Talent All-Stars

At 84 Lumber, talent acquisition is more than filling jobs. It’s about creating long-term careers. With 96% of store leaders starting as management trainees, the company has built one of the strongest internal mobility pipelines in the industry.

In this episode, you’ll hear how 84 Lumber attracts candidates with no industry experience, develops them through structured training, and promotes from within to sustain growth. Paul Yater,...

Jennifer Christie has built a career at the intersection of leadership, service, and transformation. From her time running presidential personnel in the White House to senior posts at American Express and Twitter, she’s now Chief People Officer at Docusign.

In this episode, Jennifer explains:

• Why government and corporate leadership share more in common than most think
• How AI is transforming HR and why leaders must focus on “what y...

Ana Moran’s story is proof that leadership can start anywhere. After immigrating from Colombia as a child, she began her career on the frontlines as a call center agent. Today, she is Chief People Officer for the U.S. Market at Foundever, leading a workforce of more than 150,000 employees.

In this episode, Ana shares how her immigrant experience and frontline beginnings shaped her leadership philosophy. She explains why bravery matt...

At Salesforce, technology and humanity are designed to evolve together. AI isn’t seen as a threat but as a tool that frees employees to focus on empathy, creativity, and leadership.

In this episode, Molly Ford, VP of Talent Connection and Engagement, shares how Salesforce integrates core values like equality and volunteerism into every business plan while adopting AI in ways that enhance, not replace, the human experience.

She also e...

At Concentrix, a global leader in customer experience solutions, talent acquisition is closely integrated with business operations rather than functioning as a standalone department.

In this episode, Jillene Jensen, Senior Director of Talent Acquisition, shares how her operations background led to a new kind of talent acquisition strategy: prioritizing alignment, performance, and long-term impact.

You’ll learn:

• Why former operatio...

At Marsden Services, a national provider of cleaning, security, and maintenance services, talent acquisition starts with clear and honest role-selling.

In this episode, Vice President of Talent Acquisition Ashley Lynch shares how visiting worksites, understanding the day-to-day realities of each role, and setting clear expectations have helped her team improve both speed-to-hire and retention.

You’ll learn:

• Ashley’s “big three” fr...

At Legacy Health, talent acquisition is shaped by data, experimentation, and a deep understanding of people.

In this episode, Travis Trautman, Director of Sourcing and Talent Acquisition, shares how his team uses mini-experiments to improve hiring speed, candidate fit, and decision-making across a highly regulated healthcare environment. With a career spanning banking, education, and healthcare, Travis offers a rare cross-industry p...

Johnson Controls is known for making buildings smarter, safer, and more sustainable. But inside the company, there’s a different kind of transformation happening—in how they attract, hire, and prepare talent for the future of work.

In this episode of Talent All-Stars, Mike Aronson— Senior Director of Global Talent Acquisition Operations—shares how he’s applying over 15 years of hands-on recruiting experience to reshape the function ...

Ace Hardware’s hiring strategy is grounded in one core principle: a consistent, transparent experience for every candidate—regardless of outcome.

In this episode, Stef Nikitas, Director of Talent Acquisition at Ace Hardware, outlines how her team developed “The Ace Way of Hiring”—a structured, brand-aligned approach that sets clear expectations for candidates, hiring managers, and recruiters.

She also shares how Ace applies technolog...

Verizon is one of the biggest brands on the planet—but behind the scenes, it’s the people who keep it moving.

In this episode, Steve West—VP and HR Business Partner for Consumer Sales—reflects on his own journey from recruiter to executive and shares his approach to building teams, developing talent, and leading with trust.

Steve also shares:

• How Verizon’s “Culture OS” connects values to decision-making
• What “clear is kind” looks l...

At Delaware North, recruiting 20,000 employees annually across 200+ unique locations requires more than operational scale—it demands strategic clarity, brand cohesion, and relentless focus on candidate experience.

In this episode of Talent All-Stars, Amy Duncan-Menendez, Vice President of Talent Acquisition and Global Innovation Center, and Laura Murray, Director of Employee Branding and Strategy, reveal how they are transforming on...

When you're hiring cleaners, commercial real estate brokers, and everyone in between—in dozens of countries—your recruiting strategy has to be both scalable and local.

Danielle Kensinger, VP of Global Talent Acquisition at Cushman & Wakefield, shares how her team customizes talent acquisition strategies by region, role, and urgency—without losing speed or consistency.

She also shares:

• Why passive candidate outreach is more importa...

What happens when you drop a former agency recruiter into a hypergrowth environment with no budget, no ATS—and 15,000 hires to make?

Joe Leno, Senior Director of Recruiting at Leaf Home, shares the inside story of how he scaled a grassroots recruiting operation into a full-fledged TA engine that powers one of the largest home improvement companies in North America.

In this episode, Joe reveals how he earned a seat at the strategy tab...

How do you recruit top-tier dentists and hygienists for 1700+ practices—when demand far outweighs supply?

Tyler Micenheimer, SVP of Talent Acquisition & Workforce Planning at Heartland Dental, breaks down how his team tackles competitive hiring—matching top talent to the practices where they’ll thrive.

Tyler shares:

• Why Heartland built its own school to solve a talent shortage
• How their in-house scheduling app became a key employee...

What if your talent team was the key to unlocking tens of millions in revenue?

At Lockheed Martin, that’s not a hypothetical. John Heyliger, VP of Talent Acquisition & Workforce Transformation, shares how his team recruits high-stakes technical talent at scale—while avoiding costly hiring mistakes and proving their value in terms business leaders appreciate.

John also shares:

• The tactics John’s team used to track down and reach ou...

How is IKEA keeping voluntary turnover under 23%—in an industry where 40-60% is the norm?

In this episode, Neena Potenza, Chief People Officer at IKEA US, reveals the values-first approach that drives co-worker loyalty, leadership development, and cultural consistency across thousands of frontline and corporate team members.

Neena shares:

• How IKEA turns its values into a felt experience from day one
• The everyday habits that define ...

Southwest Airlines has a team of 200 people whose sole responsibility is to source the company’s “secret sauce”: its people.

That team’s leader? Greg Muccio, who started his career as a struggling salesman—before pivoting to agency recruiting and eventually joining Southwest in 2001.  

It took him seven tries to land his first leadership role, but that journey shaped who he is today: humble, focused on team success, and deeply commit...

Most HR leaders want a seat at the table. But what does it take to get there?

As the Chief People Officer at Skillsoft—and a former consultant for brands like Comcast, Johnson & Johnson, and Coca-Cola—Ciara Harrington believes the best CPOs think like business executives first, and HR leaders second.

In this episode, she explains what true transformation looks like, how to overcome resistance when making big changes, and why proving ...

What happens when your frontline workforce spans 20,000 locations—and your clients control the environment?

Raúl Valentín, EVP & CHRO of ABM Industries – one of the world’s largest providers of facility, engineering, and infrastructure solutions – explains how he keeps people-first leadership at the heart of a massive, distributed workforce. 

From leading HR with business fluency to fighting for tech that actually works on the frontl...