The Talent Tango

In this episode, Amir Bormand interviews Kelly Kinnard, the Operating Partner and Head of Talent at Khosla Ventures. They discuss the importance of improving the candidate experience and avoiding pitfalls in the hiring process. Kelly shares insights and strategies for creating a positive candidate experience and highlights the mission of Khosla Ventures to invest in companies that positively impact society. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to enhance their hiring practices and create a better experience for job candidates. Highlights: 00:07:49 Candidate experience is crucial. 00:11:26 Long hiring processes hinder success. 00:16:03 Communication is key for candidates. 00:22:46 Candidate experience is crucial. 00:28:35. Candidates don't get better, they get different. 00:29:03 Treat candidates like external customers. Guest: Kelly Kinnard is an Operating Partner at Khosla Ventures, where she leads the talent team to advise our portfolio companies and helps recruit senior executives. Prior to joi

In this episode, I am joined by Jose Benitez Cong, the VP of Talent and Culture at Humane. We discuss the importance of managing the candidate experience and shifting away from a yes or no mentality in the hiring process. Jose shares insights on how to approach talent acquisition strategically and the value it brings to organizations. We also learn more about the company, Humane, which is set to reveal more on November 9th. Tune in to gain valuable insights on improving the hiring experience and fostering a mindset shift in talent acquisition.   Highlights:  [00:02:14] Rethinking the impact of devices. [00:06:13] Hiring with confidence. [00:09:05] Extracting value from "no" decisions. [00:14:04] Creating a hiring strategy. [00:18:07] Going back to the beginning. [00:20:43] Lessons learned from mistakes. [00:24:13] Recruiting as sales vs. engineering. [00:30:05] Optimizing the hiring process. [00:33:09] Approach every new search from a forensic perspective. [00:36:53] Structuring a business for success. --- Gu

In this episode, Adriana Roche, Head of Talent at Uncork Capital, joins Amir Bormand to discuss the importance of getting back to basics as people leaders. She shares insights on the fundamentals companies should focus on during lean times and highlights healthy people practices for early-stage startups. Uncork Capital, a seed investor, has been supporting startups for almost 20 years and invests in a range of technology companies, including consumer, marketplace, frontier, and B2B SaaS. Tune in to gain valuable perspectives on building successful teams and nurturing early-stage companies. Highlights: [00:02:32] Getting back to basics. [00:06:07] The reactive nature of HR. [00:08:00] Metrics in talent and sales. [00:12:56] Surveying stakeholder needs. [00:15:23] Grabbing a seat at the table. [00:18:37] Healthy people practices. [00:26:23] Building with stakeholder input. [00:28:29] Tough conversations and disagreeing. Guest: Adriana Roche has seen firsthand many of the team-related issues startups face. She j

n this episode, Amir Bormadn interviews Suzanne Crettol, Head of Talent Acquisition @ CommerceIQ, about streamlining processes. Suzanne shares her consultative approach to talent acquisition, emphasizing the importance of listening, assessing, and leading appropriately. She discusses her background in retail operations and sales and how it has shaped her perspective on building teams and processes. Tune in to learn more about streamlining processes and the underutilization of ATS. Highlights [00:01:27] Importance of listening in recruitment.  [00:06:40] Metrics in talent acquisition.  [00:08:10] Building a repeatable process.  [00:14:35] Underutilization of ATS.  [00:15:31] LinkedIn as a recruiting tool.  [00:19:11] Timing and reaching out to candidates.  [00:22:05] Always staying ahead in hiring.  [00:28:34] Using analytics for recruitment. Guest: Suzanne Crettol is a skilled eCommerce recruitment expert who specializes in connecting exceptional talent with the right career opportunities. She takes a consult

In this episode, host Amir Bormand interviews Rich Adao, the Head of Talent at Anyscale. They discuss various aspects of recruiting, including the market, hiring managers' perception of the market, and the state of recruitment and recruiters. Rich shares his responsibilities as the head of talent and how his team recruits top talent for engineers, product managers, marketers, and salespeople. Tune in to gain insights into the world of recruiting and the challenges faced in finding the right talent. Highlights [00:01:03] Responsibilities of a head of talent.  [00:05:31] Retaining top talent during COVID.  [00:09:31] Educating hiring managers.  [00:12:09] Hiring for long-term value.  [00:16:46] Paired sourcing and training.  [00:18:21] The craft of recruiting.  [00:21:20] Choices in your career.  [00:25:01] Improving your pitch better.  Guest:  Rich Adao is currently the Head of Talent at Anyscale, a tech startup in San Francisco focused on helping companies scale their AI and ML applications (they're hiring!).

In this episode, Joe Doyle, the Director of Talent Acquisition at Harness, joins the show to discuss the topic of leverage within talent acquisition. Joe shares insights on the ebb and flow of supply and demand in the hiring market, especially during times of booms and busts. He emphasizes the importance of being proactive and prepared for these cycles, even though it may be challenging to anticipate them. Tune in to gain valuable insights on navigating hiring trends and planning for success in talent acquisition. Highlights: 00:01:16 Leverage in talent acquisition. 00:08:28 Remote work has changed salary dynamics. 00:11:26 Leverage in job market is shifting. 00:20:03 Searching for the “right” hire 00:25:21 Clear hiring criteria is essential. 00:29:10 Adjusting talent acquisition during downturn. Guest: Joseph Doyle is a global recruiting leader for Harness.io, a modern software delivery platform and hyper-growth startup. Prior to Harness, Joseph helped grow AppDyanmics from 150 - 2000 employees prior to t

In this episode, Beth Scheer, Talent Partner at Homebrew, talks about the drivers for hiring a coach and what to look out for while going through the process. Key Takeaways: Why would a founder should look for a coach? Big commitment to hiring a coach Make sure you do a reference check with people the coach has worked with the right questions are a must. A good coach for someone else might not be the right coach for you How to interview a coach Costs of hiring a coach Red Flags to look for when hiring a coach About today’s guest:  At Homebrew, Beth Scheer works closely with founders and their executive team members as an advisor on all things Talent-related, including recruiting, diversity & inclusion, compensation, onboarding, and people operations. Before Homebrew, Beth spent 5+ years at Salesforce leading executive search, sales leadership search and the sales growth/professional services recruiting teams. Before that, she built the Google AdSense team in 2003 and then spent 6 years hiring for busine

In this episode of the podcast, the host interviews Anna Chalon, Head of People at Runway, a content creation platform powered by machine learning. The discussion focuses on building a feedback culture, with Anna defining it as ingrained in the day-to-day without additional efforts. Topics covered include the benefits of a feedback culture, the steps to building one, and lessons learned from implementing it at Runway. The episode offers insights into creating a healthy culture where employees can learn, grow, and thrive. Highlights: [00:01:51] Feedback culture defined [00:04:13] Demystifying feedback culture. [00:08:06] Giving and Receiving Feedback. [00:11:44] Giving constructive feedback. [00:17:10] Radical candor and feedback. [00:19:27] Psychological safety and inclusion. [00:23:24] Company culture and feedback. [00:29:26] Feedback training in triads. [00:31:37] Giving Feedback and Validation. [00:35:08] Feedback culture in relationships. [00:40:03] Culture of remote vs hybrid. Guest: Anna Chalon is origi

Host Amir Bormand meets with Trish Pandya, the Senior TA Manager at Alluxio. She and Amir discuss the significance of mentors - and how forming a meaningful connection with the right mentor can help you grow professionally and personally. Highlights 3:12 - Trish shares why she began to search for a mentor. 8:29 - What qualifies someone as a mentor? 14:13 - How to know if mentorship is or isn’t working for you. 18:48 - Trish offers her insights on becoming a better mentor to her team. Guest: Trish Pandya is a Talent Acquisition Leader with 10 + years of experience in the San Francisco Startup Arena as a recruiter for startups that empowers minorities, including the female, minority, and underrepresented communities in the San Francisco Bay Area, and aspires to do this nationwide. She is currently the Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition at Alluxio, which is an open-source data orchestration software for the cloud for enterprise companies.  She aspires to spread the word with a twisted sense of humor about her

On this episode of The Talent Tango, host Amir Bormand talks with TA Leader Elena Stefanopol about recruiting strategies. The two explore subjects like velocity and data-driven hiring as well as working on a remote/international team. Highlights: 05:09 - Elena shares how she’s used metrics to remain efficient during a mass hiring phase. 07:52 - Know when it’s time to hire externally. 12:07 - Here’s how a structured interview process can benefit hiring managers. 18:04 - Maintaining morale when there’s a reduction of your workforce. 22:58 - Talent Debt is real. Here’s how to deal with it. Guest: Elena Stefanopol is a talent acquisition leader with a passion for establishing recruiting functions from the ground up and building strong inclusive global teams. Her experience spans various industries and geographies, having worked in both Europe and the US with non-profit, tech, and gaming companies. Before joining Labelbox 2 years ago to build the internal recruiting function, she led recruiting for Airbnb’s R&

In this episode of The Talent Tango, our host Amir Bormand meets with Andrew Zuckerman, talent leader. Talent Acquisition strategy is the main topic; Amir and Andrew discuss the importance of properly timing talent acquisition initiatives and supporting them with a strong product roadmap. Highlights: 00:03:00 - Andrew Zuckerman discusses the steps his talent acquisition team takes when staffing fast-growing companies and startups. 00:05:48 - What qualities should you look for when hiring talent for entry-level/low-skill roles? 00:08:45 - Andrew shares his strategy for determining if a candidate can grow into a new role. 00:13:59 - When should you hire contractors, and when should you hire salaried employees? 00:16:16 - Building an effective leadership team without overextending yourself or your resources. 00:22:17 - Andrew shares the benefits of managing his Talent Acquisition Team like a Product Team. About Andrew Zuckerman: Andrew Zuckerman is a leader in people operations for high-growth, venture-backed te

In this episode, Krystal Cooper Head of People Operations at Vizion, talks about building out the people ops function from scratch. Key takeaways: Look at a fractional CHRO if you aren’t growing past a certain size Compliance and legal aspects of people ops When should you start a people ops function  Where do you start How much is too much to implement? Making sure benefits are equitable  Moving fast but doing things right  Focusing on buy-in and process About today’s guest:  Krystal Cooper brings over 15 years of People Operations experience as a servant leader and business partner, specializing in supporting the growth and transformation of organizations while fostering an entrepreneurial culture built on trust, employee development, individuality, and making employees feel valued.  She has partnered with startups from Seed to D-round funding and mid and large-size businesses, helping them scale their organizations. She has developed and implemented key initiatives that directly impact employee engagemen

In this episode, Brian Bailey, Sr Manager of Technical Recruiting at Achieve, discusses how to manage a fully remote technical recruiting team successfully. Key takeaways: Re-evaluating mentoring and onboarding process. Delivering training when bandwidth is limited Break up training into smaller increments Be approachable to create safe spaces to discuss things Balancing autonomy and accountability (via OKRs) Four relationship-building characteristics. About today’s guest: Brian Bailey Dynamic and Energetic Technical Recruiting Leader with 17 years of experience in staffing and recruiting.  He has the mindset of getting things done the right way and partnering with hiring leaders to hire and find the best technical talent. Brian enjoys traveling with his family, playing soccer and golf, and being competitive in anything he does. Brian has worked in the staffing industry, the fintech industry, and the SaaS space. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianibailey/ ___ Thank you so much for checking out this

Key takeaways: Monthly calendar of planned Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion events Getting employee engagement Finding events that work within a remote setting Lessons learned and what has/hasn’t worked Meet: Katie Conti is a senior talent acquisition professional with 20 years of experience in resource management and recruiting.  Working with a belief that understanding the business is the key to truly collaborating and partnering, she looks to have Talent Attraction be a strategic part of an organization’s success. She is currently focused on building a diverse, robust five-star healthcare IT talent pool at HealthEdge. Katie’s passion for building teams and impacting culture with every hire is evident. You can connect with Katie via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-conti I hope you enjoyed the episode, the best place to connect with me is on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirbormand (Amir Bormand). Please send me a message if you would like me to cover certain topics with future guest

Key takeaways: -Too much process can get in the way of positive candidate and recruiter experiences - Understanding the “why” helps in adopting new processes  - Making sure what is put in place meets company goals and is done with purpose Meet: Nadine Silverman has over 14 years of talent acquisition experience, including leadership experience ranging from hyper-growth startups to global Fortune 500 companies. She is currently the Head of Talent Acquisition at Freenome, a biotech startup on a mission to prevent cancer through early detection by a simple blood test. Prior to Freenome, Nadine worked for companies including Symantec, Facebook, Tesla, and SolarCity. You can connect with Nadine via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadineabichahine/ I hope you enjoyed the episode, the best place to connect with me is on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirbormand (Amir Bormand). Please send me a message if you would like me to cover certain topics with future guests.

Key takeaways: Focusing on community and not culture  Eliminating the usage of the term “culture” People that are outside the box It’s not about fitting, but rather a community add Meet: Erin McCann is the Vice President, People Operations for SevenFifty, a fully distributed organization that is modernizing the beverage alcohol industry.  Erin is a SHRM-CP, and in her current role, she leads the People function and all its components (hiring; onboarding; talent management; DEI and Community; coaching; performance management; HR). With a background that spans customer success, SaaS integrations, sales, and marketing, Erin is well-versed in most aspects of company operations. She started her career in hospitality and has landed in the ever-changing world of B2B SaaS startups. You can connect with Erin via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/eehubbs/ I hope you enjoyed the episode, the best place to connect with me is on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirbormand (Amir Bormand). Please send me a messa

Key takeaways: Don’t undervalue your “other”  experiences Talent professionals need to battle bias Leveraging a cover letter to convey more context  Reentering the workforce and compensation Meet: Candi Kenney leads the awesome Talent Acquisition Team at Clari. With over 15 years of recruiting experience and a Human Resources background, she knows first hand how to be an effective, strategic talent partner. Candi has a passion for helping others find their passion as well as driving positive change across Talent and Hiring teams. You can connect with Candi via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/candikenney/ I hope you enjoyed the episode, the best place to connect with me is on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirbormand (Amir Bormand). Please send me a message if you would like me to cover certain topics with future guests.

Meet: Jeff Hopkins has 7 years within the talent acquisition space across agency and internal. Currently leading the build-out of talent acquisition within a growing health tech start-up called Nomad Health. A firm believer that kindness is the most important characteristic for success within a people function. You can connect with Jeff via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jchopkins/ I hope you enjoyed the episode, the best place to connect with me is on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirbormand (Amir Bormand). Please send me a message if you would like me to cover certain topics with future guests.

Meet: Fiorella Bariani, Head of Recruiting, at Flatiron and has been with the company for 6 years. Fiorella has been helping to build teams since Flatiron was just under 100 employees (currently ~1k employees). Prior to joining Flatiron, Fiorella worked at another mission-driven company focused on education technology. Prior to working in Recruiting, Fiorella was a mental health counselor, focusing on working with populations across underrepresented and low socioeconomic groups. Fiorella has an MBA from Baruch College and has a Masters in Psychology from Adelphi University. 

Meet: Marissa Parillo is passionate about building scalable recruiting programs, hiring high-performing teams, and navigating through the challenges of hyper-growth phase organizations. She is the Senior Director of Business Recruiting at Datadog, a SaaS monitoring, and security company, overseeing global recruiting for sales, pre-sales, marketing, and G&A.  As the first recruiter on the ground at Datadog, she has built a recruiting team who has contributed to more than 17x growth of Datadog seeing them grow from 120 people to over 2200 people worldwide.    You can connect with Marissa via LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/parillorecruit/