The Hidden ROI of a Strong Talent Acquisition Partner

HOST: We are ready for the 24th episode of Talking Talent. In this episode, I am joined by my friend Mallerie Plank, a talent acquisition leader with a wealth of experience in startups within the tech space.

We discuss how talent acquisition can function and make itself most valuable in growing companies where there may be ambiguity. I hope you enjoy the episode.

Hello everyone. Thank you for joining us for the 24th episode of Talking Talent.

The goal is to have an episode every month, but after a break in July and August, this one will likely come out in September. If you enjoy this, please tell your friends and coworkers about it.

It is a great resource for anyone who appreciates conversations about people, talent, and what is happening in HR and talent acquisition. You can subscribe on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts.

You can also visit the Cordia Resources or Cherry Bekaert website. It feels like fall here in the DC area, and projections suggest we will have nice 70 to 80-degree days for the next couple of months.

Today, I am excited to be joined by Mallerie Plank, a highly respected talent acquisition leader. She has over 10 years of leadership experience.

I have known Mallerie for over three years and assisted her as a candidate when she joined Axios in 2022. She was also recently the Head of Talent Acquisition at Guidewheel.

Her time there wrapped up this month, and she is starting something new in September. Mallerie, please give everyone an idea of your background.

MALLERIE PLANK: Thank you for having me, Sam. I have been in this talent acquisition space for over 10 years.

I have always maintained a scaling startup mindset. Outside of starting in staffing agencies with Aerotek, I found my love for building and scaling at Townsquare Interactive.

I was there for almost eight years and built that department. Then you introduced the Axios and Axios HQ opportunity, which was career-changing for me.

Recently, I stepped in to lead and build talent acquisition at Guidewheel. It was a wild ride where I learned a lot about manufacturing SaaS and met great people.

I will start a new adventure at the end of this month. Along the way, I have also provided fractional support.

I love working with stakeholders to help companies get their footing regarding talent acquisition processes and defining what "good" looks like. Even after the wild rides in the tech startup landscape, I am not getting off the roller coaster yet.

HOST: In the world of recruiting, you can take a linear path with stable companies where you know what to expect. There are pros and cons to all industries.

Then there are people like you who are willing to take risks and are excited about growth and newly created roles. How does someone in a leadership role make themselves most valuable in startups and growth companies?

MALLERIE PLANK: You have to learn the business. You cannot come in with the mindset that you are only there to hire people.

When you join a startup, you wear multiple hats. I joke that you can call me the custodian because I just want to join a winning team where I can make an impact from the beginning.

You can do that at startups if you put yourself in the right spots and ask the right questions. You cannot be afraid to voice an opinion or a critique professionally.

Do not be afraid to challenge the status quo if you can back it up with data and a strong work ethic. I will outwork anyone in the room, and that is what a startup requires.

Early in my career, I sat in meetings at bigger companies where we talked about the next meeting to plan the next meeting. I learned quickly that I did not want my career to be that.

You have to be credible and put your money where your mouth is. Ask the CTO and CEO about their vision and how you can make an impact. Getting buy-in from stakeholders is step one.

HOST: I have conversations with candidates and less experienced people who have never managed teams. Sometimes leaders are apprehensive about when to bring a full-time recruiter on board.

They are hesitant to dedicate a salary to a W2 employee for this function. I know this has happened in your career: things are exciting with many open roles, and then the requisitions dry up.

What have you learned about how your job changes when that happens?

MALLERIE PLANK: That has happened to me more than once. Sometimes you do such a great job that you fill more roles than the business currently needs.

It goes back to being a business partner. You must understand what the business needs and where your skills align at that time.

At a past company, when hiring slowed down, I used it as an opportunity for job enrichment for my team. One person wanted to get into leadership, so we used that time for him to mentor junior individuals.

Another had a passion for candidate experience and employer branding. We used the extra time to build a beautiful candidate deck that enhanced the experience.

I also used that time to help build a compensation philosophy and get involved in a total benefits revamp. I wanted to be a utility player in the people space overall.

Recently, I helped build a new department in the Business Development Representative space called an ambassador program. Recruiters are naturally salespeople, so I leaned into that business need.

I also covered for someone on maternity leave. I focused on how the business could benefit from my skills outside of building talent acquisition processes.

HOST: In larger, segmented companies, you are often kept in your lane and not exposed to the whole business. You used the term "business partner," which we usually hear in the context of human resources.

We also talked about selling. People think you are just selling a job to a candidate, but you are also selling the candidate to a hiring manager.

How have you developed those skills to be successful in that world?

MALLERIE PLANK: The talent acquisition profession allows you to understand every department because you are hiring for them. You talk to every senior leader and decision-maker.

You have a better holistic view of the business than someone in engineering or marketing might. You are often privy to more information because you are a part of the HR department.

I use that exposure to help sell an opportunity. I cannot sell anything I do not believe in, and I think most talent acquisition professionals feel the same way.

You make the story make sense to yourself and then help it make sense to candidates. You can sell an early-stage startup or a company on the verge of an IPO.

With stakeholders, you understand what excites them. You can tailor how you position a candidate based on the value they bring to that specific department and the business as a whole.

Everything comes back to being a business partner. You find candidates who get excited about the same things the stakeholders do.

Earn trust by keeping information confidential. I have seen it backfire when professionals use insider knowledge for their own benefit.

HOST: It is about being curious and asking to listen in on leadership meetings. The more curious you seem, the better.

Talent acquisition roles are positioned differently in every organization. I hear from HR leaders that they do not always feel their function is valued.

If you were hired for your expertise, you want to be able to show that. You do not want to just check boxes on a job description without being creative.

MALLERIE PLANK: You should not join this profession if you want a thank you every day. It can be a thankless, hard, and emotional job because your product is human beings.

Humans are unpredictable and there are emotions on all levels. You have to figure out what motivates you intrinsically and find gratification in that.

I have worked for companies that value talent acquisition, but we had to earn our stripes to get to that point. It was not like that from the beginning.

HOST: In startups and high-growth companies, there is a question of when to hire a strategic leader versus a junior recruiter. What are the pros and cons of both?

MALLERIE PLANK: It depends on the stage of the business. If you have a lean team, you need someone who does not require hand-holding.

Experience brings the stakeholder management skills necessary to build a talent acquisition process. For early-stage startups without many resources, the pros of a senior hire usually outweigh the cons.

You need someone who has done it before to help the company grow and raise subsequent funding rounds. However, that comes with a higher cost.

If you are only looking one or two quarters in advance, you might not be ready for a senior person. A mid-level recruiter can fill requisitions.

If you are looking at the long haul, you need a business partner who can push back. They might tell you that you only need four heads instead of six.

If a founder already knows what a good process looks like, there is value in a junior person who can execute the framework. It is very situational based on who is leading the business.

I have been in category creation for two businesses, which is a different element. You cannot just pull from competitors, so you have to partner with the business to refine the pitch.

HOST: I have spoken with clients where the hiring process is a mess because everyone is doing their own thing. It is a big job to ask one person to come in and understand the business and the people.

It is hard to do that with only a few years of experience. Even a good recruiter needs to understand how companies work to operate at a high level.

MALLERIE PLANK: The remote world also changes things. I was exposed to many senior leaders early in my career, which shaped me.

You can get that in a remote space if you seek it out. We are starting to see a pivot in individuals who graduated into a remote-first world.

I read an article stating that a majority of that demographic does not want leadership opportunities. As professionals, we have to be aware of these statistics to influence our stakeholders.

What worked 10 years ago is not necessarily what this generation of employees wants. We have to provide what they are looking for.

HOST: We could do a whole episode on AI and data. What has been your experience using AI and systems together to hire large numbers of roles?

MALLERIE PLANK: It helps if used correctly. Candidates are using it, too, so we have to use our resources to create the right descriptions and attract talent.

I worry that people are building resumes just to get through AI screeners rather than telling their stories. We are also seeing an influx of fake candidates.

We have to figure out how to make AI a benefit rather than a detriment. It plays a great role in the front half by helping to streamline resumes.

We cannot rely on AI to write descriptions entirely; we must iterate on them. However, it saves the manual time I used to despise.

I am interested in using AI to match features to job descriptions and score candidates. The human aspect is still vital because I am hiring an engineer, not a resume writer.

I care more about the conversation than the format. AI helps save the team's effort.

Notetakers that match specific requisitions are also huge. AI isn't perfect at ranking answers yet, but it is helpful.

I started when we used clipboards and paper resumes. Now, having notes automatically transferred to a system allows me to be more engaged in interviews.

HOST: People get comfortable doing things a certain way, but change is necessary. Is there a software or system you wanted to implement but faced pushback on due to cost?

MALLERIE PLANK: I usually find the time to research tools when requisitions slow down. Often, that coincides with budget cuts where nothing is being approved.

ATS platforms are expensive, and hiring is expensive in general. However, I am excited about my new role because they have already implemented some of the tools I was looking at.

HOST: What advice do you have for recruiters regarding skills that are outside the box?

MALLERIE PLANK: Learn to do roles that aren't just recruiting. Learn how to tell a story.

Tell the story of the business to candidates and tell a story to stakeholders when a resume isn't perfect. You have to get your audience hooked, but you must back it up with data.

In the past, data was limited to time-to-hire. AI will help us reach new levels with data.

The business does not care how you feel; it cares what the data tells. Use data to tell the story of how you feel so you can become an influencer.

Influence the business to make the right decisions. Also, do not be afraid of technology.

We are in a pivotal time. Those who adapt will thrive over the next 10 years, and those who do not will be forced to find new career paths.

AI will not replace our jobs, but it will leave behind people who do not learn how to implement it. Go play around with the tech; you cannot break the internet.

HOST: I am a decent storyteller, but the tech part overwhelms me. I am worried I will break it.

I know it isn't going away. Every department will change because of AI, especially talent acquisition.

MALLERIE PLANK: We will be one of the first industries truly affected. Our headcount might be limited because AI can handle some tasks.

The people who use it to become more efficient will be the ones who thrive at the end of it.

HOST: I will let you go. Labor Day is approaching and fall is here. I assume it is also nice in Charlotte.

MALLERIE PLANK: I need a little more summer before the trees change. The weather looks cozy for Labor Day here in Charlotte, so we will at least get to be outside.

HOST: I hope you have a few more weeks of good weather before starting the new job. Thank you again for joining me.

MALLERIE PLANK: Thanks for having me, Sam.