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

DE&I continues, thankfully, to be an extremely high profile issue for employers. However, the needle is still not moving quickly enough, and some of the data is shocking. For example, it would still take 200 hundred years to close the race and gender pay gaps at the current rate of progress.So what can employers do to accelerate the pace of change, and how much can individual recruiters influence diversity in hiring. This week, my guests are Trina Olson and Alfonso Wenker, co-founders of Team Dynamics. Trina and Alfonso work with some well-known organisations to improve their diversity and hiring practices. They have recently authored a book called Hiring Revolution that offers some extremely practical advice on how recruiters can inject DE&I into their organisation's hiring.In the interview, we discuss:Aligning cultural behaviour to valuesWhy inequities in hiring and promotion are not a foregone conclusionResume racism Recruiters taking individual responsibility to make changeNotice, Name and NavigateRPDRWhat to do more of, what to do less of and what to stop.OnboardingHow will things develop over the next two years?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

Talent intelligence is something that has gathered significant momentum in the last three years, and data-driven decision making is a crucial part of every sophisticated talent acquisition function. But are we asking enough questions about the sources of the data that is used and truly understanding the risk of bias?My guest this week is Markellos Diorinos, CEO at Bryq. Markellos is passionate about using objective science and unbiased data to inform hiring and internal mobility.In the interview, we discuss:Data supported decision making.Challenging recruiting normsThe importance of human decision makingBiased data and reliable dataUnderstanding culture in an objective scientific wayTranslating a cultural framework into specific behavioursThe role of technologyWhat does the future look like?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

Whatever form it eventually takes, remote working is here to stay. In the previous episode of the show, we explored the challenges and opportunities of building a global remote team; in this episode, I wanted to get the hands-on perspective of someone who has built a highly successful remote-first company.Everett Harper is the CEO of Truss, a software engineering business that has been fully remote for ten years. In our conversation, Everett shares myriad insights on hiring, communication, retention, culture and diversity, which will be of enormous value to everyone who's listening.In the interview, we discuss:Building a 100% remote companyCultureMaintaining and measuring productivity.Focusing on human connection and building systems to support thatThe danger of expanding work hoursExposing the fallacy of presenteeismPutting diversity at the heart of the workforceHow to ensure you have the skills and talent you needSalary transparency and consistencyThinking differently about the things we are seeingDo we understand the real implications of global mobility?What does the future look like?Everett's book - "Move to the Edge, Declare it Center."Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

One of the early discussion points in the pandemic was the access to global talent pools that the move to remote working could open up. Two years on, it is pretty clear that remote working is now a permanent fixture in the working life of many people. So how far are employers tapping into global talent pools, and what are the challenges and opportunities.My guest this week is Nicole Sahin, CEO and Founder of Globalization Partners. Nicole and her company work with many employers who are building global remote teams, and she has some valuable insights and experiences to share.In the interview, we discuss:The long term trends that are coming out of the pandemicEveryone everywhereThe benefits of building global remote teamsDiversity of ideasEngagement & productivityBuilding communityCommon challengesWhat mindset shifts are employers makingUnderstanding cultural normsBuilding a global employer brandNicole's book " Global Talent Unleashed." Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

It's only January, and it's already clear that the Great resignation will continue to be a huge talking point in 2022 as companies fight for the talent and skills they need. However, some employers are already reframing this challenge as a fantastic opportunity to attract talented people they might not have previously persuaded to move roles.This isn't easy, and obviously, employer brand and employee experience are huge factors. However, there is a lot that talent acquisition teams can be doing to stand out from the crowd by focusing on the areas within their control that make a real difference.My guest this week is Maggie Spong, VP of Talent Acquisition at AstraZeneca. AstraZeneca has certainly been thrust into the spotlight by the pandemic, but they have also spent the last few years developing several initiatives to differentiate themselves in their talent markets. In our conversation, Maggie shares a number of these, including their talent scout programme, building a personalised and inclusive candidate experience, and focusing on training and development for their talent acquisition team.In the interview, we discuss:How Talent Acquisition is evolving at AstraZenecaUsing Talent Scouts to build external talent pipelines for hard to fill roles and where there are gaps in internal succession planningBuilding a personalised and inclusive candidate experience.Giving feedback to all interviewed candidatesThe challenges of the pandemicEncouraging candidate self-selection by showcasing the authentic employee experienceTurning The Great Resignation into The Great OpportunityThe role of technologyEmployer brand advocacyInvesting in development and the Talent Acquisition AcademyAstraZeneca's focus for 2022Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcast.

Skills shortages have always been an issue for employers and have certainly come into sharp focus in recent months. Skills mapping, predicting future skills requirements and opening up talent pools via hybrid and remote working are just some of the solutions employers will be looking at in 2022.So what kind of strategies should talent acquisition and HR leaders be planning, and how can technology help?My first guest of the year is Vanessa Tierney, CEO of Abodoo. Vanessa's organisation recently surveyed 100 HR Directors and C-Level Executivesfrom the world's best companies to work for and asked theiropinion about their firm's working strategy, talent, workforce, andsocial infrastructure. Unsurprisingly skills were the number one issue.In the interview, we discuss:Attrition and skills shortagesOpening up talent pools globally via remote and hybrid workingHow do you make people feel connected?Adapting working modelsPresenteeismHow can employers better understand the skills in their workforce?Hard and soft skills matching.Predicting future skills requirements and understanding gapsSpotting opportunities in geographical skills clustersDriving inclusivity in talent identificationThe MetaverseAdvice on selecting HR and Recruiting TechnologyWhat should we expect in the medium and long term future?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

So that was the year that was 2021. As we move into 2022, the seismic changes of the last 12 months have certainly given us a lot to reflect on. The Great Resignation, the AI revolution in talent acquisition, the redefinition of the workplace, the continued depth of focus on DE&I, the list is as long as is it significant. It is impossible to make predictions, but I think it's fair to say that 2022 is potentially even more significant as employers find new ways of dealing with the considerable talent challenges they face.So what should we expect, and how do we process what has happened? I'm delighted to welcome Lars Schmidt back to the podcast as my last guest of 2021. Lars runs Amplify Talent, a boutique agency, HR leader development platform, and community that sits at the centre of the redefinition of HR. Lars is a passionate curator and facilitator of insights from some of the world's most innovative CHROs and is the perfect person to help us reflect and prepare for 2022.In the interview, we discuss:What positives should we take from 2021When emergency measures drive long term changesThe opportunity to redefine the nature of workMoving from Synchronous to asynchronous in communication and collaborationWhat are the most innovative employers doing, and which CHROs are leading from the front?What is changing in talent acquisitionCompelling value propositionsPreboarding and onboarding Increasing talent mobility and fluidity The Metaverse and Web3 The future for hybrid workingHopes for 2022Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

As I referenced in the 400th episode, one of the standout trends for me in 2021 has been the adoption of AI in talent acquisition and its impact. As we move towards 2022, I wanted to take deeper dive into the practicalities of the revolution AI is driving in talent intelligence, recruiting process and talent management.My guest this week is Jason Cerrato, Senior Director Product Marketing at Eightfold AI. Jason has a unique combination of experience, having been a talent acquisition practitioner and leader as well as an industry analyst before working on the vendor side. This combination of experience gives him a unique insight into the change AI is driving in talent acquisition, and he has valuable advice to share.In the interview, we discuss:Why not all AI is the sameHow AI is changing Talent IntelligenceThe importance of adjacent skillsUnlocking more diverse talent poolsBeing dynamic, real-time and agile in recruitingIdentifying learning capabilitiesHow AI is changing Talent ManagementInternal talent marketplacesFree Agent skillsAdvice to TA leaders on AI strategyWhat we can expect in 2022Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

When I launched this podcast almost seven years ago, I had an expectation that I was in it for the long haul, but I couldn't have imagined that 400 episodes later, I would be publishing two episodes a week, and the audience would still be growing. Thank you for listening and for your support; it means so much to me.In keeping with the show's theme for this 400th episode, I want to look forward and not backwards. 2021 has been a year for talent acquisition like no other, and I believe we are seeing trends emerge that will shape recruiting for the next decade or more.I've had some fantastic guests on the show this year, and I wanted to showcase highlights from five interviews that shine a light on some of the innovations and trends that have made 2021 so important, and that will, in turn, have a significant impact in 2022.Interviews featured in this episode:Ep 333: Automation, Simplicity and ExperienceEp 331: Transforming Recruitment MarketingFuture Live: DE&IEp 395: The Challenges Of Recruiting RecruitersEp 375: The Magic Of Behavioural ScienceListen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.A full transcript will appear here shortly.

Perhaps the only thing that is clear about the future is that it will involve a lot of uncertainty, disruption and change. As we've heard from all of my recent guests on the show, talent acquisition transformation is now happening in ways we could not have predicted 18 months ago.So what can Talent Acquisition leaders do in 2022 to help their teams navigate an ever more volatile business landscape?My guest this week is Ira Wolf. Ira is President of Success Performance Solutions and a well-known author, speaker and commentator on the changing world of work. In our conversation, Ira shares some valuable perspectives on what employers can do to support their employees to make the behavioural changes needed to be effective in our new never normal.In the interview, we discuss:The perfect storm that has been brewing for yearsWhy we are living on an exponential curve of changeComplexity with no predictabilityResistance to behavioural changesHow can employers accelerate change to match the exponential landscape?Being comfortable being uncomfortableAbilities, character and environmentThe importance of company cultureGrit and resilienceTeaching people to unlearnHow does talent acquisition need to changeWhat increases the effectiveness of technology?What can we expect in 2022Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.