Shally Steckerl sits down with fellow sourcing pioneer Jim Stroud for a no-BS conversation about the real impact of AI on recruiting, the economic forces reshaping talent acquisition, and why personal branding trumps any technology. This isn't your typical AI-will-save-us-all discussion. Instead, two industry veterans who've weathered every tech revolution share hard truths about what's actually happening in the market right now.
In this episode we talk about the inevitable collapse of generative AI models, why LinkedIn response rates have plummeted from 85% to 15%, the surprising unemployment surge among computer engineers, and the real reason companies are forcing return-to-office mandates. Jim and Shally dissect everything from wind turbine technician demand to the psychology of personal branding, delivering actionable insights for both recruiters struggling with over-automation and job seekers trapped in the application black hole.
Guest Name: Jim Stroud
Website: jimstroud.comLinkedIn: JimStroud
Expertise: Digital anthropologist, sourcing futurist, and recruiting innovation strategist who predicted major industry trends and disruptions.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
➡ Computer engineering unemployment hit 7.5% - a field once considered bulletproof is now struggling due to AI disruption and economic overcorrection
➡ LinkedIn response rates crashed from 85% target to 15% satisfaction rate, signaling the platform's declining effectiveness
➡ Wind turbine service technicians top job growth at 60%, followed by solar installers - green energy roles are exploding while tech contracts
➡ AI interview outsourcing misses critical human elements like detecting genuine enthusiasm versus desperation in candidate responses
➡ The "collapse of generative AI" is inevitable due to recursive content cycles - specialized AI tools will emerge but won't replace human judgment
➡ Personal branding beats Boolean strings - what people remember about you five years later defines your career trajectory more than any sourcing technique
➡ Job seekers should shift from hunting to attracting by creating content, speaking at events, and building thought leadership rather than mass applying
➡ Remote work compensation needs adjustment - if companies mandate office return after hiring remotely, they must increase pay to offset commuting costs
➡ Companies engaged in "hedge hiring" during COVID boom - hiring talent to block competitors rather than for actual business needs, leading to current layoffs
➡ LinkedIn will eventually die like Monster and CareerBuilder - the future belongs to distributed search across multiple personal websites and platforms
CHAPTERS
00:37 - Intro & Jim Stroud Introduction
2:15 - The Creativity Behind Sourcing
3:11 - AI Taking Over Job Descriptions
6:01 - The Problem with Template-Based Hiring
8:45 - When AI Should Handle Interviews (And When It Shouldn't)
12:30 - The Inevitable Collapse of Generative AI
17:08 - Why Technology Never Actually Replaces Jobs
21:57 - Tech Layoffs and Economic Reality Check
28:06 - Job Market Growth Areas: Wind Turbines to Data Science
29:10 - From Job Hunting to Job Attracting
34:51 - Remote Work Economics and Return-to-Office Reality
39:40 - Boolean Survival: Old School vs New School
43:49 - The Death of LinkedIn and What Comes Next
51:60 - Personal Branding as Career Currency
Jim Stroud: "The more you integrate technology, you sort of lose a little bit of yourself. If you don't put your own special sauce on it, what's really the carrot to attract somebody to your job?"
Shally Steckerl: "LinkedIn response rates crashed from 85% to 15%. LinkedIn is gonna die - there's no tool that has been there forever, and LinkedIn is not going to be that one either."
Jim Stroud: "Change your mindset from looking for a job to attracting a job. Write content about something you're passionate about, speak at meetups, showcase your expertise - make people reach out to you."