting is getting harder, and Drea Codispoti explains why the people who survive will rely on grit, collaboration, creativity, sales discipline and human judgment, not simply more outreach. Recruiting is getting harder, even for industry veterans. Drea Codispoti joins Denise Chaffin to examine which recruiters will survive the shift and why grit alone is not enough. They explore candidate attention, recruiter collaboration, silver-medalist talent, changing industry demand, AI’s limits, and the leap from corporate recruiting to agency ownership. The conversation reveals why relationships, creativity, training, sales ability, and a strong professional network remain the recruiter’s most durable competitive advantages in a changing market. Timestamps: (00:00) Meet Drea Codispoti (01:47) Why Recruiting Is Getting Harder (03:42) The Strong Will Survive (04:55) Where Hiring Demand Is Moving (07:07) The Surprising Growth of Legal Recruiting (10:57) What Happens to the Candidates You Do Not Hire? (14:10) Competition or Collaboration? (15:41) Candidate Attention Is the New Bottleneck (19:15) Are You Made of Steel? (21:25) Is AI Really a Threat to Recruiters? (24:21) Who Thrives Outside Corporate Recruiting? (27:59) Recruiting’s Three-Headed Sales Monster (29:18) What to Know Before Starting an Agency (30:49) Why Your Digital Footprint Matters

July 9, 2026Episode 8850 min

From Unused Tools to Usable AI | SmartRecruiters Winston

Amy Oxley, Chief of Staff, Product at SmartRecruiters, joins Talking TA Tech Stack to discuss why AI adoption in hiring depends on usability, trust, and how well technology fits into the everyday recruiting workflow. AI is entering talent acquisition fast, but the harder question is not whether teams have access to AI. It is whether they can use it consistently, safely, and meaningfully inside the hiring process. This episode explores ATS fatigue, AI adoption, recruiting operations, governance, user experience, and what TA and HR leaders should consider when evaluating AI-enabled hiring technology. The conversation uses SmartRecruiters and Winston as a practical lens for understanding how AI can support recruiters, hiring managers, and global hiring teams without becoming another unused layer in the tech stack. Listeners will walk away thinking less about AI as a feature and more about AI as an operating decision: who controls it, how teams adopt it, and whether it actually improves the way hiring gets done. Timestamps: (00:00) Why AI Tools Still Go Unused (02:25) Why Teams Buy AI They Don’t Use (04:17) Where Recruiting Breaks Down (07:45) The Candidate Experience Problem (09:04) Introducing Winston (15:21) AI That Guides, Not Decides (18:08) Why AI Needs Better Context (21:02) How Winston Supports TA Practitioners (23:00) Demo: Finding the Right Candidates Faster (30:03) Giving Teams Flexibility and Control (40:40) What Leaders Need From AI Adoption (42:01) Governance, Compliance, and Global Hiring (46:04) Where AI in Hiring Goes Next (47:19) From AI Fatigue to Tools That Work

June 25, 2026Episode 8748 min

Stop Managing for Efficiency, Start Leading for Growth | Mike Scafidi

Mike Scafidi is a digital transformation strategist who helps organizations rethink performance, leadership, and growth in the modern workplace. What if the biggest threat to your organization is not talent scarcity or AI disruption, but the metrics you use to measure success? Summary In this episode of Talking TA, host Denise Chaffin sits down with Mike Scafidi to explore how leadership metrics shape HR strategy, talent acquisition, recruiting performance, and workplace culture. Mike explains why many organizations say they want innovation, while their KPIs reward efficiency over growth. The conversation covers data-driven versus data-informed decision making, retention through career growth, distributed teams, AI in HR, and why digital transformation starts with mindset before technology. Takeaway Listeners will be talking about the hidden cost of measuring the wrong things, and why the future of work requires leaders to build cultures that reward judgment, adaptability, and long-term growth. Timestamps (00:00) Are Your Metrics Holding You Back? (01:40) Meet Mike Scafidi (04:50) The Problem with Efficiency Metrics (10:30) Growth vs. Efficiency Leadership (18:20) Data-Driven vs. Data-Informed Decisions (27:10) Retention and Career Growth (34:40) Distributed Teams and Culture (41:20) AI, Judgment, and Leadership (47:00) Final Takeaways

May 29, 2026Episode 8652 min

Transactional Recruiting Is Dead, with Anna Frazzetto

Anna Frazzetto is the Founder and CEO of Affirm Strategic Partners, sales leadership expert, and author of Sales Leadership in Action. In a world increasingly driven by automation and AI, the recruiters who stand out aren't the ones sending more messages, they're the ones building stronger relationships. This conversation explores why transactional recruiting is losing effectiveness and what it takes to become a trusted advisor in today's hiring landscape. Denise Chaffin sits down with Anna Frazzetto to discuss the growing intersection of recruiting, sales, and relationship-building. They explore storytelling as a recruiting tool, overcoming hiring manager resistance, candidate objections, compensation challenges, retention issues, AI-assisted workflows, follow-up strategies, and the shift toward consultative recruiting. Anna shares practical lessons from decades of leadership experience and explains why understanding business problems is becoming more important than simply filling positions. After listening, you'll be thinking less about how to fill jobs and more about how to solve problems. The recruiters who thrive moving forward will be the ones who combine technology with trust, ask better questions, challenge assumptions, and position themselves as strategic partners rather than transactional vendors. Timestamps (00:00) Why Most Recruiters Lose People Immediately (03:12) Anna Frazzetto's Journey from Developer to CEO (05:12) Why Sales and Recruiting Training Often Miss the Mark (08:33) The Shift from Filling Jobs to Solving Problems (12:24) What Hiring Managers Get Wrong About Compensation (15:48) Transactional Recruiting vs. Trusted Advisorship (19:28) Why Storytelling Wins More Candidates and Clients (23:14) How to Sell Candidates to Hiring Managers (27:30) The First 30 Seconds Can Make or Break a Conversation (32:15) Building Relationships Through Better Follow-Up (36:00) Using AI Without Losing the Human Connection (40:04) Closing Candidates and Handling Last-Minute Objections (47:14) Lessons from Recruiting Across Multiple Industries (50:15) What Makes a Recruiter Truly Indispensable

May 15, 2026Episode 8554 min

The Future Belongs to Human-First Leaders | Daniel Burrus | Ep 85

Futurist, innovation expert, and bestselling author Daniel Burrus joins Talking TA to discuss AI, leadership, and the future of work. The future of recruiting is becoming more human, not less. Daniel explains why organizations are approaching AI the wrong way, and why the leaders who succeed will use AI to amplify human capability instead of replacing it. The episode explores trust in the AI era, hard trends vs. soft trends, workforce transformation, generational hiring shifts, and how talent acquisition leaders are evolving back into strategic advisors and problem solvers. Daniel also shares practical frameworks for anticipating disruption before it happens and staying relevant in a rapidly changing business environment. After listening, you’ll be talking about why AI alone is not the competitive advantage. The organizations that elevate trust, human judgment, strategic thinking, and anticipatory leadership will be the ones that stay relevant as the future of work continues to evolve. Time Stamps: (00:00) The Future Belongs to Anticipatory Leaders (02:32) Meet Futurist Daniel Burrus (04:22) Why AI Should Magnify Humans, Not Replace Them (06:46) The Real Future of AI and Human Expertise (09:31) Why Trust Becomes a Competitive Advantage (15:01) The Danger of Letting AI Do Everything (18:09) Hard Trends vs. Soft Trends Explained (20:08) How to Predict Disruption Before It Happens (30:07) Transforming the Employee Experience (33:36) The Future of Talent Acquisition Is Changing Again (35:51) Your Biggest Problem Might Be the Wrong Problem (38:56) Generational Recruiting and Workforce Shifts (44:27) Managing AI Employees and AI Agents (52:25) Become More Relevant or Be Disrupted Check out today’s guest, Daniel Burrus Website: https://www.burrus.com/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielburrus/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/danburrus Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/burrusdaniel TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@danielburrusfuturist Resources Mentioned AI Strategy Report: https://www.aistrategyreport.com/ 25 Tech Trends Report: https://www.25techtrendsreport.com/ Check out Talking TA: Website: https://talkingta.com/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/talking-ta/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTAPodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkingtapodcast TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@talkingtapodcast

May 14, 2026Episode 8442 min

Why the Best Employees Are More Than a Resume | Stephane Rivard

In this episode of Talking TA, host Denise Chaffin sits down with Stephane Rivard to explore how AI-driven hiring, soft skills assessments, and automation are reshaping talent acquisition, recruiting performance, and workforce strategy. The conversation dives into why traditional resumes and credentials are becoming less reliable indicators of performance, how “credential inflation” is changing hiring practices, and why companies are increasingly prioritizing communication, adaptability, critical thinking, and relational skills over static technical experience. Stephane explains how AI-powered screening tools are helping organizations identify top candidates more effectively by evaluating real-world responses instead of relying solely on resumes or interviews. Denise and Stephane also unpack the growing challenges facing recruiters today, including fake AI-generated resumes, mass one-click applications, and the operational burden created by enormous applicant volumes. They discuss how automated screening systems can reduce bias, improve retention, lower absenteeism, and help recruiters evolve from resume screeners into strategic talent advisors. The episode also explores the future of work, AI’s impact on education and career development, the rise of vocational and trade careers, and why human-centered skills may become the most durable advantage in an AI-driven economy. If you work in talent acquisition, recruiting operations, HR leadership, workforce strategy, or people operations, this episode offers a practical and forward-looking perspective on the future of hiring. Key Episode Segments: • Credential Inflation & Skills-Based Hiring Why resumes and degrees are becoming weaker indicators of real performance, and how companies are shifting toward skills-first hiring. • The Rise of Fake AI Candidates How AI-generated resumes and one-click apply systems are creating major recruiting challenges for employers and sourcing teams. • Why Soft Skills Matter More Than Ever The growing importance of communication, adaptability, rapport building, and critical thinking in modern hiring. • Recruiters Becoming Talent Strategists How automation is shifting recruiters away from manual screening and toward more strategic workforce decision-making. • The Future of Work & Human Skills Why human-centered skills may become the most future-proof advantage in an AI-driven workforce.

May 8, 2026Episode 8352 min

Recruiting Is Broken, AI Is Just Exposing It | Matt Alder

What if the real problem in recruiting isn’t AI taking jobs, but the fact that many of those jobs shouldn’t exist in the first place? In this episode of Talking TA, Denise Chaffin sits down with Matt Alder, CEO of Recruiting Future, to challenge the foundation of modern hiring. With over two decades in talent acquisition, Matt breaks down why recruiting processes have barely evolved, despite waves of technological innovation. They explore how AI is exposing deep inefficiencies, from resumes and interviews to biased decision-making and outdated job structures. Instead of fixing hiring, organizations are layering automation onto a system designed for a completely different era. This conversation dives into what needs to change, what roles may disappear, and where human value actually matters in a world of automation. From skills-based hiring to experience design and the growing gap between AI capability and human mindset, this episode pushes leaders to rethink everything they believe about talent acquisition. Key Episode Segments: • Hiring Is Built on Constraints, Not Strategy Modern recruiting processes were designed around human limitations, not optimal decision-making. • AI Is Exposing, Not Solving, the Problem Automation is amplifying inefficiencies, not fixing them. • Resumes and Interviews Are Fundamentally Flawed Long-standing hiring tools persist despite evidence they don’t predict success. • Human Bias Is a Bigger Risk Than AI Bias Organizations scrutinize AI, while ignoring deeply embedded human decision flaws. • The Future Role of Recruiters Is Experience Design Value shifts from processing candidates to designing better hiring systems and interactions.

April 21, 2026Episode 8256 min

You Don’t Have a Brand Problem, You Have an Alignment Problem | Ken Pasternack

What does “brand” actually mean inside an organization, and why are most companies getting it wrong? In this episode of Talking TA, Denise Chaffin sits down with Ken Pasternack, EVP and Chief Strategy Officer at Two by Four, to break down the real connection between brand, culture, and talent acquisition. This isn’t about logos or messaging. It’s about the alignment between what companies promise and what people actually experience. Ken introduces a powerful lens: brand lives at the intersection of promise and perception. When those are misaligned, organizations lose trust, talent, and performance. From there, the conversation goes deeper into how values must translate into behaviors, why “employee experience” starts long before hiring, and how companies can rebuild authentic relationships in an increasingly automated world. They also tackle the tension between AI and human judgment, exploring where automation helps and where it must never replace human decision-making. The discussion challenges leaders to rethink talent acquisition, not as a transactional process, but as a relationship-driven system rooted in clarity, communication, and shared purpose. If you’re navigating AI, culture shifts, or employer branding, this episode gives you a grounded framework for building organizations that actually deliver on what they promise. Key Episode Segments: • Brand = Promise + Perception When those don’t match, trust breaks and performance follows. • Values Without Behavior Are Useless If you can’t define how a value shows up in action, it doesn’t exist. • Relationships Beat Transactions Organizations that define relationships as metrics miss the human impact. • AI Should Enhance, Not Replace, Judgment The future belongs to those who combine automation with human discernment. • Culture Alignment Can’t Be Automated Hiring, firing, and culture fit must remain human-led decisions.

April 10, 2026Episode 8254 min

Most AI in Recruiting Is Noise, Here’s What Actually Works | Trent Cotton & Lisa Fiondella

Most AI in recruiting is noise. The problem is knowing what actually works. In this episode of Talking TA, host Denise Chaffin sits down with Trent Cotton, Head of Talent Acquisition Insights and Analyst Relations, and Lisa Fiondella, SVP of AI, Data, and Platform at iCIMS, to explore how AI, automation, and agentic systems are reshaping talent acquisition, recruiting performance, and HR strategy. AI is often positioned as a silver bullet in hiring, but the reality is far more nuanced. This conversation breaks down the difference between automation, generative AI, and agentic AI, and where each actually adds value inside the recruiting process. From reducing friction in candidate experience to embedding intelligence directly into ATS workflows, the discussion focuses on what works in practice, not just in theory. The episode also explores the evolving role of recruiters as AI removes low-value tasks and shifts the function toward higher-impact, relationship-driven work. Topics include responsible AI, governance, hiring manager bottlenecks, candidate experience breakdowns, and how leading organizations are thinking about risk, compliance, and ROI when implementing AI in hiring. If you work in talent acquisition, HR leadership, recruiting strategy, or people operations, this episode offers a fresh perspective on how to use AI and automation to improve outcomes without losing the human element in hiring. Key Episode Segments AI vs Automation vs Agentic AI A clear breakdown of the three types of AI shaping recruiting today, and why most leaders misunderstand how each should be used. What’s Real vs Noise in AI for Hiring Cuts through the hype to define where AI actually creates value in talent acquisition and where it falls short. Where Automation Works (And Where It Doesn’t) Explores how to identify low-value tasks for automation while protecting the human moments that matter most in hiring. The ATS Is Evolving Into a System of Action A look at how modern ATS platforms are embedding AI directly into workflows, expanding beyond systems of record. Will AI Replace Recruiters? The Real Answer Why AI won’t eliminate recruiters, but will force a shift toward higher-value, relationship-driven work.