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

Many employers have been publically committing to making DE&I their most important focus for several years now. However, as the economy becomes more challenging and some companies roll back from flexible working, is the needle still moving on diversity, and is it still the business priority that we were promised it would be?My guest this week is Michael Barrington-Hibbert, CEO of Barrington-Hibbert Associates and Co-Founder of 10,000 black interns. Michael is an active influencer in driving better diversity and inclusion within the finance sector and instilling a belief in the importance of social mobility. He has essential advice on how employers can keep diversity front and centre by closely aligning DE&I strategies to critical business goals.In the interview, we discuss:Talent market challenges Wage inflation and overhiring.How the pandemic diversified the workforceThe relationship between flexibility and diversityAdvice to employers on how not the lose the progress they have made as the market changesDiversity of thought and creativityReducing bias in recruitingThe role of technology The importance of brave organizationsAligning DE&I with business strategiesWhat will the future look like?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts

Elon Musk, David Soloman, and Sam Altman are three CEOs who have recently publicly spoken out against remote and hybrid work. Problems with communication, productivity, skills transfer, and culture are some of the most common issues cited but does dragging people back to the office really make these things better? The advantages of hybrid and remote work are considerable, and there are undoubtedly other ways of addressing their challenges than ordering a mandatory return to the office.My guest this week is Jen Fong, VP of People at Customer.io. Customer.io is a fully remote business with employees in 30 countries, and Jen offers some great insights on embracing the advantages of remote while dealing with its challenges.In the interview, we discuss:Current talent market challengesWhy remote work is so vital to Customer ioInnovation and global talent poolsAutonomy and trustDealing with the challenges of remote workHow do you build community and connection?The importance of toolsBeing intentional about meeting in personCreating opportunities for people to connect sociallyBuilding a people-first culture that aligns with company goalsEnsuring you have the right skills for the future with strategic workforce planningAttracting diverse skillsetsThe impact of AI on skills development and recruitingListen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

According to recent estimates, between 15 and 20 percent of the world's population is neurodivergent. Although our understanding of the brain has taken some massive leaps forward, a large proportion of neurodivergent people do not have a formal diagnosis.The advantages for employers with neuroinclusive cultures are significant. Not only do they open important pools of talent, but they are also recognising that everyone's brain is different. This can enable a substantial increase in collaboration, innovation and productivity.My guest this week is Ed Thompson, Founder and CEO of Uptimize and author of the new book "A Hidden Force: Unlocking the Potential of Neurodiversity at Work". Ed has a vast amount of knowledge and experience to share on how to increase neuroinclusion.In the interview, we discuss:Different brainsBelonging, collaboration, and innovationCommon misconceptionsThe dangers of ignoring neurodiversityBoulders in the road; building an inclusive recruiting processCulture changeChallenging the normThe future for neuroinclusionListen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.

There is a strong argument that Employer Branding has never been more relevant or important. The last few months have seen many employers making layoffs as they respond to market conditions and some sense of normalization after the pandemic. It's fair to say that some employers and potentially whole industries have suffered severe reputational damage because of this.So how can companies rebuild their reputations as employers? This is not only important from a talent acquisition perspective; it is a vital part of retaining the talent they already have.My guest this week is Emily Firth, Founder and Partner at The Truth Works. Emily is an Employer Brand and Employee Engagement expert, and it was great to get her view on how employers can rebuild and manage their reputations in the current market landscape.In the interview, we discuss:The post-pandemic state of Employer BrandingLack of delineation between internal and external communicationsTransparency and controlMoving away from a hyper-curated narrativeFoundations and frameworksRebuilding reputationsInfluencing and education leadershipGenerative AI and the future of employer brandingListen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

Storytelling is one of the things that makes humans human. In recruitment marketing and employer branding, stories persuade, create empathy and drive the emotional connections that make people take action.With the rise of automation and generative AI, human-based storytelling will likely be a critical differentiator between employers. So do we understand how to tell compelling stories, and are our strategies around storytelling sophisticated enough to deal with a future of more disruptive change?My guest this week is Lauryn Sargent, Co-Founder of Stories Incorporated and an expert in storytelling for recruitment marketing and employer branding. I caught up with Lauryn at the recent UNLEASH America conference to hear her thoughts on the future of storytelling and listen to the great advice she had to share.In the interview, we discuss:Does TA understand storytelling on a strategic level?What are the elements of a great story?Psychological safetyStructuring the perfect story interviewMaking content work in different channels and formatsThe impact of generative AIThe future of recruitment marketingListen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

I recently hosted a webinar on the future of talent acquisition and asked the audience to consider this question. Will there ever be as many recruiters again as there were in August 2022?The arrival of universally available generative AI and a harsh economic climate has caused the perfect storm in our industry. But how much long-term disruption of talent acquisition and potential elimination of recruiting roles could there be?My guest this week is Allyn Bailey, a highly experienced talent acquisition leader who previously held a global role at Intel and is now Executive Director of Hiring Success at SmartRecruiters. A couple of weeks ago, Allyn put out a challenge on LinkedIn that she was prepared to debate her belief that a major organization would move to recruiterless recruiting within the next 18 months. Because I consider her one of the most innovative thinkers in the industry, I took the opportunity at the recent UNLEASH America event to learn more about her hypnosis. I also got her thoughts on the future structure of talent acquisition teams and her advice around reskilling and retraining for those at risk of being displaced.In the interview, we discuss:Fungibility and flexibility of technologyCan you build a future-proof tech stack?Is it possible to implement a relationship-based recruiting strategy in a world of management by transactional metrics?Can AI be more human than humans?Can technology now address every step in the TA process?Will we see recruiterless recruiting within 18 months?The nuances of the hypothesisThe TA team of the futureTA Ops, system and experience designWill candidates push back?Legislation and regulationReskilling and retraining.Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.A full transcript will appear here shortly.

At the beginning of May, I attended UNLEASH America as a podcaster and panel host. It was UNLEASH's biggest event to date in the US, and the content and conversations were excellent. As you can imagine, the implications of Generative AI dominated the discussion. From talking to a range of practitioners, vendors, and thought leaders, it was clear that everyone agrees that Talent Acquisition will be changed quickly and forever by new technology. However, it is not just technology that is driving change; aside from the obvious economic issues, many employers are rethinking their whole approach to talent, and this was reflected in several conversations I had about the blurring lines between talent acquisition and talent management.Next week I'll be publishing some long-form interviews I recorded at the event, but in the meantime, here is a series of short conversations that capture the essence of the discussion at the show. Appearing in this episode:John Vlastelica, the CEO of Recruiting ToolboxSarah White, the Founder of Aspect 43Mervyn Dinnen, HR Analyst and my co-author on "Digital Talent."Crissy McConnell, Internal Recruiting Lead at Guild.Topics discussed include:Thinking holistically about talentBreaking down the silos between Talent Acquisition and Talent ManagementThe impact of Generative AIThe market for recruiting technologyLegislation and legal confusion around AIPsychological Safety and ERGsThe future of jobs and the end of everythingCandidate and consumer attitudes to AIRegenerating talent to open opportunitySurfacing internal talentTotal experienceThe future of talent acquisitionSubscribe to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

Round up is the monthly show on The Recruiting Future Podcast channel that highlights episodes you may have missed and gives you my take on some of the key learnings from the guests.Episodes mentioned in this Round Up:Ep 510: Candidate Experience 2023Ep 511: How To Be A Global Employer Of ChoiceEp 512: Being More AgileEp 513: Building Connection In A Hybrid WorldEp 514: Build, Maintain & Leverage Your NetworkEp 515: AI And The Future Of Talent AcquisitionEp 516: The Changing WorkforceEp 517: Aligning Benefits To ValuesSubscribe to this podcast in Apple Podcasts

For many companies, remote and hybrid working has spotlighted compensation and benefits strategies. How do you determine pay levels for the same job across different national and international geographies, and how can you use benefits as a talent magnet when some traditional location-based benefits are no longer as relevant?My guest this week is Anitra St. Hilaire, VP of People at Threeflow. Anitra has considerable experience in this area and shares some very innovative thinking in our conversation.In the interview, we discuss:What are the most significant talent challenges employers are facingListening to and understanding people's storiesBuilding culture nationally and internationallyHow do you handle compensation strategically across state and country boundaries?How can employers use benefits as magnets for talent?Aligning benefits with company valuesUnderstanding the needs of your employee populationResponsible transparencyWhat are the implications of AI for HR?What will the future of work look like?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.

The balance of the workforce is changing. Remote working, talent scarcity and evolving attitudes to jobs and careers are driving the increasing use of contractors, freelancers and fractional workers. However, the practicalities of managing this changing workforce are significant, including everything from building a culture to ensuring everyone gets paid on time.So how should employers approach this, what role can technology play, and how can they turn the challenges into opportunities? My guest this week is Richard Prime, Co-Founder and CEO of Sonovate. Richard has some fascinating insights to share on the state of the market and how fintech innovations are creating opportunities for employers and staffing agencies in our new world of work.In the interview, we discuss:The current state of the marketThe rise of contractors, freelancers, and fractional workersAccessing global talent poolsThe challenges of an evolving workforceWhat are the most innovative businesses doing?Building a culture that is inclusive of temporary and contract workersHow complicated is it to make sure everyone gets paidThe growing demand for early wage accessInnovative financial benefits to attract talentWhat opportunities does Fintech innovation open up for recruiting and talent acquisition?Listen to this podcast in Apple Podcasts.