The Curious Recruiter

And here I was, thinking that I was pretty good at productivity, and that my work experience of 10 years had allowed me to establish some stellar ways of working... But then (plot twist!), when I joined the startup life 4 months ago, I realized that there were still plenty of opportunities to take my productivity skills up a notch. Whether it had to do with making it a habit to challenge status quo, finding more elaborate ways to manage my time and projects, or even learning my way around new tools like Notion and Slack, I went through a great learning period and came out feeling much more comfortable about my ways of working in a fast-moving, hyper-agile startup like Pitch. I’m sure I still have a huge learning curve ahead of me in my new role, but I’d love to fill you in on some of the hacks I learned so far! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/09/e23-productivity-hacks-for-startup-life/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

As a practical follow-up to my very first episode on how to answer Behavioural Interview Questions (and nail pretty much any interview), I thought I’d bring up some additional “Interview Prep 101” pointers. Because preparing for your interview from a content perspective is extremely important, but understanding interview etiquette and avoiding some blatant faux-pas is just as crucial. Listen in to find out what top mistakes you’ll definitely want to avoid when going into any kind of interview, and of course I’ll also dish out some tips on what you can do to shine. Zoom-Interview type advice included, of course! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/06/e22-5-top-mistakes-to-avoid-during-an-interview/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

Feedback - feedback everywhere! Most companies these days are all about the fast feedback culture. There’s many reasons why - mostly because instant, situational and well-delivered feedback is helping individuals to grow, develop and learn from their mistakes. In order to foster this feedback culture, many organizations make a point to teach employees the art of giving feedback. However, we’re not putting enough emphasis on how to actually receive feedback! So in this episode, I want to help you understand what good (and bad) feedback looks like, and also give you 5 tips on how to receive feedback properly. And one thing I’d like to emphasize is that even though feedback is a gift (and many these days feel encouraged to “gift away” whenever possible) - you don’t always have to accept it! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/06/e21-5-tips-around-receiving-feedback/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

Pre-Screens (also known as Screening Calls or Introductory Conversations) are the first touch-point between a candidate and a recruiter, and they are a crucial step to select the best candidates for any given role. The more efficient your pre-screen technique, the more efficient your filtering is. And the better you filter, the better your funnel ratios become - which saves your hiring manager a lot of time on the interviewing front! In today’s episode, we’ll dive a little bit deeper into the art of pre-screening candidates. Calling it an art is no understatement: recruiters and sourcers have to check many different things within a very limited amount of time, while simultaneously selling the candidate on the opportunity at hand. I’d therefore like to share some of my personal tips to help you conduct a pre-screen that helps you tick off the most important boxes whilst remaining engaging and personable! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/05/e20-recruiter-pre-screens-101/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

Whenever there’s a talk about professional growth and development, there’s almost always a talk about wanting to get that next-level promotion, the fancy title and/or becoming a manager. And according to where one stands in their career path, those are absolutely fair aspirations. However, while we’re always hustling to climb that career ladder, we sometimes forget to check ourselves and to evaluate if those targets are actually compatible with who we are, how we’re doing and which environment we’re in. If promotion, bigger title, and/or people management are on your radar, then let this episode be your reality check. Are you set on those goals for the right reasons, and are you approaching them the right way? Let’s explore some unfiltered truths around those themes - from the potential trap of acting too entitled, to the reality of being trapped in an environment that doesn’t actually allow you to shine and grow - and of course, we’ll touch on how to best get to whatever goal you set yourself! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/04/e19-promotions-big-titles-and-people-management/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

This week’s podcast guest, Anna Stimamiglio, is – like many other previous guests – a friend and former colleague I met at Amazon. She is a young recruiting professional who – to date – has worked in no less than 3 countries, and is about to conquer her 4th country, after having recently moved from Canada to Switzerland for a Recruiting role with Deloitte. In less than 5 years, Anna has had a taste of many working environments from start-up to big corporates, and also given many different forms of recruiting a try. However, Anna’s story doesn’t only surprise by her curiosity to seek out diverse experiences and finding her sweet spot. It also surprises by Anna’s truly remarkable ability to deal with professional setbacks, such as having to go through the unnerving motions of a layoff in what seemed like a sure-as-rock role. Or having to question the sustainability of working for a company that isn’t doing so well financially. And finally: having to conquer your inner critical voice in order to gain back the courage to tell your professional story with confidence. So if you can relate to the fact that (work-)life is not just rainbows and butterflies but oftentimes includes challenges and personal growth, have a listen to Anna’s unfiltered and super inspiring recount of her career path to date. One that’s certainly not like the others! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/04/e16-swiss-army-knife-recruiter-anna-stimamiglio/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

When I joined Facebook, I first found it rather funny that recruiters would refer to candidate rejections as “candidate break-ups”. But come to think of it - it’s very fitting, and acknowledges the fact that every candidate rejection involves feelings. Therefore, “break-ups” need to be handled with care and courtesy, and without ghosting! So in this podcast episode, we’ll explore both sides of the story. First we’ll talk about what it’s like to be a candidate who is on the receiving end of a rejection. What should you expect from your recruiter in terms of feedback? How should you behave, and what should you avoid? And last but not least, we will cover how you can move on from the disappointment of being from a job opportunity you were really excited about. And if you are a recruiter who is looking for some additional tips on how to best deal with the unavoidable task of rejecting your candidates in the most courteous fashion, then I’ll have you covered as well. So get your kleenexes ready as we will dive deep into the anatomy of breakup! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/03/e17-candidate-rejections/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

I love nothing more than to exchange with people who are equally as passionate about the world of talent acquisition as I am. So for this episode, I am especially thrilled to welcome guest speaker Roman Zhilyakov, who is a Senior Technical Sourcer at Facebook Israel. His job involves finding and approaching highly passive senior engineering talent across very niche pipelines such as Machine Learning or Android or iOS. He is literally one of the best sourcers I know and had the pleasure of working with! And given that you guys really took interest in the Sourcing vs. Recruiting Episode, it was only natural for me to invite him as the Sourcer poster-child to talk about his day-to-day! We’ll talk about Roman’s career and how he got to where he is now, and also about what it’s like to be a niche sourcer in a big tech company. He’ll also talk us through how he usually sets himself up for success at the beginning of a new search, and how he owns and troubleshoots his pipeline. Top of funnel, pass-through rates, candidate approach methods and candidate ownership – you name it, he will cover it! And beware: Roman is one hecking creative sourcer! So be prepared to hear about a bunch of nifty sourcing tricks and funny sourcing anecdotes! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/03/e16-day-in-the-life-of-a-technical-sourcer-roman-zhilyakov/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In Episode 13 about Briefing Meetings, I let you in on a little (not so secret) secret of mine: preparation is half the battle. One ultra-essential part of this preparation when kicking off your recruitment process should include driving your own understanding of your target universe. In other words: where are you going to start searching for viable talent? In order to drive this understanding in an organized fashion, my absolute favorite thing to do is to draft a Company Target List (or Industry Target List). This helps me lay the foundation of my sourcing strategy, and helps me do my market mapping in a methodical way. Target Lists are basically pieces of market intel than can be used and re-used over time, so it’s never wasted to work on one! If you want to know what the fuss around Target Lists is all about, how to create one, and also how to use it to earn trust with your business stakeholders – have a listen! More resources: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/03/e15-headhunting-101-build-your-target-list/www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In a society where humility is mostly key, and where most corporate cultures tend to overindex on their employees’ development areas and shortcomings, celebrating successes becomes harder and harder. It’s especially difficult considering that the nature of the brain has a preference for remembering the bad things over the good ones… When all of this culminates, some of us are prone to experiencing extreme low self-esteem and the feeling of utter incompetence. This phenomenon has been coined as the Impostor Syndrome by researchers in 1978 and has been studied ever since. What sounds like a bad ailment is fortunately just a counter-productive mindset. In other words: it’s a mindset that can be changed! In today’s episode I’d like to propose 3 easy tips to help you with restoring your self-confidence and overcoming Impostor Syndrome. More resources: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/03/e14-3-steps-to-start-overcoming-impostor-syndrome/www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

Personally, I could spend hours talking about the all the right ways to unearth talent as a corporate recruiter, or about how to best approach candidates, and how to get them sold on a new job opportunity. But all this technical know-how wouldn’t even mean a thing to the best talent hunter on the planet if they don’t really know what profile they are looking for and if the value proposition of the role they are hiring for is unclear. Whether you are a recruiter or a hiring manager – both experienced or new to hiring – you must understand that preparation is half the battle. And there’s nothing better for kicking off a successful recruiting process than a state-of-the-art in-take meeting (aka: briefing meeting or kick-off meeting). This will clearly determine the organization’s setup and hiring needs, and help you establish a strong sourcing (and selling) strategy from the get-go. So to find out exactly how to set the foundations for any upcoming recruitment processes, and how to structure a good intake meeting, just give this new episode a go! More resources: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/02/e13-successfully-kickstart-any-recruitment-process/www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

If you’ve ever told yourself things like "Now’s not the right time for that" or "I’ll never be good enough", then this episode with Anxiety & Procrastination Coach and Time Hacker Vikki Louise will be perfect for you! Vikki is helping people to regain back control when their biggest enemy (their own brain) is bringing them down and keeping them from achieving their goals. In this episode, we’ll talk about Vikki’s career and her coaching program, but also about anxiety, guilt, impostor syndrome and the very paralyzing fear of failing. Those are some very common traits that high-achievers are exhibiting when the stakes are high both professionally and personally. And all of this has been heightened by the circumstances brought about by the current pandemic. So if you want to learn more about how to efficiently deal with all those, then tune in! More resources: @vikkilouise___vikkilouise.comF*ck Anxiety and get Sh*t Done Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/02/ep12-high-achiever-stop-self-sabotaging-with-vikki-louise/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if your work week didn’t feel like you have to scramble to get everything done in time? How wonderful would it be if we had an extra day a week to get everything done? Or even better – wouldn’t it be great to simply get the hang of getting more work done in less time, so that you could use the time you ultimately save on more value-creating tasks? What if I told you that increasing your daily productivity is actually not that difficult? It takes just a couple of habits that you need to build in order to get the right workflow going! I’d like to let you in on a couple of habits I have built over the course of the last years. Those have helped me tremendously when it came to keeping up with a pretty heavy workload in high-pressure environments. And contrary to what you might think, multitasking and relentlessly ploughing through work aren’t on the list, because it’s all about working smarter – not harder! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/01/e11-6-simple-habits-to-boost-your-productivity/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In the last two episodes, I told you everything you needed to know about Job Offers and Salary Negotiation. Those episodes actually prompted quite a number of questions around stock-based compensation, a.k.a. Equity. So in this episode, in order for you to feel more confident with this topic, I’ll try to cover everything you need to know about Equity Compensation, including the wonderful world of Stock Options, RSUs, ESPPs and SARs – and which fine print is associated with each of those stock types. We’ll also cover why more and more companies are shifting to stock-based compensation, and explore the philosophy behind this idea. Last but not least, I want to make a point around the difference between stock issued by private companies (non-listed or pre-IPO companies), and public companies. Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/01/e10-everything-you-need-to-know-about-equity-compensation-stock/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

It takes recruiters less than 7 seconds to decide whether your CV will be moved on to the next stage of the recruiting process, or whether it will be thrown to the proverbial bin. Needless to say, a well-formatted and well-articulated resume is a real must in order to secure the job you want! But many candidates still underestimate the weight of the CV in the recruiting process, and they often have to learn that the hard way! That’s why I’d like to dive a little deeper into the 8 worst CV mistakes you could possibly make in the format and in the content of your CV. And of course: I’ll talk you through how you can successfully avoid them. As a little extra, I’d also like to provide you with 4 “bonus” mistakes! Those errors aren’t talked about as often, but they can negatively impact your credibility just the same! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/01/e09-the-8-worst-cv-or-resume-mistakes/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In this second part of the Job Offer Guide, I will be taking you through how you - as a recruiter - can successfully close a candidate at offer stage. While in the first part (which you can access here) we covered how candidates can best negotiate with recruiting teams, it’s time to talk about the other side of the story! We will cover when exactly the closing process starts (hint: it’s not just right before you make an offer to your candidate) and how to best earn the candidate’s trust by making a fair offer and extending it according to etiquette. I’ll also give you some hints on which tools can help you better sell the opportunity and the company so your candidate will surely sign on the dotted line. And last but not least: we’ll talk about tackling some pesky topics such as ultimatums, lowballing, counter offers and competing offers. Ready to sign your next candidate? Then go ahead and have a listen! Useful links: Amazon.comhttps://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/01/e08-the-job-offer-guide-closing-skills-for-recruiters/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In this podcast episode, which is the first part of The Curious Recruiter’s Job Offer Guide we will be covering everything you (as a candidate) need to know in order to confidently approach your next job offer negotiation with your future employer. And of course: get the result you hoped for! First, I will be covering what to expect from the offer process. Afterwards, I will give you advice on how to best prepare for conversations around sensitive subjects such as current compensation and salary expectations. Finally, we will cover how to best face a situation in which you potentially have to negotiate an offer that was made to you. Have you ever wondered how to not sell yourself short when it comes to stating your salary expectations? How to ask for an increase over your current compensation? What sort of increase can you even reasonably ask for? And how do you navigate a situation where you have multiple offers on the table? If those are questions you’ve asked yourself, then you’ve come to the right place! Useful links: Amazon.comGlassdoor.comNumbeo.com Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2021/01/e07-the-job-offer-guide-negotiation-skills-for-candidates/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

In this episode, we will be talking about “Building your personal brand” with Guy Carmeli - a Senior Android Developer at Wix, but also the creator of the Android-based app Clippit. Early on, Guy’s “extra-curricular” activities and personal interests actually helped him land his first job, and they then became part of his personal brand. That personal brand has since opened many more doors to him, hence why he is a fervent advocate of showcasing all of the cool stuff he does beyond his resume. Through talking about Guy’s story, we will share some insights into other ways to build your personal brand, increase your visibility - and what it takes to do it right. Spoiler alert: it takes a good dose of determination and consistency, but it’s worth the effort. And also: a personal brand doesn’t have to be boring and 100% professional. Building something notable on top of one of your passions (whether it is knitting or mixing cocktails on the weekends) is enough to make you more visible, approachable and relatable to recruiters, even when you are not actively looking. Some more links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-ca/https://twitter.com/GcCarmelihttps://www.wix.engineering/post/how-we-implemented-shared-element-transition-in-react-native-navigationhttps://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.guyca.kippi Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2020/12/e06-building-your-personal-brand-with-guy-carmeli/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

‘Tis the season, folks! The end of the year usually brings about all kinds of festive feelings, as well as the joys of putting together the Christmas dinner menu and (online-)shopping for those last remaining presents. But for most of us out there, there is a Grinch looming behind the freshly decorated Christmas tree, and it has the potential to ruin your entire holiday unless you work hard on ignoring it. I’m talking about the dreaded performance review (also known as self-review)! Maybe it’s your first one having to write one, or maybe you’re already a pro at procrastinating it year after year - but in any case, I wanted to share my tips in order to make this whole thing a little less dreadful. Find out how you can best prepare all the quantitative and qualitative data you need ahead of time (spoiler: not 2 days before the deadline!); how you can tell your story while tying it to the data; how you can talk about your growth areas; and even how to write your self-review when you haven’t been as successful as you would have hope. So don’t delay writing your self-review any further! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2020/12/e05-performance-self-reviews-made-simpler/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message

As the Human Resources and Staffing functions are evolving, and as companies looking for ways to catch the best talent they can, we’ve seen the emergence of new recruitment specialisations, such as Sourcing. So in this episode, I’d like do discuss what the deal is with sourcing and how a sourcer position differs from a recruiter position. However – don’t let the title mislead you: the two roles are not competing. Both roles co-exist (for a good reason), and each role has its own advantages/disadvantages. Choosing the sourcing or the recruiting path is a matter of fit – not a matter of years of experience, or amount of skills! Of course, I’ll explain why! Link to episode transcript: https://www.thecuriousrecruiter.com/2020/12/e04-sourcing-vs-recruiting/ More info on www.TheCuriousRecruiter.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thecuriousrecruiter/message