Episodes

Wednesday Jul 24, 2024
Founders Focus - Ep49 - Up close and personal with Steve Bartel, CEO of Gem
Wednesday Jul 24, 2024
Wednesday Jul 24, 2024
Founders Focus is the show where we get up close and personal with the leaders of the businesses changing the way we work today.
Next up is Steve Bartel, CEO of Gem.
- When did you realise you were going to set up a company?
- In what ways does being an engineer help you as a tech CEO?
- In what was does it hinder you?
- What aspects of being a CEO have you discovered to be a strength?
- What areas do you think are not your strongest as CEO?
- If I could ask a former colleague of yours to describe your management style, what would they say?
- Can you describe what your Day in the Life looks like?
- What are the main challenges of recruitment tech founders right now?
- How did you adapt your product roadmap when you saw ChatGPT?
- What do you think will happen to software development if AI continues on current path?
- What do you think recruitment will look like in 2030?
All this and more as we take a deep dive into the business leaders building the technology changing the way we work today.
Ep49 of Founders Focus is supported by Gem
Tired of feeling overwhelmed by the latest recruiting trends? Gem’s 2024 Talent Acquisition Trends report dives straight into the chaos. Why are 55% of companies doubling down on AI and automation? Because they’re tired of wasting time on mundane tasks. How are 68% of recruiters boosting their efficiency? By using smarter tools, not working harder.
Facing data headaches? You’re not alone—34% of organizations are grappling with fragmented systems. It’s time to streamline and get your metrics in order. Want to know more? Download the full report and discover how to turn these insights into action. Get ahead, stay ahead.

Saturday Jul 20, 2024
Saturday Jul 20, 2024
HOW TO ETHICALLY IMPLEMENT AI INTO TALENT ACQUISITION
One of the factors slowing down AI Adoption is justifiable concern on the ethics of AI. How do we ensure that we are not exacerbating bias, privileging one demographic over another and treating human beings as lesser than the machines?
It's been great to see software vendors take the lead in trying find a path forward. A superb how-to guide from our friends Willo was featured in Recruiting Brainfood Issue 399 (free to download, no gate here) and it covered the practical steps required to move from idea to practice.
We all have to get their, so we are using today's Brainfood Live as an opportunity to walk through the guide:
- How AI impacts candidate assessment
- How to Build Trust with Employees
- New TA Infrastructure for the AI-enabled Candidate
- Key areas of recruitment optimisation with AI
- How AI can benefit candidate experience
- How to ensure AI reduces bias rather than exacerbate it
- AI as an EB Co-pilot
- Key AI policies: what is the regulatory environment?
- Privacy, Referencability, Explainability, Humanity
- How to get started: Audit / Analytical framework
- Research and Communication Strategy
- Launch and Implementation
It's a fantastic guide and we're roping in Euan Cameron and Andrew Wood (Co-founders), Willo to walk us through it. Friday 19th July, 2pm BST
Willo is the virtual interviewing platform trusted by thousands of recruiters worldwide. - Receive video responses to your questions remotely, from anyone, anywhere in the world. 1000's of organisations already use Willo to hear from more people, in less time, and never have to worry about scheduling calls or meetings again.
Join them, it is free to get started and we have no setup fees or contracts.
Plus our incredible UK-based support team is available 24/7 to help you transform your interviewing process.

Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
Founders Focus - Ep48 - Up close and personal with Sam Dhesi CEO of Popp.ai
Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
Founders Focus is the show where we get up close and personal with the leaders of the businesses changing the way we work today.
Next up is the CEO of one the new wave of AI-native tech startups which are transforming enterprise recruitment, Sam Dhesi
- When did you realise you were going to set up a company?
- What are the strengths of a founder coming into a new domain?
- How did you assemble the founding team?
- What protocols do you have when you disagree?
- If I could ask a former colleague of yours to describe your management style, what would they say?
- Can you describe what your Day in the Life looks like?
- What are the main challenges of recruitment tech founders right now?
- What do you think will happen to software development if AI continues on current path?
- What do you think recruitment will look like in 2030?
All this and more as we take a deep dive into the business leaders building the technology changing the way we work today.
Tues 16th July 11am BST
Click on the green button to save your spot and follow the channel here (recommended) for further updates
Meet Ellie. She's is a (real) senior talent acquisition leader at one of the world’s biggest technology companies. She's also the Global Recruiter of the Month.
Her secret? Popp AI.
Every month Ellie uses Popp to screen and manage human-like conversations with thousands of candidates, progressing them rapidly through the hiring funnel. She’s delegating her administrative responsibilities to her AI co-pilot, and focussing on where she adds real value - building meaningful relationships with the candidates that count. She’s embracing new technology to transform into a super-recruiter and accelerate her career.
Popp is trusted by some of the most innovative recruiters like Ellie, and some of the most innovative talent teams and staffing organisations, like Zoe and Randstad.
Popp plugs into your ATS or CRM to automate administrative tasks across the recruitment funnel, transforming your recruiters into a hyper-lean, AI-enabled team of super-recruiters, who can accelerate candidates through the recruitment funnel at breakneck speed while delivering a world-class candidate experience.
Popp is a compliant, audited, ethical partner that you can trust to:
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Unlock the value of your CRM.
Popp will automatically deliver personalized interactions to candidates in your CRM to collect their latest information and keep their profiles enriched and updated.
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Screen thousands of candidates in seconds:
Popp can screen thousands of candidates or new applicants at once. We allow you to dynamically change your scoring criteria to look at candidates in different ways and enable you to automatically shortlist the best candidates with detailed reports from our DE&I-compliant AI co-pilot.
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Build next-step automations in minutes:
With Popp, you can easily set up next-step automations - like personalised feedback or role recommendations for unsuccessful candidates, screening conversations for your shortlist, or booking links and document requests for successful interview candidates.
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Converse with candidates on autopilot:
Popp accelerates candidates through hiring processes using personalized and human-like conversations at scale. It takes the average Popp-enabled recruiter less than 9 minutes to set up a campaign to reach out to 1000s of candidates. 24/7, in any language. Popp answers candidate questions, advertises roles, collects docs, and schedules calls. And via high-response channels like SMS and WhatsApp.
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Integrations with your existing ATS/CRM:
We update every candidate profile automatically based on every interaction.
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HitL
Our human-in-the-loop mechanism ensures that AI decisions and outputs are overseen and, when necessary, taken over by a human supervisor. Our AI recognises its shortcomings and automatically notifies human managers when it needs a hand.
”Popp is a platform every company should have, I can imagine endless possibilities in which you can use Popp and make your work run smoothly. Work smarter and not harder.”
Monica - Sourcing Specialist at Philips North America
Get your Popp - book a 30 minute demo with our friendly team today

Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Brainfood Live On Air - Ep263 - Public Speaking Tips for Newbies
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
PUBLIC SPEAKING TIPS FOR NEWBIES: HOW TO DELIVER YOUR BEST RECFEST TALK
Once upon a time, I too was also a reluctant public speaker. In fact, I did not even see the point of attending industry conferences - after all, what did I have to say, what did I have to learn? I am very glad that I accepted the invitation of one Mr Stephen Donaldson to give a talk at one of his events, Bill Boorman, who set up the first (ur) conference I really attended and Sarah Cooper, who by turning up at the door at the same time persuaded me to 'walk in' rather than walk by.
No question: life and career changing - all for the better, as confidence, network, learning and profile have all up levelled. No exaggeration to say that Brainfood would not be here were it not for those early events. I'm keen for others to have the similar opportunity, so hence we're going to do a Brainfood Live on the topic of Public Speaking - in particular, how to get good at it. We're assembling an all star cast of industry professionals who are experienced on stage speakers and trainers.
- What do they know about public speaking that others do not?
- What are the expected feelings prior to the presentation?
- How to build a presentation to enable best delivery?
- What is the best method to control nerves?
- How can a person who is introverted and hates performance, get better at public speaking?
- How body language techniques do we need to know?
- Can breathing techniques help?
- What makes a memorable talk?
- How to make sure you are psychologically level during the presentation?
- How do I deliver the best Recfest Talk next week?
We're with Akbar Karenga, Founder (Maarusi), Sam Berthoud, VP of Talent Solutions (hackajob), Angela Cripps, MD (Recruitment Gym), Christina Robinson, Founder (Green Umbrella), Bill Boorman, Founder (TRU) & friends
Ep263 is sponsored by our buddies The Recruitment Events Co
See you there!

Wednesday Jul 03, 2024
Founders Focus - Ep47 - Up close and personal with Dina Bay, CEO of PitchMe
Wednesday Jul 03, 2024
Wednesday Jul 03, 2024
Founders Focus is the show where we get up close and personal with the leaders of the businesses changing the way we work today.
Next up is Dina Bay, CEO of PitchMe. I do believe this is the first time we have had a Founders Focus with the fellow Alumni of St Andrews University - a moment to celebrate!
- When did you realise you were going to set up a company?
- What was the biggest difference between the world's of research, corporate and startup?
- What skills do you think you have as CEO?
- What areas do you think are not your strongest as CEO?
- If I could ask a former colleague of yours to describe your management style, what would they say?
- Can you describe what your Day in the Life looks like?
- What are the main challenges of recruitment tech founders right now?
- Can you describe what PitchMe is?
- How did you adapt your product roadmap when you saw ChatGPT?
- What do you think will happen to software development if AI continues on current path?
- What do you think recruitment will look like in 2030?
All this and more as we take a deep dive into the business leaders building the technology changing the way we work today.
PitchMe is a data intelligence partner for recruiters who want to improve their performance. PitchMe delivers data intelligence for agencies and in-house teams, streamlining talent discovery with efficient tools. Our end-to-end AI-driven automated hiring solutions cut time and effort, empowering recruiters to prioritize strategic tasks.
The PitchMe suite of tools centralizes, streamlines, and simplifies the end-to-end hiring process, offering a seamless journey from crafting precise and compelling resumes to sourcing top-tier talent and maintaining an up-to-date talent database. Fully automated. Fully integrated. No need to switch between tools or leave your ATS. That means valuable time can be redirected towards more important tasks, such as building new relationships or enhancing those with existing clients and candidates.

Friday Jun 28, 2024
Friday Jun 28, 2024
SKILL BASED HIRING: A CONVERSATION WITH JOHNNY CAMPBELL
One of the first people to really break down to task and activity level was Johnny Campbell. As CEO of market leading hiring training company SocialTalent, his taxonomy of the skills required by a recruiter to perform in their work remains a canonical artefact in the world of talent acquisition to this day.
This is why I was excited to get a DM from Johnny on the topic of Skill Based Hiring - in particular, why we might have cause to pause in our charge to implement a concept which requires greater understanding, definition and modelling before put into the workplace.
We are shifting gears in today's Brainfood Live - instead of a panel, we are going to critically but fairly examine Skill Based Hiring in a 1-2-1 conversation. Expect the following topics to be covered:
- How to define skills that need to hired?
- How to identify those skills pre-assessment
- How to effectively and fairly assess for those skills, in a scalable way
- What is the expected outcome of SBH hiring done well? Do we have any examples of this?
- Is downgrading credentialism risking the downgrading of valuable experience?
- Do we expect greater workforce diversity with Skill Based Hiring? What we do not get this result?
- Where does Skills Based Hiring need to get to before it becomes viable?
Ep262 is sponsored by our buddies Social Talent
SocialTalent is the world’s leading e-learning platform dedicated to hiring and talent management. Hire top talent. Lead Hybrid Teams. Engage and Develop your team. Join thousands of talent leaders using SocialTalent, from companies such as Nokia, WilsonHCG, Cisco and many other leading global firms.
Start your free trial with SocialTalent today

Thursday Jun 27, 2024
Thursday Jun 27, 2024
Founders Focus is the show where we get up close and personal with the leaders of the businesses changing the way we work today.
I'm delighted to be speaking to the one and only Roderick Smyth - serial entrepreneur with multiple exits and now the founder and CEO of Glyde Talent - the AI powered recruitment platform which enables recruiters to source and screen at scale.
- What has changed in product development over the past 20 years?
- Can you describe the history of recruitment tech solutions in this time?
- As a tech orientated CEO, what advantages do you think you have over non-tech CEO's
- What disadvantages?
- As a serial founder with multiple exits, to what do you attribute your success?
- Do you think success compounds?
- What was the most important decision you made as an entrepreneur?
- What was one decision you wish you could take back?
- Over twenty years, what has changed about your leadership style and what has stayed the same?
- How do you get the leadership team right?
- What is one question you always ask when interviewing candidates?
- Why Glyde Talent?
All this and more as we take a deep dive into the business leaders building the technology changing the way we work today.
Ep46 of Founders Focus is supported by Glyde Talent
Glyde is an innovative platform revolutionizing the top of funnel in recruiting using advanced AI. Glyde transforms the candidate experience improving outcomes for candidates and hiring teams at scale. Glyde creates a positive engagement for more talent than any human could, identifies more suitable candidates faster and delivers actionable results to your recruiters.
Want to know more? Get a personalised demo today

Friday Jun 21, 2024
Friday Jun 21, 2024
HOW TO SELECT AND IMPLEMENT AN ATS: A MASTERCLASS
There will come a point in every Talent Acquisition professionals career where you will have to make a decision on which ATS to use. Likely to be the most significant technology decision you'll ever make, it is also - outside of payroll - likely to be the biggest ticket investment that you'll ever have responsibility for also. So how exactly are you meant to go about making such a big decision a success?
- Top 10 things to consider when choosing an ATS
- What is the business requirement
- Who are the users?
- What are you currently using to manage recruitment?
- What are the compliance requirements?
- What performance improvement do we expect to gain by upgrading?
- Have you calculated switching costs?
- Who is impacted by this decision?
- Have you developed a communication strategy?
- Who is the decision maker?
- Where do I source the products?
- How can I validate what vendors say?
- What is the budget?
- How long a contract?
- How do we test the vendor relationship?
- Will I be around long enough to see it through?
All this and more on Brainfood Live on Air. We're with leading industry expert, Patrick Boonstra and on Friday 21st June, 1pm BST
Greenhouse is your all-together hiring platform – built to deeply solve your hiring needs at every stage with intentional tools that support better hiring decisions and deliver better ROI.
Bringing together technology and expertise, scalable workflows from Greenhouse help you connect recruiters, interviewers, hiring managers, and candidates. Use smart sourcing tools to discover and engage top talent, and create organized interview plans that empower your team to make fair hiring decisions. And when new hires start onboarding, you can easily track and manage the process, complete essential to-dos, and orchestrate next steps.
At each stage of hiring, you can set goals and get meaningful insights — so your team can make measurable improvements.
Greenhouse is not just another hiring tool: We’re a strategic partner that delivers value at every step, helping you hire better and achieve business success.

Wednesday Jun 19, 2024
Founders Focus - Ep45 - Up close and personal with Barb Hyman, CEO of Sapia.ai
Wednesday Jun 19, 2024
Wednesday Jun 19, 2024
Founders Focus is the show where we get up close and personal with the leaders of the businesses changing the way we work today.
Next up is Barb Hyman, CEO of Sapia. I had the great pleasure of meeting up with Barb for a coffee in Shoreditch earlier this year and I'm delighted to be able to reconnect with her on her founder story and what exactly made her embark on the journey of recruitment technology entrepreneurship
- When did you realise you had to do Sapia?
- Were you always thinking about becoming an entrepreneur?
- From a UX POV, what are the main differences in being a CEO vs C-level employee?
- How did you start in the HR / TA world?
- Why do you think so few recruitment tech entrepreneurs actually come from recruitment background?
- Do you think this is a problem?
- What have you discovered about yourself as a leader?
- What decisions would you take back if you had the chance?
- Coming from Down Under, what are the main challenges for global breakthrough?
- What recommendations and warning signs would you give to people thinking about tech startup?
- Brand change - why and...did it make a difference?
- What is new with Sapia in 2024?
- How do you think recruitment will change in the next 5 years?
All this and more as we take a deep dive into the business leaders building the technology changing the way we work today.
Sapia’s automated chat lets you interview everyone. And because it’s low pressure, every candidate will bring you their real and best self.
The result? You see the whole person, not just their CV.
Welcome to Sapia, the automated interview solution which enables high volume employers to scale up their interviews, whilst giving job candidates a 95% satisfaction score. Intrigued?
Book a demo today

Friday Jun 14, 2024
Friday Jun 14, 2024
FUTURE OF JOB BOARDS & JOB ADVERTISING (PART DEUX)
The best Brainfood Lives always leave more to be said. Ep254 set new standards for intellectual horsepower, as we discussed GenAI impact on the future of job boards and job advertising. We had such great feedback that we had to bring the crew back to follow up, this time taking things a step further with an examination of 'agentic AI'
- How are job boards responding to AI agents?
- What demands are employers making of job boards?
- At what point do job boards recognise the risk that employers will no longer advertise jobs?
- How do employers identify such risks?
- Where is programmatic job advertising in this story?
- What are the challenges of having peek-a-boo job ads when the application speed from job candidates increases?
- What innovations do we expect to see from candidate side?
- Has anyone actually tested 'AI MassApply'?
- What assessment load should jobs boards take?
- Are agencies and job boards coming together in some sort of digital managed service?
All this and more, with Bill Fischer, CTO (VONQ), Louise Triance, Founder (UK Recruiter),
Josh Willows, Head of Programmatic Sales (Veritone), Alex Chukowski, Advisor (Jobiqo), Steven Rothberg, Founder (College Recruiter), Chris Russell, Founder (RecTech Media) & friends on Friday 14th June, 2pm BST / 9am ET
VONQ simplifies job publishing online, serving over 1,000 top companies, including 25+ Fortune 500 firms. Integrating with over 100 ATS and HCM platforms, we reach 80% of US and EU talent teams. Our network spans +5000 media channels, leveraging automation, data insights, and recruitment marketing to target the right talent efficiently. Recognized by Fosway as a Strategic Leader in Talent Acquisition, VONQ continues to lead in innovative recruitment solutions
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