Recruiters On The Rise Transistor (https://transistor.fm) https://feeds.transistor.fm/recruiters-on-the-rise This is Recruiters On The Rise. Join Colleen Gallagher for candid conversations with talent leaders as we explore the work that drives them, the lessons they've learned, and how they're helping people find careers they love. The show is sponsored by Lavalier, an interview intelligence platform built by Textio. © 2026 Lavalier ff988817-f901-5d34-9cf4-249b5bb21097 yes Recruiters On The Rise Trailer! en Wed, 15 Jul 2026 05:00:07 -0700 Wed, 15 Jul 2026 05:02:05 -0700 http://RecruitersOnTheRise.com https://img.transistorcdn.com/zjlmGzIO8AKnVF2NMKUryL56KUUh1PuMsaPSwhiIe5o/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:1400/h:1400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9jODE3/ODUwODc2NjhlYTk3/NGViZTYyYmJmZjE3/MmY3Mi5qcGc.jpg Recruiters On The Rise http://RecruitersOnTheRise.com episodic Lavalier This is Recruiters On The Rise. Join Colleen Gallagher for candid conversations with talent leaders as we explore the work that drives them, the lessons they've learned, and how they're helping people find careers they love. The show is sponsored by Lavalier, an interview intelligence platform built by Textio. This is Recruiters On The Rise. Lavalier recruitersontherise@ringmaster.com No No Resilience Is the Job with Kathryn Knox 14 14 Resilience Is the Job with Kathryn Knox full b4282ef4-a2bd-42fc-9430-2d7eb9082406 https://share.transistor.fm/s/a699879e In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Kathryn Knox, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Trailer Park Group. Kathryn brings more than 30 years of recruiting experience, starting at Arthur Andersen and moving through staffing, PE backed companies, and high growth tech before landing in entertainment marketing. She has led teams as large as 23 recruiters, and when her own company recently went through layoffs, she made a point of calling every person she had hired in recent years to ask how she could help them land their next role.

 

Takeaways:

  • Resilience beats any tool or process. The best recruiters treat every day as a reset, good or bad. If you can shake off a rough day and show up again tomorrow, you'll outlast almost anyone in this business.
  • Don't let fear of AI shrink your skillset. Learn the tools, but keep building the core sourcing and relationship skills underneath them. The human nuance in recruiting won't be replaced, no matter what changes on top of it.
  • Build the hiring manager relationship in the intake, not after. Set expectations up front about how many candidates they'll see and how you'll operate. That early trust is what buys you grace when a role takes longer than planned.
  • Track quality of submission to offer, not just time to fill. Aim to know a role and a hiring manager well enough that three to five candidates gets you to offer. Document everything, because data protects you when a hire drags on for reasons outside your control.
  • Treat your TA team like an internal agency. Control your spend, prove your value, and only go outside when you've exhausted what your own team can do. That ownership mentality is what makes hiring managers trust you instead of shopping you around.


Quote of the Show:

  • "You're as good as your last deal and you're as good as your next deal, as long as you continue the momentum forward." - Kathryn Knox


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Kathryn Knox, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Trailer Park Group. Kathryn brings more than 30 years of recruiting experience, starting at Arthur Andersen and moving through staffing, PE backed companies, and high growth tech before landing in entertainment marketing. She has led teams as large as 23 recruiters, and when her own company recently went through layoffs, she made a point of calling every person she had hired in recent years to ask how she could help them land their next role.

 

Takeaways:

  • Resilience beats any tool or process. The best recruiters treat every day as a reset, good or bad. If you can shake off a rough day and show up again tomorrow, you'll outlast almost anyone in this business.
  • Don't let fear of AI shrink your skillset. Learn the tools, but keep building the core sourcing and relationship skills underneath them. The human nuance in recruiting won't be replaced, no matter what changes on top of it.
  • Build the hiring manager relationship in the intake, not after. Set expectations up front about how many candidates they'll see and how you'll operate. That early trust is what buys you grace when a role takes longer than planned.
  • Track quality of submission to offer, not just time to fill. Aim to know a role and a hiring manager well enough that three to five candidates gets you to offer. Document everything, because data protects you when a hire drags on for reasons outside your control.
  • Treat your TA team like an internal agency. Control your spend, prove your value, and only go outside when you've exhausted what your own team can do. That ownership mentality is what makes hiring managers trust you instead of shopping you around.


Quote of the Show:

  • "You're as good as your last deal and you're as good as your next deal, as long as you continue the momentum forward." - Kathryn Knox


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 15 Jul 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2199 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Kathryn Knox, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Trailer Park Group. Kathryn brings more than 30 years of recruiting experience, starting at Arthur Andersen and moving through staffing, PE backed companies, and high growth tech before landing in entertainment marketing. She has led teams as large as 23 recruiters, and when her own company recently went through layoffs, she made a point of calling every person she had hired in recent years to ask how she could help them land their next role.

 

Takeaways:

  • Resilience beats any tool or process. The best recruiters treat every day as a reset, good or bad. If you can shake off a rough day and show up again tomorrow, you'll outlast almost anyone in this business.
  • Don't let fear of AI shrink your skillset. Learn the tools, but keep building the core sourcing and relationship skills underneath them. The human nuance in recruiting won't be replaced, no matter what changes on top of it.
  • Build the hiring manager relationship in the intake, not after. Set expectations up front about how many candidates they'll see and how you'll operate. That early trust is what buys you grace when a role takes longer than planned.
  • Track quality of submission to offer, not just time to fill. Aim to know a role and a hiring manager well enough that three to five candidates gets you to offer. Document everything, because data protects you when a hire drags on for reasons outside your control.
  • Treat your TA team like an internal agency. Control your spend, prove your value, and only go outside when you've exhausted what your own team can do. That ownership mentality is what makes hiring managers trust you instead of shopping you around.


Quote of the Show:

  • "You're as good as your last deal and you're as good as your next deal, as long as you continue the momentum forward." - Kathryn Knox


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson The Power of Follow Through with Allison Dykes 13 13 The Power of Follow Through with Allison Dykes full 249f893f-78f9-48ca-afb8-dc6fbba17408 https://share.transistor.fm/s/459e81d1 Allison Dykes joined her current company, Harness, as its first and only HR hire at 25 employees and built the entire people function from the ground up, recruiting through termination. In this episode, she talks with Colleen about why follow-up and follow-through are non-negotiable in candidate experience, how she uses the EOS "right person, right seat" model to evaluate both candidates and current employees, and why AI-polished resumes are making human conversation more important than ever. Allison also shares what it's like owning the entire employee lifecycle, from the first interview to the final goodbye, and how that shapes the way she treats every single hire.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up is not optional. Telling a candidate when to expect feedback, and following through even when the update is that there is no update yet, builds trust and keeps people engaged with your process.
  • The candidate experience is the company's first impression. How someone is treated during the hiring process, whether or not they get the role, shapes how they talk about the company afterward.
  • Getting hiring managers to adopt intake forms takes more than handing them a template. Allison drafts the process herself before the kickoff call so the conversation starts from something concrete instead of a blank page.
  • AI has made resumes easier to tailor and harder to trust. Getting candidates on the phone to talk through what they actually owned in past roles matters more than ever.
  • Owning the entire employee life cycle, from the first interview through termination, changes how Allison shows up for people. Employees already know and trust her, which makes hard conversations easier on both sides.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Follow up and follow through. If you say that you're going to do something, make sure you do it in the timeframe that you say it's gonna be." - Allison Dykes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Allison Dykes joined her current company, Harness, as its first and only HR hire at 25 employees and built the entire people function from the ground up, recruiting through termination. In this episode, she talks with Colleen about why follow-up and follow-through are non-negotiable in candidate experience, how she uses the EOS "right person, right seat" model to evaluate both candidates and current employees, and why AI-polished resumes are making human conversation more important than ever. Allison also shares what it's like owning the entire employee lifecycle, from the first interview to the final goodbye, and how that shapes the way she treats every single hire.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up is not optional. Telling a candidate when to expect feedback, and following through even when the update is that there is no update yet, builds trust and keeps people engaged with your process.
  • The candidate experience is the company's first impression. How someone is treated during the hiring process, whether or not they get the role, shapes how they talk about the company afterward.
  • Getting hiring managers to adopt intake forms takes more than handing them a template. Allison drafts the process herself before the kickoff call so the conversation starts from something concrete instead of a blank page.
  • AI has made resumes easier to tailor and harder to trust. Getting candidates on the phone to talk through what they actually owned in past roles matters more than ever.
  • Owning the entire employee life cycle, from the first interview through termination, changes how Allison shows up for people. Employees already know and trust her, which makes hard conversations easier on both sides.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Follow up and follow through. If you say that you're going to do something, make sure you do it in the timeframe that you say it's gonna be." - Allison Dykes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 08 Jul 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 1729 Allison Dykes joined her current company, Harness, as its first and only HR hire at 25 employees and built the entire people function from the ground up, recruiting through termination. In this episode, she talks with Colleen about why follow-up and follow-through are non-negotiable in candidate experience, how she uses the EOS "right person, right seat" model to evaluate both candidates and current employees, and why AI-polished resumes are making human conversation more important than ever. Allison also shares what it's like owning the entire employee lifecycle, from the first interview to the final goodbye, and how that shapes the way she treats every single hire.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up is not optional. Telling a candidate when to expect feedback, and following through even when the update is that there is no update yet, builds trust and keeps people engaged with your process.
  • The candidate experience is the company's first impression. How someone is treated during the hiring process, whether or not they get the role, shapes how they talk about the company afterward.
  • Getting hiring managers to adopt intake forms takes more than handing them a template. Allison drafts the process herself before the kickoff call so the conversation starts from something concrete instead of a blank page.
  • AI has made resumes easier to tailor and harder to trust. Getting candidates on the phone to talk through what they actually owned in past roles matters more than ever.
  • Owning the entire employee life cycle, from the first interview through termination, changes how Allison shows up for people. Employees already know and trust her, which makes hard conversations easier on both sides.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Follow up and follow through. If you say that you're going to do something, make sure you do it in the timeframe that you say it's gonna be." - Allison Dykes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Fraud Squad with Stacy Zapar 12 12 Fraud Squad with Stacy Zapar full 547c0b9c-1dda-42f9-8a5a-44270e245778 https://share.transistor.fm/s/33ff736e Stacy Zapar spent almost 30 years teaching recruiters how to find great talent. She built the Zappos Insider program and trained teams at Amazon, Netflix, and Walmart. Now she's back from a multi-year hiatus with a new mission: helping recruiters catch candidate fraud before it costs them the hire.

Colleen and Stacy dig into how organized this fraud has gotten, why AI made it worse before it gets better, and Stacy's new model, "candidate curation," for blending attraction, assessment, and authentication into every stage of the funnel. Plus the origin story behind her new community, Fraud Squad, and a few personal detours involving Fireball shots and a serious game show obsession.

Takeaways:

  • Fraud and volume are two sides of the same problem. Bots, auto apply, and AI written resumes have made every funnel noisier, so the real fix isn't more screening at the end, it's reducing junk at the front door.
  • Assume sophistication on the other side. Fraud rings operate like businesses, with shared scripts, proxy interviewers, and laptop farms; recruiters who treat fraud as a one off problem will always be a step behind.
  • Don't bolt AI onto a broken process. Layering automation on top of an outdated 2019 hiring funnel doesn't fix it, it just breaks it faster; redesign the process first, then apply AI.
  • Build deterrents that are invisible to good candidates but costly for bad actors. Things like in person final rounds or small pre-screen tasks create friction for fraud without adding burden for legitimate applicants.
  • Authentication isn't a final round checkbox, it's a continuous thread. Talent attraction, assessment, and authentication should run together at every candidate touchpoint, not in sequential funnel stages.

Quote of the Show:

  • "We're not organized as an industry, but the fraud rings absolutely are. I just want us to be one step ahead for once." - Stacy Zapar

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Stacy Zapar spent almost 30 years teaching recruiters how to find great talent. She built the Zappos Insider program and trained teams at Amazon, Netflix, and Walmart. Now she's back from a multi-year hiatus with a new mission: helping recruiters catch candidate fraud before it costs them the hire.

Colleen and Stacy dig into how organized this fraud has gotten, why AI made it worse before it gets better, and Stacy's new model, "candidate curation," for blending attraction, assessment, and authentication into every stage of the funnel. Plus the origin story behind her new community, Fraud Squad, and a few personal detours involving Fireball shots and a serious game show obsession.

Takeaways:

  • Fraud and volume are two sides of the same problem. Bots, auto apply, and AI written resumes have made every funnel noisier, so the real fix isn't more screening at the end, it's reducing junk at the front door.
  • Assume sophistication on the other side. Fraud rings operate like businesses, with shared scripts, proxy interviewers, and laptop farms; recruiters who treat fraud as a one off problem will always be a step behind.
  • Don't bolt AI onto a broken process. Layering automation on top of an outdated 2019 hiring funnel doesn't fix it, it just breaks it faster; redesign the process first, then apply AI.
  • Build deterrents that are invisible to good candidates but costly for bad actors. Things like in person final rounds or small pre-screen tasks create friction for fraud without adding burden for legitimate applicants.
  • Authentication isn't a final round checkbox, it's a continuous thread. Talent attraction, assessment, and authentication should run together at every candidate touchpoint, not in sequential funnel stages.

Quote of the Show:

  • "We're not organized as an industry, but the fraud rings absolutely are. I just want us to be one step ahead for once." - Stacy Zapar

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 01 Jul 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2635 Stacy Zapar spent almost 30 years teaching recruiters how to find great talent. She built the Zappos Insider program and trained teams at Amazon, Netflix, and Walmart. Now she's back from a multi-year hiatus with a new mission: helping recruiters catch candidate fraud before it costs them the hire.

Colleen and Stacy dig into how organized this fraud has gotten, why AI made it worse before it gets better, and Stacy's new model, "candidate curation," for blending attraction, assessment, and authentication into every stage of the funnel. Plus the origin story behind her new community, Fraud Squad, and a few personal detours involving Fireball shots and a serious game show obsession.

Takeaways:

  • Fraud and volume are two sides of the same problem. Bots, auto apply, and AI written resumes have made every funnel noisier, so the real fix isn't more screening at the end, it's reducing junk at the front door.
  • Assume sophistication on the other side. Fraud rings operate like businesses, with shared scripts, proxy interviewers, and laptop farms; recruiters who treat fraud as a one off problem will always be a step behind.
  • Don't bolt AI onto a broken process. Layering automation on top of an outdated 2019 hiring funnel doesn't fix it, it just breaks it faster; redesign the process first, then apply AI.
  • Build deterrents that are invisible to good candidates but costly for bad actors. Things like in person final rounds or small pre-screen tasks create friction for fraud without adding burden for legitimate applicants.
  • Authentication isn't a final round checkbox, it's a continuous thread. Talent attraction, assessment, and authentication should run together at every candidate touchpoint, not in sequential funnel stages.

Quote of the Show:

  • "We're not organized as an industry, but the fraud rings absolutely are. I just want us to be one step ahead for once." - Stacy Zapar

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Stop Waiting for Talent with John Curran 11 11 Stop Waiting for Talent with John Curran full d1e15db1-883f-4c87-a344-a0496ad151a7 https://share.transistor.fm/s/4fc656cd In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with John Curran, Director of Talent Acquisition at Hillendale Home Care. John has been in recruiting since the mid 1990s, back when Java was not yet a thing and Dice was the only way to find technical talent. He spent decades in tech and biotech at companies like Symantec, Invitae, and Genomic Health before making a deliberate pivot to in-home senior care closer to home. With seven years of sales experience in his back pocket, John brings a grounded, people first perspective to talent acquisition that is equal parts strategic and human.


Takeaways:

  • Curiosity is the one thing that sets the best recruiters apart. The recruiters who truly stand out are the ones willing to lean into discomfort, challenge what is not working, and speak up in a professional and positive way. It is not about being formulaic. It is about being genuinely curious and unafraid to do things differently.

  • Metrics are a diagnostic tool, not a report card. Conversion ratios, time to fill, and quality of hire numbers are most powerful when they reveal root causes rather than assign blame. At Danaher, tracking every stage of 435 manufacturing hires showed bottlenecks in interviewer availability, not recruiter performance. The data pointed the team to the real problem.

  • Challenge the thought, not the person. When coaching hiring managers toward better decisions, the most effective recruiters reframe the conversation around outcomes rather than ego. Getting a peer to adopt a new process and seeing it succeed publicly can do more than any direct pushback ever could.

  • Employer brand only works when it is authentic. At Genomic Health, John helped build a culture brand so genuine that alumni still gather for dinners today. From flash mobs to professionally produced culture videos, the goal was always to capture the real spirit of the place, not manufacture one.

  • Non tech companies are an untapped opportunity right now. For recruiters who are displaced or burned out on long commutes and rigid structures, industries like senior care, manufacturing, and utilities are hungry for recruiting expertise and far more open to new ideas. The impact potential is enormous, and the appreciation is real.

Quote of the Show:

  • "I just stopped being afraid. You just shake it off. There's a certain point where you're like, yeah, I don't care. Let's just do it. And I think it's very empowering if you can get beyond that point." - John Curran

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with John Curran, Director of Talent Acquisition at Hillendale Home Care. John has been in recruiting since the mid 1990s, back when Java was not yet a thing and Dice was the only way to find technical talent. He spent decades in tech and biotech at companies like Symantec, Invitae, and Genomic Health before making a deliberate pivot to in-home senior care closer to home. With seven years of sales experience in his back pocket, John brings a grounded, people first perspective to talent acquisition that is equal parts strategic and human.


Takeaways:

  • Curiosity is the one thing that sets the best recruiters apart. The recruiters who truly stand out are the ones willing to lean into discomfort, challenge what is not working, and speak up in a professional and positive way. It is not about being formulaic. It is about being genuinely curious and unafraid to do things differently.

  • Metrics are a diagnostic tool, not a report card. Conversion ratios, time to fill, and quality of hire numbers are most powerful when they reveal root causes rather than assign blame. At Danaher, tracking every stage of 435 manufacturing hires showed bottlenecks in interviewer availability, not recruiter performance. The data pointed the team to the real problem.

  • Challenge the thought, not the person. When coaching hiring managers toward better decisions, the most effective recruiters reframe the conversation around outcomes rather than ego. Getting a peer to adopt a new process and seeing it succeed publicly can do more than any direct pushback ever could.

  • Employer brand only works when it is authentic. At Genomic Health, John helped build a culture brand so genuine that alumni still gather for dinners today. From flash mobs to professionally produced culture videos, the goal was always to capture the real spirit of the place, not manufacture one.

  • Non tech companies are an untapped opportunity right now. For recruiters who are displaced or burned out on long commutes and rigid structures, industries like senior care, manufacturing, and utilities are hungry for recruiting expertise and far more open to new ideas. The impact potential is enormous, and the appreciation is real.

Quote of the Show:

  • "I just stopped being afraid. You just shake it off. There's a certain point where you're like, yeah, I don't care. Let's just do it. And I think it's very empowering if you can get beyond that point." - John Curran

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 24 Jun 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2632 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with John Curran, Director of Talent Acquisition at Hillendale Home Care. John has been in recruiting since the mid 1990s, back when Java was not yet a thing and Dice was the only way to find technical talent. He spent decades in tech and biotech at companies like Symantec, Invitae, and Genomic Health before making a deliberate pivot to in-home senior care closer to home. With seven years of sales experience in his back pocket, John brings a grounded, people first perspective to talent acquisition that is equal parts strategic and human.


Takeaways:

  • Curiosity is the one thing that sets the best recruiters apart. The recruiters who truly stand out are the ones willing to lean into discomfort, challenge what is not working, and speak up in a professional and positive way. It is not about being formulaic. It is about being genuinely curious and unafraid to do things differently.

  • Metrics are a diagnostic tool, not a report card. Conversion ratios, time to fill, and quality of hire numbers are most powerful when they reveal root causes rather than assign blame. At Danaher, tracking every stage of 435 manufacturing hires showed bottlenecks in interviewer availability, not recruiter performance. The data pointed the team to the real problem.

  • Challenge the thought, not the person. When coaching hiring managers toward better decisions, the most effective recruiters reframe the conversation around outcomes rather than ego. Getting a peer to adopt a new process and seeing it succeed publicly can do more than any direct pushback ever could.

  • Employer brand only works when it is authentic. At Genomic Health, John helped build a culture brand so genuine that alumni still gather for dinners today. From flash mobs to professionally produced culture videos, the goal was always to capture the real spirit of the place, not manufacture one.

  • Non tech companies are an untapped opportunity right now. For recruiters who are displaced or burned out on long commutes and rigid structures, industries like senior care, manufacturing, and utilities are hungry for recruiting expertise and far more open to new ideas. The impact potential is enormous, and the appreciation is real.

Quote of the Show:

  • "I just stopped being afraid. You just shake it off. There's a certain point where you're like, yeah, I don't care. Let's just do it. And I think it's very empowering if you can get beyond that point." - John Curran

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson What Drives Productivity with Bruce Nichols 10 10 What Drives Productivity with Bruce Nichols full a3d7844a-5148-4220-84d8-57ee71d38047 https://share.transistor.fm/s/268d38be Bruce Nichols didn't plan on a career in HR. He planned on jumping out of planes for 25 years and retiring at Home Depot. Life had other ideas. After leaving the 82nd Airborne, Bruce fell into recruiting, then into HR leadership, and spent the next few decades inside some of the most complex business environments around, including a $2 billion private equity acquisition where he ended up standing in a pile of soot in a Brooks Brothers suit, learning the most important lesson of his career. Now a Partner at the Human Resources Consortium, Bruce sits down with Colleen to talk about what it actually takes to be a great recruiter, why HR needs to stop playing the policy police, and how understanding a P&L changes everything about how you lead people.


Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters know the business as well as the business does. Deep domain fluency means you are sourcing proactively before the job is even open, not scrambling after a req drops.
  • Culture drives productivity. The most credentialed candidate in the room can be your worst hire if they do not fit how the team actually works. Diligence on culture fit is not optional.
  • HR needs to move from reactive to predictive. Knowing which skills the business will need in three years and building pathways to get there saves money, preserves culture, and makes HR a strategic asset instead of a cost center.
  • Sit with the CFO. If you want a seat at the table, you have to understand the financial mechanics of the business. The numbers are not someone else's job.
  • Adaptability is the skill of the moment, and almost no one is assessing it well. The ability to learn, shift, and move forward in ambiguity is as important as any hard skill on a resume.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Culture drives productivity. You can find the best candidates on paper, but if they don't fit the culture, you're wasting your time anyway." - Bruce Nichols

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Bruce Nichols didn't plan on a career in HR. He planned on jumping out of planes for 25 years and retiring at Home Depot. Life had other ideas. After leaving the 82nd Airborne, Bruce fell into recruiting, then into HR leadership, and spent the next few decades inside some of the most complex business environments around, including a $2 billion private equity acquisition where he ended up standing in a pile of soot in a Brooks Brothers suit, learning the most important lesson of his career. Now a Partner at the Human Resources Consortium, Bruce sits down with Colleen to talk about what it actually takes to be a great recruiter, why HR needs to stop playing the policy police, and how understanding a P&L changes everything about how you lead people.


Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters know the business as well as the business does. Deep domain fluency means you are sourcing proactively before the job is even open, not scrambling after a req drops.
  • Culture drives productivity. The most credentialed candidate in the room can be your worst hire if they do not fit how the team actually works. Diligence on culture fit is not optional.
  • HR needs to move from reactive to predictive. Knowing which skills the business will need in three years and building pathways to get there saves money, preserves culture, and makes HR a strategic asset instead of a cost center.
  • Sit with the CFO. If you want a seat at the table, you have to understand the financial mechanics of the business. The numbers are not someone else's job.
  • Adaptability is the skill of the moment, and almost no one is assessing it well. The ability to learn, shift, and move forward in ambiguity is as important as any hard skill on a resume.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Culture drives productivity. You can find the best candidates on paper, but if they don't fit the culture, you're wasting your time anyway." - Bruce Nichols

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 17 Jun 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2156 Bruce Nichols didn't plan on a career in HR. He planned on jumping out of planes for 25 years and retiring at Home Depot. Life had other ideas. After leaving the 82nd Airborne, Bruce fell into recruiting, then into HR leadership, and spent the next few decades inside some of the most complex business environments around, including a $2 billion private equity acquisition where he ended up standing in a pile of soot in a Brooks Brothers suit, learning the most important lesson of his career. Now a Partner at the Human Resources Consortium, Bruce sits down with Colleen to talk about what it actually takes to be a great recruiter, why HR needs to stop playing the policy police, and how understanding a P&L changes everything about how you lead people.


Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters know the business as well as the business does. Deep domain fluency means you are sourcing proactively before the job is even open, not scrambling after a req drops.
  • Culture drives productivity. The most credentialed candidate in the room can be your worst hire if they do not fit how the team actually works. Diligence on culture fit is not optional.
  • HR needs to move from reactive to predictive. Knowing which skills the business will need in three years and building pathways to get there saves money, preserves culture, and makes HR a strategic asset instead of a cost center.
  • Sit with the CFO. If you want a seat at the table, you have to understand the financial mechanics of the business. The numbers are not someone else's job.
  • Adaptability is the skill of the moment, and almost no one is assessing it well. The ability to learn, shift, and move forward in ambiguity is as important as any hard skill on a resume.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Culture drives productivity. You can find the best candidates on paper, but if they don't fit the culture, you're wasting your time anyway." - Bruce Nichols

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson The Urgency of Innovation with Jeremy Cockrell 9 9 The Urgency of Innovation with Jeremy Cockrell full 071ce58c-7e59-42b1-8d31-b8535bf3c9bb https://share.transistor.fm/s/5cff6cf3 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Jeremy Cockrell, Director of Talent Acquisition at Torrent Consulting, a Salesforce implementation partner recently acquired by a global consulting firm. Jeremy shares how he built a hiring machine that moves candidates from the first interview to offer in under two weeks and exactly how he got hiring managers on board to make it happen. He gets into the human centric practices his team swears by, including calling every interviewed candidate personally when delivering a rejection, building a 52 week candidate nurture program, and why he draws a hard line against AI bots for screening. Jeremy brings 14+ years of perspective on what separates good recruiters from truly elite ones.

 

Takeaways:

  • Be creative and curious, not just efficient. Tools like LinkedIn Recruiter and AI are useful, but they won't find you quality talent on their own. The best recruiters go off the beaten path to source candidates nobody else is talking to.
  • Get into the ecosystem, not just the inbox. Attend in person events, engage in community spaces like Trailhead, and have conversations with people you're not actively trying to hire. Your referral pipeline will grow as a direct result.
  • Call candidates you're rejecting. If someone gave you their time in the interview process, give them two minutes on the phone. It builds goodwill that pays back in future hires and employer brand more than any email ever will.
  • Speed is a candidate experience issue, not just an ops issue. Time kills deals. If you want to compete for top talent, align your hiring managers and pre-build your interview calendar so there's no lag between rounds.
  • Build relationships with hiring managers before you need anything from them. In your first month in a new role, get 15 minutes with every manager you can. Once they trust you and you deliver, everything else moves faster.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Being creative and curious to find ways to make it happen is imperative. Not one tool is going to obtain quality talent on its own, especially if you're talking quality over quantity, which is what we should always be talking about." - Jeremy Cockrell

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Jeremy Cockrell, Director of Talent Acquisition at Torrent Consulting, a Salesforce implementation partner recently acquired by a global consulting firm. Jeremy shares how he built a hiring machine that moves candidates from the first interview to offer in under two weeks and exactly how he got hiring managers on board to make it happen. He gets into the human centric practices his team swears by, including calling every interviewed candidate personally when delivering a rejection, building a 52 week candidate nurture program, and why he draws a hard line against AI bots for screening. Jeremy brings 14+ years of perspective on what separates good recruiters from truly elite ones.

 

Takeaways:

  • Be creative and curious, not just efficient. Tools like LinkedIn Recruiter and AI are useful, but they won't find you quality talent on their own. The best recruiters go off the beaten path to source candidates nobody else is talking to.
  • Get into the ecosystem, not just the inbox. Attend in person events, engage in community spaces like Trailhead, and have conversations with people you're not actively trying to hire. Your referral pipeline will grow as a direct result.
  • Call candidates you're rejecting. If someone gave you their time in the interview process, give them two minutes on the phone. It builds goodwill that pays back in future hires and employer brand more than any email ever will.
  • Speed is a candidate experience issue, not just an ops issue. Time kills deals. If you want to compete for top talent, align your hiring managers and pre-build your interview calendar so there's no lag between rounds.
  • Build relationships with hiring managers before you need anything from them. In your first month in a new role, get 15 minutes with every manager you can. Once they trust you and you deliver, everything else moves faster.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Being creative and curious to find ways to make it happen is imperative. Not one tool is going to obtain quality talent on its own, especially if you're talking quality over quantity, which is what we should always be talking about." - Jeremy Cockrell

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 10 Jun 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2454 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Jeremy Cockrell, Director of Talent Acquisition at Torrent Consulting, a Salesforce implementation partner recently acquired by a global consulting firm. Jeremy shares how he built a hiring machine that moves candidates from the first interview to offer in under two weeks and exactly how he got hiring managers on board to make it happen. He gets into the human centric practices his team swears by, including calling every interviewed candidate personally when delivering a rejection, building a 52 week candidate nurture program, and why he draws a hard line against AI bots for screening. Jeremy brings 14+ years of perspective on what separates good recruiters from truly elite ones.

 

Takeaways:

  • Be creative and curious, not just efficient. Tools like LinkedIn Recruiter and AI are useful, but they won't find you quality talent on their own. The best recruiters go off the beaten path to source candidates nobody else is talking to.
  • Get into the ecosystem, not just the inbox. Attend in person events, engage in community spaces like Trailhead, and have conversations with people you're not actively trying to hire. Your referral pipeline will grow as a direct result.
  • Call candidates you're rejecting. If someone gave you their time in the interview process, give them two minutes on the phone. It builds goodwill that pays back in future hires and employer brand more than any email ever will.
  • Speed is a candidate experience issue, not just an ops issue. Time kills deals. If you want to compete for top talent, align your hiring managers and pre-build your interview calendar so there's no lag between rounds.
  • Build relationships with hiring managers before you need anything from them. In your first month in a new role, get 15 minutes with every manager you can. Once they trust you and you deliver, everything else moves faster.

Quote of the Show:

  • "Being creative and curious to find ways to make it happen is imperative. Not one tool is going to obtain quality talent on its own, especially if you're talking quality over quantity, which is what we should always be talking about." - Jeremy Cockrell

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Redefining Recruitment Excellence with Dubi Ben-Shoham 8 8 Redefining Recruitment Excellence with Dubi Ben-Shoham full fda8839a-ae48-4adc-9c1b-352cb28af6e3 https://share.transistor.fm/s/84ec9ec9 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dubi Ben-Shoham, Senior Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Socotra, who has personally hired nearly every employee at his company, all but three. Dubi shares why he hasn't posted a single job in over two and a half years and why he considers that a feature, not a bug. He breaks down his white glove recruiting philosophy, from prepping candidates before every interview to running recruiting training on day one of onboarding. Dubi also gets into the growing threat of resume fraud, how he thinks about AI in the hiring process, and why building trust with candidates and hiring managers alike is the foundation of everything he does. A candid, practical conversation packed with ideas you can put to work right away.


Takeaways:

  • Know the whole business, not just your requisitions. Dubi attends SKOs, product offsites, and all-hands across departments and credits that immersion as one of the biggest differentiators in his effectiveness as a recruiter. The more you understand the business, the more credible and valuable you become.
  • White glove service is for everyone, not just executives. Dubi walks every candidate through exactly who they will meet, what to expect, and even personal background on each interviewer. That level of care is rare, and candidates notice immediately.
  • Stop posting and start sourcing. Fraud, AI generated resumes, and inbound noise convinced Dubi to go fully outbound. His team now sources every hire directly, which frees up time for higher quality conversations and more intentional candidate engagement.
  • Establish trust early with hiring managers by doing the work first. Dubi drafts job descriptions, builds assessments, and creates interview panels before ever sitting down with a hiring manager. That proactive approach earns credibility fast and makes him indispensable.
  • AI belongs in the process, with guardrails. Dubi used ChatGPT to build a full rev ops assessment in 15 minutes, complete with sample data. But he requires candidates to present their work, because the ability to reason through it out loud is the real signal.


Quote of the Show:
"I'm gonna tell you the process, but I just want you to know, it's all downhill after me." -Dubi Ben-Shoham


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dubi Ben-Shoham, Senior Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Socotra, who has personally hired nearly every employee at his company, all but three. Dubi shares why he hasn't posted a single job in over two and a half years and why he considers that a feature, not a bug. He breaks down his white glove recruiting philosophy, from prepping candidates before every interview to running recruiting training on day one of onboarding. Dubi also gets into the growing threat of resume fraud, how he thinks about AI in the hiring process, and why building trust with candidates and hiring managers alike is the foundation of everything he does. A candid, practical conversation packed with ideas you can put to work right away.


Takeaways:

  • Know the whole business, not just your requisitions. Dubi attends SKOs, product offsites, and all-hands across departments and credits that immersion as one of the biggest differentiators in his effectiveness as a recruiter. The more you understand the business, the more credible and valuable you become.
  • White glove service is for everyone, not just executives. Dubi walks every candidate through exactly who they will meet, what to expect, and even personal background on each interviewer. That level of care is rare, and candidates notice immediately.
  • Stop posting and start sourcing. Fraud, AI generated resumes, and inbound noise convinced Dubi to go fully outbound. His team now sources every hire directly, which frees up time for higher quality conversations and more intentional candidate engagement.
  • Establish trust early with hiring managers by doing the work first. Dubi drafts job descriptions, builds assessments, and creates interview panels before ever sitting down with a hiring manager. That proactive approach earns credibility fast and makes him indispensable.
  • AI belongs in the process, with guardrails. Dubi used ChatGPT to build a full rev ops assessment in 15 minutes, complete with sample data. But he requires candidates to present their work, because the ability to reason through it out loud is the real signal.


Quote of the Show:
"I'm gonna tell you the process, but I just want you to know, it's all downhill after me." -Dubi Ben-Shoham


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 03 Jun 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2487 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dubi Ben-Shoham, Senior Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Socotra, who has personally hired nearly every employee at his company, all but three. Dubi shares why he hasn't posted a single job in over two and a half years and why he considers that a feature, not a bug. He breaks down his white glove recruiting philosophy, from prepping candidates before every interview to running recruiting training on day one of onboarding. Dubi also gets into the growing threat of resume fraud, how he thinks about AI in the hiring process, and why building trust with candidates and hiring managers alike is the foundation of everything he does. A candid, practical conversation packed with ideas you can put to work right away.


Takeaways:

  • Know the whole business, not just your requisitions. Dubi attends SKOs, product offsites, and all-hands across departments and credits that immersion as one of the biggest differentiators in his effectiveness as a recruiter. The more you understand the business, the more credible and valuable you become.
  • White glove service is for everyone, not just executives. Dubi walks every candidate through exactly who they will meet, what to expect, and even personal background on each interviewer. That level of care is rare, and candidates notice immediately.
  • Stop posting and start sourcing. Fraud, AI generated resumes, and inbound noise convinced Dubi to go fully outbound. His team now sources every hire directly, which frees up time for higher quality conversations and more intentional candidate engagement.
  • Establish trust early with hiring managers by doing the work first. Dubi drafts job descriptions, builds assessments, and creates interview panels before ever sitting down with a hiring manager. That proactive approach earns credibility fast and makes him indispensable.
  • AI belongs in the process, with guardrails. Dubi used ChatGPT to build a full rev ops assessment in 15 minutes, complete with sample data. But he requires candidates to present their work, because the ability to reason through it out loud is the real signal.


Quote of the Show:
"I'm gonna tell you the process, but I just want you to know, it's all downhill after me." -Dubi Ben-Shoham


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson From Leopards to Leaders with Dennis Ivanov 7 7 From Leopards to Leaders with Dennis Ivanov full 7496825c-1821-4c2e-9824-c62867718fdb https://share.transistor.fm/s/b194bab9 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dennis Ivanov, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Unimacts Global and former Amazon recruiting leader. Dennis has made over 400 hires in under three years with almost no dedicated recruiting team, including several C-suite executive searches, at a company that grew from under $100 million to nearly half a billion. Before any of that, he was tracking endangered snow leopards in Siberia for a National Geographic conservation program. He brings the same fearlessness from the field into every boardroom, and this conversation is full of hard-won, practical insight on what it actually looks like to build a recruiting function from scratch with limited resources, big expectations, and a lot of creativity.
 
Takeaways:
~ Lead with fearlessness. The best recruiters don't wait for permission or comfort. Push past hesitation, speak up with senior leaders, and refuse to settle for "good enough" just because it's easier.
~ Frugality forces creativity. When the budget is tight, look for unconventional solutions first. Printing job ads at bus stops or leaning on state workforce programs can outperform expensive vendors.
~ Build inward before going outward. Post every role internally for a week before hitting the external market. You'll promote hidden talent, boost morale, and cut time-to-fill at the same time.
~ Train your way to scale. If you don't have dedicated recruiters, develop the people you do have. A few months of structured training and shadowing can turn HR generalists into capable recruiting partners.
~ Measure what matters and set a high bar. Don't accept a 70% offer acceptance rate just because it's the industry norm. Commit to aggressive targets around time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and retention, then build the process to hit them.
 
Quote of the Show:
"It's when the deadlines are short and execution is not optional. It has to happen. So that's where the real magic, I believe, happens." - Dennis Ivanov

Links:
~ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisviktorovichivanov
~ Website: https://www.unimacts.com/

Ways to Tune In:
~ Recruiters On The Rise Website: https://recruitersontherise.com/ 
~ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6j8LK95YtqW7ZMU4kwBNgR 
~ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/recruiters-on-the-rise/id1891705495  
~ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7f77aa2-de4c-4e5c-b5de-cfe60fe39c77 
~ iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/328811219/ 
~ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recruitersontherise 

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dennis Ivanov, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Unimacts Global and former Amazon recruiting leader. Dennis has made over 400 hires in under three years with almost no dedicated recruiting team, including several C-suite executive searches, at a company that grew from under $100 million to nearly half a billion. Before any of that, he was tracking endangered snow leopards in Siberia for a National Geographic conservation program. He brings the same fearlessness from the field into every boardroom, and this conversation is full of hard-won, practical insight on what it actually looks like to build a recruiting function from scratch with limited resources, big expectations, and a lot of creativity.
 
Takeaways:
~ Lead with fearlessness. The best recruiters don't wait for permission or comfort. Push past hesitation, speak up with senior leaders, and refuse to settle for "good enough" just because it's easier.
~ Frugality forces creativity. When the budget is tight, look for unconventional solutions first. Printing job ads at bus stops or leaning on state workforce programs can outperform expensive vendors.
~ Build inward before going outward. Post every role internally for a week before hitting the external market. You'll promote hidden talent, boost morale, and cut time-to-fill at the same time.
~ Train your way to scale. If you don't have dedicated recruiters, develop the people you do have. A few months of structured training and shadowing can turn HR generalists into capable recruiting partners.
~ Measure what matters and set a high bar. Don't accept a 70% offer acceptance rate just because it's the industry norm. Commit to aggressive targets around time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and retention, then build the process to hit them.
 
Quote of the Show:
"It's when the deadlines are short and execution is not optional. It has to happen. So that's where the real magic, I believe, happens." - Dennis Ivanov

Links:
~ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisviktorovichivanov
~ Website: https://www.unimacts.com/

Ways to Tune In:
~ Recruiters On The Rise Website: https://recruitersontherise.com/ 
~ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6j8LK95YtqW7ZMU4kwBNgR 
~ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/recruiters-on-the-rise/id1891705495  
~ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7f77aa2-de4c-4e5c-b5de-cfe60fe39c77 
~ iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/328811219/ 
~ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recruitersontherise 

]]> Wed, 27 May 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2206 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dennis Ivanov, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Unimacts Global and former Amazon recruiting leader. Dennis has made over 400 hires in under three years with almost no dedicated recruiting team, including several C-suite executive searches, at a company that grew from under $100 million to nearly half a billion. Before any of that, he was tracking endangered snow leopards in Siberia for a National Geographic conservation program. He brings the same fearlessness from the field into every boardroom, and this conversation is full of hard-won, practical insight on what it actually looks like to build a recruiting function from scratch with limited resources, big expectations, and a lot of creativity.
 
Takeaways:
~ Lead with fearlessness. The best recruiters don't wait for permission or comfort. Push past hesitation, speak up with senior leaders, and refuse to settle for "good enough" just because it's easier.
~ Frugality forces creativity. When the budget is tight, look for unconventional solutions first. Printing job ads at bus stops or leaning on state workforce programs can outperform expensive vendors.
~ Build inward before going outward. Post every role internally for a week before hitting the external market. You'll promote hidden talent, boost morale, and cut time-to-fill at the same time.
~ Train your way to scale. If you don't have dedicated recruiters, develop the people you do have. A few months of structured training and shadowing can turn HR generalists into capable recruiting partners.
~ Measure what matters and set a high bar. Don't accept a 70% offer acceptance rate just because it's the industry norm. Commit to aggressive targets around time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and retention, then build the process to hit them.
 
Quote of the Show:
"It's when the deadlines are short and execution is not optional. It has to happen. So that's where the real magic, I believe, happens." - Dennis Ivanov

Links:
~ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisviktorovichivanov
~ Website: https://www.unimacts.com/

Ways to Tune In:
~ Recruiters On The Rise Website: https://recruitersontherise.com/ 
~ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6j8LK95YtqW7ZMU4kwBNgR 
~ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/recruiters-on-the-rise/id1891705495  
~ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7f77aa2-de4c-4e5c-b5de-cfe60fe39c77 
~ iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/328811219/ 
~ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recruitersontherise 

]]> No Serena Johnson Recruiting Beyond Resumes with James Callender 6 6 Recruiting Beyond Resumes with James Callender full 6d0b7f90-ee7a-473a-98e8-f96d8e84a106 https://share.transistor.fm/s/8a6f2003 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with James Callender, VP of Workforce at EPC and host of the HR View Podcast. James brings a rare blend of experience from manufacturing floors and construction sites to JPMorgan Chase and a conviction that's stuck with him since his first day in HR, if you don't speak the language of business, you can't be a real partner to the people you serve. He shares how radical transparency with candidates leads to longer tenures, why the interview starts the moment someone submits an application, and how he's using AI to drive smarter workforce decisions without losing the human touch. Whether you're recruiting in the field or the C suite, this one hits differently.


Takeaways:

  • Know the business before you know the role. The best recruiters don't just fill seats, they understand how the company makes money, and that clarity helps them identify candidates who can think and operate at that same level. When you truly understand the business, everything else in the recruiting process becomes easier and more intentional.
  • Transparency isn't just nice, it's a retention strategy. James's first job out of college was the worst he ever had, and it shaped a career long commitment to radical honesty with candidates. Telling people the hard truths upfront, the long hours, the difficult dynamics, the real demands of a role leads to longer tenures and fewer regrets on both sides.
  • The interview starts before you ever say hello. From the moment a candidate submits an application or walks through the door, they're showing you who they are. James treats every touchpoint as part of the evaluation because once someone gets the job, the interview camera goes off and you see the real person.
  • AI is a tool, not a replacement for judgment. James is an enthusiastic adopter of AI for report automation, process efficiency, and applicant sorting but he's equally firm that human vetting still matters. Volume without discernment is just noise, and someone has to make sure the technology is working the way it should.
  • Learning only happens when someone wants it. Whether coaching a candidate, developing a team, or running a training, James believes growth is a two-way street. You can build the best program in the world, but if the person on the other side isn't ready to receive it, the knowledge won't stick and that's okay to acknowledge. 


Quote of the Show:

  • “HR used to be like being sent to the principal's office. That's always been my intent, to change that." — James Callender


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with James Callender, VP of Workforce at EPC and host of the HR View Podcast. James brings a rare blend of experience from manufacturing floors and construction sites to JPMorgan Chase and a conviction that's stuck with him since his first day in HR, if you don't speak the language of business, you can't be a real partner to the people you serve. He shares how radical transparency with candidates leads to longer tenures, why the interview starts the moment someone submits an application, and how he's using AI to drive smarter workforce decisions without losing the human touch. Whether you're recruiting in the field or the C suite, this one hits differently.


Takeaways:

  • Know the business before you know the role. The best recruiters don't just fill seats, they understand how the company makes money, and that clarity helps them identify candidates who can think and operate at that same level. When you truly understand the business, everything else in the recruiting process becomes easier and more intentional.
  • Transparency isn't just nice, it's a retention strategy. James's first job out of college was the worst he ever had, and it shaped a career long commitment to radical honesty with candidates. Telling people the hard truths upfront, the long hours, the difficult dynamics, the real demands of a role leads to longer tenures and fewer regrets on both sides.
  • The interview starts before you ever say hello. From the moment a candidate submits an application or walks through the door, they're showing you who they are. James treats every touchpoint as part of the evaluation because once someone gets the job, the interview camera goes off and you see the real person.
  • AI is a tool, not a replacement for judgment. James is an enthusiastic adopter of AI for report automation, process efficiency, and applicant sorting but he's equally firm that human vetting still matters. Volume without discernment is just noise, and someone has to make sure the technology is working the way it should.
  • Learning only happens when someone wants it. Whether coaching a candidate, developing a team, or running a training, James believes growth is a two-way street. You can build the best program in the world, but if the person on the other side isn't ready to receive it, the knowledge won't stick and that's okay to acknowledge. 


Quote of the Show:

  • “HR used to be like being sent to the principal's office. That's always been my intent, to change that." — James Callender


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 20 May 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2223 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with James Callender, VP of Workforce at EPC and host of the HR View Podcast. James brings a rare blend of experience from manufacturing floors and construction sites to JPMorgan Chase and a conviction that's stuck with him since his first day in HR, if you don't speak the language of business, you can't be a real partner to the people you serve. He shares how radical transparency with candidates leads to longer tenures, why the interview starts the moment someone submits an application, and how he's using AI to drive smarter workforce decisions without losing the human touch. Whether you're recruiting in the field or the C suite, this one hits differently.


Takeaways:

  • Know the business before you know the role. The best recruiters don't just fill seats, they understand how the company makes money, and that clarity helps them identify candidates who can think and operate at that same level. When you truly understand the business, everything else in the recruiting process becomes easier and more intentional.
  • Transparency isn't just nice, it's a retention strategy. James's first job out of college was the worst he ever had, and it shaped a career long commitment to radical honesty with candidates. Telling people the hard truths upfront, the long hours, the difficult dynamics, the real demands of a role leads to longer tenures and fewer regrets on both sides.
  • The interview starts before you ever say hello. From the moment a candidate submits an application or walks through the door, they're showing you who they are. James treats every touchpoint as part of the evaluation because once someone gets the job, the interview camera goes off and you see the real person.
  • AI is a tool, not a replacement for judgment. James is an enthusiastic adopter of AI for report automation, process efficiency, and applicant sorting but he's equally firm that human vetting still matters. Volume without discernment is just noise, and someone has to make sure the technology is working the way it should.
  • Learning only happens when someone wants it. Whether coaching a candidate, developing a team, or running a training, James believes growth is a two-way street. You can build the best program in the world, but if the person on the other side isn't ready to receive it, the knowledge won't stick and that's okay to acknowledge. 


Quote of the Show:

  • “HR used to be like being sent to the principal's office. That's always been my intent, to change that." — James Callender


Links:


Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Mastering Talent Acquisition with Hayden Hughes 5 5 Mastering Talent Acquisition with Hayden Hughes full 958abb02-a62b-4eee-a6c5-0b30667ab22f https://share.transistor.fm/s/a6922829 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Hayden Hughes, a talent acquisition veteran. He shares his philosophy on the "meeting before the meeting," why candidate and hiring manager experience are two sides of the same coin, and why any TA leader who thinks they have a couple of years before AI disrupts their work is fooling themselves. A thought provoking, analogy rich conversation you won't want to miss.


Takeaways:

  • Come prepared or don't come at all. The best recruiters show up to intake meetings with market intelligence, silver medalists, and a clear picture of the landscape, much like a great server who recommends the right dish rather than just taking your order. That preparation is what builds trust with hiring managers from the very first conversation.
  • Clarity beats complexity in the hiring process. Rather than adding more interview stages to get a better signal, great recruiters give candidates a clear picture of what the company stands for and what it doesn't  from the very start. A transparent, well structured process respects candidates' time and leads to better mutual fit.
  • If you're waiting on AI, you're already behind. Recruiters who treat AI adoption as something to prepare for later are underestimating how fast the landscape is changing. The ones who will thrive are those who approach it with daily curiosity, lean into the tools, and see it as an opportunity to compound their own value, not a threat to wait out.

Quote of the Show:

  • "They're trusting you with that empty chair that they've got. They're trusting you to fill that role with the right person that's gonna make a difference, that's gonna supercharge their team." — Hayden Hughes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Hayden Hughes, a talent acquisition veteran. He shares his philosophy on the "meeting before the meeting," why candidate and hiring manager experience are two sides of the same coin, and why any TA leader who thinks they have a couple of years before AI disrupts their work is fooling themselves. A thought provoking, analogy rich conversation you won't want to miss.


Takeaways:

  • Come prepared or don't come at all. The best recruiters show up to intake meetings with market intelligence, silver medalists, and a clear picture of the landscape, much like a great server who recommends the right dish rather than just taking your order. That preparation is what builds trust with hiring managers from the very first conversation.
  • Clarity beats complexity in the hiring process. Rather than adding more interview stages to get a better signal, great recruiters give candidates a clear picture of what the company stands for and what it doesn't  from the very start. A transparent, well structured process respects candidates' time and leads to better mutual fit.
  • If you're waiting on AI, you're already behind. Recruiters who treat AI adoption as something to prepare for later are underestimating how fast the landscape is changing. The ones who will thrive are those who approach it with daily curiosity, lean into the tools, and see it as an opportunity to compound their own value, not a threat to wait out.

Quote of the Show:

  • "They're trusting you with that empty chair that they've got. They're trusting you to fill that role with the right person that's gonna make a difference, that's gonna supercharge their team." — Hayden Hughes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 13 May 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2892 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Hayden Hughes, a talent acquisition veteran. He shares his philosophy on the "meeting before the meeting," why candidate and hiring manager experience are two sides of the same coin, and why any TA leader who thinks they have a couple of years before AI disrupts their work is fooling themselves. A thought provoking, analogy rich conversation you won't want to miss.


Takeaways:

  • Come prepared or don't come at all. The best recruiters show up to intake meetings with market intelligence, silver medalists, and a clear picture of the landscape, much like a great server who recommends the right dish rather than just taking your order. That preparation is what builds trust with hiring managers from the very first conversation.
  • Clarity beats complexity in the hiring process. Rather than adding more interview stages to get a better signal, great recruiters give candidates a clear picture of what the company stands for and what it doesn't  from the very start. A transparent, well structured process respects candidates' time and leads to better mutual fit.
  • If you're waiting on AI, you're already behind. Recruiters who treat AI adoption as something to prepare for later are underestimating how fast the landscape is changing. The ones who will thrive are those who approach it with daily curiosity, lean into the tools, and see it as an opportunity to compound their own value, not a threat to wait out.

Quote of the Show:

  • "They're trusting you with that empty chair that they've got. They're trusting you to fill that role with the right person that's gonna make a difference, that's gonna supercharge their team." — Hayden Hughes

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Building Trust in Talent with Brian Fink 4 4 Building Trust in Talent with Brian Fink full a9568db8-2bfa-427e-b92d-651c874de0ae https://share.transistor.fm/s/3cd72bec In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Brian Fink, founder of the Rework Group and self-proclaimed Rush Chairman Emeritus, who has spent his career hunting down the engineers and technical leaders behind the products we all use every day. Brian brings his signature blend of street-smart sourcing wisdom and human-first philosophy to why intentionality separates good recruiters from great ones, how fake candidates are quietly breaking inbound recruiting, and the one question every screening call is missing. He even manages to tie it all back to throwing a Rush event with Run DMC. If you have ever wanted to learn how a seasoned headhunter thinks and shows up for candidates every single day, this one is for you.


 Takeaways:

  • Trust is built in the small moments. Do what you say you're going to do, every single time. Candidates and hiring managers are watching, and one broken promise can shatter everything you've built.
  • Follow up like it's your job because it is. Every Friday, reach out to every candidate you spoke with that week. They deserve to know where they stand before they walk into a new week.
  • End every screening call with this question. Ask candidates if there's anything you missed or should have asked them. You'll be shocked what people share when you simply give them the space to.
  • Stop asking "tell me about yourself." Instead, ask candidates for a two minute snapshot of where they've been and where they want to go. It gives them an on-ramp to tell you what actually matters to them.
  • Not every candidate is the right fit and that's okay. Part of being a great recruiter is knowing when someone is better suited somewhere else. Being honest about that is one of the most human things you can do in this work.

Quote of the Show:

"I want to make sure that candidates are seen and heard. Not treated like pieces on a chess board." - Brian Fink


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Brian Fink, founder of the Rework Group and self-proclaimed Rush Chairman Emeritus, who has spent his career hunting down the engineers and technical leaders behind the products we all use every day. Brian brings his signature blend of street-smart sourcing wisdom and human-first philosophy to why intentionality separates good recruiters from great ones, how fake candidates are quietly breaking inbound recruiting, and the one question every screening call is missing. He even manages to tie it all back to throwing a Rush event with Run DMC. If you have ever wanted to learn how a seasoned headhunter thinks and shows up for candidates every single day, this one is for you.


 Takeaways:

  • Trust is built in the small moments. Do what you say you're going to do, every single time. Candidates and hiring managers are watching, and one broken promise can shatter everything you've built.
  • Follow up like it's your job because it is. Every Friday, reach out to every candidate you spoke with that week. They deserve to know where they stand before they walk into a new week.
  • End every screening call with this question. Ask candidates if there's anything you missed or should have asked them. You'll be shocked what people share when you simply give them the space to.
  • Stop asking "tell me about yourself." Instead, ask candidates for a two minute snapshot of where they've been and where they want to go. It gives them an on-ramp to tell you what actually matters to them.
  • Not every candidate is the right fit and that's okay. Part of being a great recruiter is knowing when someone is better suited somewhere else. Being honest about that is one of the most human things you can do in this work.

Quote of the Show:

"I want to make sure that candidates are seen and heard. Not treated like pieces on a chess board." - Brian Fink


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 06 May 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2757 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Brian Fink, founder of the Rework Group and self-proclaimed Rush Chairman Emeritus, who has spent his career hunting down the engineers and technical leaders behind the products we all use every day. Brian brings his signature blend of street-smart sourcing wisdom and human-first philosophy to why intentionality separates good recruiters from great ones, how fake candidates are quietly breaking inbound recruiting, and the one question every screening call is missing. He even manages to tie it all back to throwing a Rush event with Run DMC. If you have ever wanted to learn how a seasoned headhunter thinks and shows up for candidates every single day, this one is for you.


 Takeaways:

  • Trust is built in the small moments. Do what you say you're going to do, every single time. Candidates and hiring managers are watching, and one broken promise can shatter everything you've built.
  • Follow up like it's your job because it is. Every Friday, reach out to every candidate you spoke with that week. They deserve to know where they stand before they walk into a new week.
  • End every screening call with this question. Ask candidates if there's anything you missed or should have asked them. You'll be shocked what people share when you simply give them the space to.
  • Stop asking "tell me about yourself." Instead, ask candidates for a two minute snapshot of where they've been and where they want to go. It gives them an on-ramp to tell you what actually matters to them.
  • Not every candidate is the right fit and that's okay. Part of being a great recruiter is knowing when someone is better suited somewhere else. Being honest about that is one of the most human things you can do in this work.

Quote of the Show:

"I want to make sure that candidates are seen and heard. Not treated like pieces on a chess board." - Brian Fink


Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Hiring Smarter Not Faster with Stephanie Boman 3 3 Hiring Smarter Not Faster with Stephanie Boman full 04d9b54c-3ecb-4d3e-9867-af9207399cf6 https://share.transistor.fm/s/1ccf27d9 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher catches up with her longtime friend Stephanie Boman, Chief People Officer at LiveRamp. Stephanie brings the real talk on what separates great recruiters from the rest, why she finally convinced her CFO to ditch a clunky ATS, and how she is leading one of the most ambitious AI upskilling initiatives in the game. She also makes a compelling case for why quality of hire is the only metric that should matter and what it actually takes to get there. If you have ever wanted a front row seat to how a seasoned CPO thinks about talent, this is the episode for you.

 

Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters go beyond the job description and develop a deep curiosity about the business, understanding why a hire matters for company strategy right now.
  • Courage is a non-negotiable skill in recruiting. Be willing to tell a hiring manager the hard truth about a candidate, and give candidates honest transparency about where they stand.
  • Stop optimizing for speed and start optimizing for quality. The right hire the first time matters far more than a fast hire, especially when headcount is tight.
  • Front end planning is where quality of hire is won or lost. Structured interviews and predefined evaluation criteria consistently outperform gut feel.
  • AI will not transform your organization, your people will. Invest in upskilling your team so they can use AI to handle repetitive work and move upstream to higher value thinking. 

Quote of the Show:

  • "The best recruiters know the market the way a great salesperson knows their territory." - Stephanie Boman

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher catches up with her longtime friend Stephanie Boman, Chief People Officer at LiveRamp. Stephanie brings the real talk on what separates great recruiters from the rest, why she finally convinced her CFO to ditch a clunky ATS, and how she is leading one of the most ambitious AI upskilling initiatives in the game. She also makes a compelling case for why quality of hire is the only metric that should matter and what it actually takes to get there. If you have ever wanted a front row seat to how a seasoned CPO thinks about talent, this is the episode for you.

 

Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters go beyond the job description and develop a deep curiosity about the business, understanding why a hire matters for company strategy right now.
  • Courage is a non-negotiable skill in recruiting. Be willing to tell a hiring manager the hard truth about a candidate, and give candidates honest transparency about where they stand.
  • Stop optimizing for speed and start optimizing for quality. The right hire the first time matters far more than a fast hire, especially when headcount is tight.
  • Front end planning is where quality of hire is won or lost. Structured interviews and predefined evaluation criteria consistently outperform gut feel.
  • AI will not transform your organization, your people will. Invest in upskilling your team so they can use AI to handle repetitive work and move upstream to higher value thinking. 

Quote of the Show:

  • "The best recruiters know the market the way a great salesperson knows their territory." - Stephanie Boman

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> Wed, 29 Apr 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 1698 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher catches up with her longtime friend Stephanie Boman, Chief People Officer at LiveRamp. Stephanie brings the real talk on what separates great recruiters from the rest, why she finally convinced her CFO to ditch a clunky ATS, and how she is leading one of the most ambitious AI upskilling initiatives in the game. She also makes a compelling case for why quality of hire is the only metric that should matter and what it actually takes to get there. If you have ever wanted a front row seat to how a seasoned CPO thinks about talent, this is the episode for you.

 

Takeaways:

  • The best recruiters go beyond the job description and develop a deep curiosity about the business, understanding why a hire matters for company strategy right now.
  • Courage is a non-negotiable skill in recruiting. Be willing to tell a hiring manager the hard truth about a candidate, and give candidates honest transparency about where they stand.
  • Stop optimizing for speed and start optimizing for quality. The right hire the first time matters far more than a fast hire, especially when headcount is tight.
  • Front end planning is where quality of hire is won or lost. Structured interviews and predefined evaluation criteria consistently outperform gut feel.
  • AI will not transform your organization, your people will. Invest in upskilling your team so they can use AI to handle repetitive work and move upstream to higher value thinking. 

Quote of the Show:

  • "The best recruiters know the market the way a great salesperson knows their territory." - Stephanie Boman

Links:

Ways to Tune In:

]]> No Serena Johnson Hiring Like a Human with Emily Paik 2 2 Hiring Like a Human with Emily Paik full a4af342a-829c-4014-8e76-e6d9f53a5e8a https://share.transistor.fm/s/7bf1e443 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Emily Paik, Senior Recruiter at Kit and writer of the Talent Talk newsletter. Emily shares how she transformed a chaotic, reactive hiring process into a strategic, candidate first operation, achieving 100% positive candidate feedback along the way. She breaks down her approach to communication, the small gestures that make a big difference in candidate experience, and how she thinks about metrics like quality of hire. Emily also opens up about her winding path into recruiting and AI's growing role in the hiring process. A practical, honest conversation you won't want to miss.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up even when you have nothing new to say. Candidates' biggest complaint is being ghosted, a quick check-in with no real update still goes a long way.
  • Learn the product, not just the role. The best impact you can have as a recruiter is deeply understanding the company's product and customers before you start filling seats.
  • Your interview process is your employer brand. How candidates feel during hiring directly impacts how they perceive your company and they'll tell others.
  • Simplify quality of hire. Don't overcomplicate it with fancy algorithms, automated 30/60/90 day manager surveys are enough to give you meaningful, actionable data.
  • Share interview questions in advance. You're not trying to test on the spot thinking you want candidates at their best, and giving them time to prepare gets you there.


Quote of the Show:

  • "Every opportunity I've had has led me to the next greatest thing. Each step of my career has prepared me for the next in a way that I didn't even realize at the time." — Emily Paik


Links:

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilypaik/
  • Website: https://talent-talk.kit.com/8a0ad780b7


]]> In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Emily Paik, Senior Recruiter at Kit and writer of the Talent Talk newsletter. Emily shares how she transformed a chaotic, reactive hiring process into a strategic, candidate first operation, achieving 100% positive candidate feedback along the way. She breaks down her approach to communication, the small gestures that make a big difference in candidate experience, and how she thinks about metrics like quality of hire. Emily also opens up about her winding path into recruiting and AI's growing role in the hiring process. A practical, honest conversation you won't want to miss.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up even when you have nothing new to say. Candidates' biggest complaint is being ghosted, a quick check-in with no real update still goes a long way.
  • Learn the product, not just the role. The best impact you can have as a recruiter is deeply understanding the company's product and customers before you start filling seats.
  • Your interview process is your employer brand. How candidates feel during hiring directly impacts how they perceive your company and they'll tell others.
  • Simplify quality of hire. Don't overcomplicate it with fancy algorithms, automated 30/60/90 day manager surveys are enough to give you meaningful, actionable data.
  • Share interview questions in advance. You're not trying to test on the spot thinking you want candidates at their best, and giving them time to prepare gets you there.


Quote of the Show:

  • "Every opportunity I've had has led me to the next greatest thing. Each step of my career has prepared me for the next in a way that I didn't even realize at the time." — Emily Paik


Links:

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilypaik/
  • Website: https://talent-talk.kit.com/8a0ad780b7


]]> Wed, 22 Apr 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2603 In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Emily Paik, Senior Recruiter at Kit and writer of the Talent Talk newsletter. Emily shares how she transformed a chaotic, reactive hiring process into a strategic, candidate first operation, achieving 100% positive candidate feedback along the way. She breaks down her approach to communication, the small gestures that make a big difference in candidate experience, and how she thinks about metrics like quality of hire. Emily also opens up about her winding path into recruiting and AI's growing role in the hiring process. A practical, honest conversation you won't want to miss.

 

Takeaways:

  • Follow up even when you have nothing new to say. Candidates' biggest complaint is being ghosted, a quick check-in with no real update still goes a long way.
  • Learn the product, not just the role. The best impact you can have as a recruiter is deeply understanding the company's product and customers before you start filling seats.
  • Your interview process is your employer brand. How candidates feel during hiring directly impacts how they perceive your company and they'll tell others.
  • Simplify quality of hire. Don't overcomplicate it with fancy algorithms, automated 30/60/90 day manager surveys are enough to give you meaningful, actionable data.
  • Share interview questions in advance. You're not trying to test on the spot thinking you want candidates at their best, and giving them time to prepare gets you there.


Quote of the Show:

  • "Every opportunity I've had has led me to the next greatest thing. Each step of my career has prepared me for the next in a way that I didn't even realize at the time." — Emily Paik


Links:

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilypaik/
  • Website: https://talent-talk.kit.com/8a0ad780b7


]]> No Serena Johnson From Funnel Focused to Impact Driven: Rethinking Recruiting with Natalie Fink 1 1 From Funnel Focused to Impact Driven: Rethinking Recruiting with Natalie Fink full 77468f88-7d92-47db-ae47-38f05ce677fc https://share.transistor.fm/s/90e23f28 What separates a good recruiter from a truly great one? In the very first episode of Recruiters on the Rise, Natalie Fink, Head of Global Recruiting at LiveRamp, breaks it down simply: curiosity and business acumen. Drawing on more than 15 years of experience, Natalie shares how the best recruiters go beyond filling roles—they deeply understand the business, the challenges teams are solving, and how talent drives outcomes. This shift from transactional recruiting to strategic partnership is what defines recruiters who are truly “on the rise.”


The conversation dives into what it takes to succeed in today’s hiring environment—from managing high application volume and leveraging AI tools to creating meaningful candidate experiences that strengthen employer brand. Natalie also shares practical insights on scaling teams, influencing hiring managers, and evaluating talent in an AI-driven world. Whether you're early in your recruiting career or leading a talent function, this episode lays the foundation for becoming a more thoughtful, effective, and impactful recruiter.


Takeaways:

  • Develop both curiosity and business acumen: The best recruiters understand not just the role, but the business behind it. This means learning how the company makes money, who its customers are, and what problems it’s trying to solve so you can better assess candidate fit.
  • Don’t treat recruiting like a funnel-only process: Focusing only on top-of-funnel or bottom-of-funnel metrics can limit your effectiveness. Strong recruiters think holistically about outcomes—how each candidate moves through the process and what success looks like long-term.
  • Prioritize candidate experience at every stage: Simple practices like timely communication and thoughtful preparation go a long way. Natalie emphasizes quick turnaround times, meaningful prep for interviews, and consistent follow-up to build trust and engagement.
  • Use tools and systems to improve consistency—not replace judgment: Technology can help manage volume, but it should enhance, not replace, human decision-making. Features like delayed feedback and AI-assisted ranking can streamline workflows while still allowing recruiters to stay thoughtful and intentional.
  • Build strong partnerships with hiring managers: Alignment, early and ongoing coaching are critical to avoiding delays and poor candidate experiences. Helping hiring managers make timely, informed decisions improves both hiring outcomes and overall process efficiency.
  • Leverage networks to scale hiring effectively: Especially at senior levels, referrals and networks can accelerate hiring momentum. Each strong hire can unlock additional talent, creating a compounding effect that helps teams scale faster.
  • Hire for adaptability and real-world AI usage: In today’s environment, it’s not just about technical skills—it’s about how candidates use tools and think through problems. Evaluating how candidates interact with AI and navigate ambiguity can reveal critical strengths in judgment and resilience.


Quote of the Show:

  • “The best recruiters don't just understand hiring, but they understand the business that they're hiring for.”


Links:


]]> What separates a good recruiter from a truly great one? In the very first episode of Recruiters on the Rise, Natalie Fink, Head of Global Recruiting at LiveRamp, breaks it down simply: curiosity and business acumen. Drawing on more than 15 years of experience, Natalie shares how the best recruiters go beyond filling roles—they deeply understand the business, the challenges teams are solving, and how talent drives outcomes. This shift from transactional recruiting to strategic partnership is what defines recruiters who are truly “on the rise.”


The conversation dives into what it takes to succeed in today’s hiring environment—from managing high application volume and leveraging AI tools to creating meaningful candidate experiences that strengthen employer brand. Natalie also shares practical insights on scaling teams, influencing hiring managers, and evaluating talent in an AI-driven world. Whether you're early in your recruiting career or leading a talent function, this episode lays the foundation for becoming a more thoughtful, effective, and impactful recruiter.


Takeaways:

  • Develop both curiosity and business acumen: The best recruiters understand not just the role, but the business behind it. This means learning how the company makes money, who its customers are, and what problems it’s trying to solve so you can better assess candidate fit.
  • Don’t treat recruiting like a funnel-only process: Focusing only on top-of-funnel or bottom-of-funnel metrics can limit your effectiveness. Strong recruiters think holistically about outcomes—how each candidate moves through the process and what success looks like long-term.
  • Prioritize candidate experience at every stage: Simple practices like timely communication and thoughtful preparation go a long way. Natalie emphasizes quick turnaround times, meaningful prep for interviews, and consistent follow-up to build trust and engagement.
  • Use tools and systems to improve consistency—not replace judgment: Technology can help manage volume, but it should enhance, not replace, human decision-making. Features like delayed feedback and AI-assisted ranking can streamline workflows while still allowing recruiters to stay thoughtful and intentional.
  • Build strong partnerships with hiring managers: Alignment, early and ongoing coaching are critical to avoiding delays and poor candidate experiences. Helping hiring managers make timely, informed decisions improves both hiring outcomes and overall process efficiency.
  • Leverage networks to scale hiring effectively: Especially at senior levels, referrals and networks can accelerate hiring momentum. Each strong hire can unlock additional talent, creating a compounding effect that helps teams scale faster.
  • Hire for adaptability and real-world AI usage: In today’s environment, it’s not just about technical skills—it’s about how candidates use tools and think through problems. Evaluating how candidates interact with AI and navigate ambiguity can reveal critical strengths in judgment and resilience.


Quote of the Show:

  • “The best recruiters don't just understand hiring, but they understand the business that they're hiring for.”


Links:


]]> Wed, 15 Apr 2026 05:00:00 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 2243 What separates a good recruiter from a truly great one? In the very first episode of Recruiters on the Rise, Natalie Fink, Head of Global Recruiting at LiveRamp, breaks it down simply: curiosity and business acumen. Drawing on more than 15 years of experience, Natalie shares how the best recruiters go beyond filling roles—they deeply understand the business, the challenges teams are solving, and how talent drives outcomes. This shift from transactional recruiting to strategic partnership is what defines recruiters who are truly “on the rise.”


The conversation dives into what it takes to succeed in today’s hiring environment—from managing high application volume and leveraging AI tools to creating meaningful candidate experiences that strengthen employer brand. Natalie also shares practical insights on scaling teams, influencing hiring managers, and evaluating talent in an AI-driven world. Whether you're early in your recruiting career or leading a talent function, this episode lays the foundation for becoming a more thoughtful, effective, and impactful recruiter.


Takeaways:

  • Develop both curiosity and business acumen: The best recruiters understand not just the role, but the business behind it. This means learning how the company makes money, who its customers are, and what problems it’s trying to solve so you can better assess candidate fit.
  • Don’t treat recruiting like a funnel-only process: Focusing only on top-of-funnel or bottom-of-funnel metrics can limit your effectiveness. Strong recruiters think holistically about outcomes—how each candidate moves through the process and what success looks like long-term.
  • Prioritize candidate experience at every stage: Simple practices like timely communication and thoughtful preparation go a long way. Natalie emphasizes quick turnaround times, meaningful prep for interviews, and consistent follow-up to build trust and engagement.
  • Use tools and systems to improve consistency—not replace judgment: Technology can help manage volume, but it should enhance, not replace, human decision-making. Features like delayed feedback and AI-assisted ranking can streamline workflows while still allowing recruiters to stay thoughtful and intentional.
  • Build strong partnerships with hiring managers: Alignment, early and ongoing coaching are critical to avoiding delays and poor candidate experiences. Helping hiring managers make timely, informed decisions improves both hiring outcomes and overall process efficiency.
  • Leverage networks to scale hiring effectively: Especially at senior levels, referrals and networks can accelerate hiring momentum. Each strong hire can unlock additional talent, creating a compounding effect that helps teams scale faster.
  • Hire for adaptability and real-world AI usage: In today’s environment, it’s not just about technical skills—it’s about how candidates use tools and think through problems. Evaluating how candidates interact with AI and navigate ambiguity can reveal critical strengths in judgment and resilience.


Quote of the Show:

  • “The best recruiters don't just understand hiring, but they understand the business that they're hiring for.”


Links:


]]> No Recruiters On The Rise Trailer! Recruiters On The Rise Trailer! trailer 5f4e6a1b-0ea7-4b82-8c10-d82ee15090c3 https://share.transistor.fm/s/ae607ce7 This is Recruiters On The Rise. Join Colleen Gallagher for candid conversations with talent leaders as we explore the work that drives them, the lessons they've learned, and how they're helping people find careers they love. The show is sponsored by Lavalier, an interview intelligence platform built by Textio.

]]> This is Recruiters On The Rise. Join Colleen Gallagher for candid conversations with talent leaders as we explore the work that drives them, the lessons they've learned, and how they're helping people find careers they love. The show is sponsored by Lavalier, an interview intelligence platform built by Textio.

]]> Wed, 01 Apr 2026 07:39:12 -0700 Lavalier Lavalier 23 This is Recruiters On The Rise. Join Colleen Gallagher for candid conversations with talent leaders as we explore the work that drives them, the lessons they've learned, and how they're helping people find careers they love. The show is sponsored by Lavalier, an interview intelligence platform built by Textio.

]]> No