Operational Prowess Meets People-First Leadership

[00:00:00] Hello social media followers, LinkedIn, Facebook, and everyone tuning into our show. Welcome to Beyond the Offer Podcast. I’m your host, Rosanna Snediker, joined by my co-host and friend Bill Gates. Thank you for tuning in as we tackle the latest trends and challenges in talent acquisition and human resources.

[00:00:18] We are thrilled today to have Amy Onori as our guest. Amy is currently the SVP of Talent Acquisition at Publicis Media, a global media agency. She has an impressive background in recruiting and HR in the media advertising and PR space. Amy, we’re so excited to have you on the podcast. Welcome to Beyond the Offer.

[00:00:39] Thank you so much. Excited to have you. Well we kick off with the same question with all of our guests. We’d love just to kind of hear your story and hear about how you got into recruiting HR once you graduated. So fill us in on your experience. Sure. So, I think the best way to start is actually, you [00:01:00] know, at the end. So I think most people that are in recruiting, and I say most because I do know a select few that this doesn’t apply to. But

[00:01:07] for most, you know, within the talent acquisition and recruiting realm, you kind of fall into it. And you know, my story really is no exception. So, currently in my role, I oversee a recruiting team and I support the centralized services here at Publicis Media. I’m in something that I’m really passionate and, you know, I love doing this and I love really leading a team and, you know, being able to be innovative and fresh and simultaneously like still delivering top talent for our businesses.

[00:01:36] So I graduated in the recession. So when this hit in 2008 and 2009 and there were no jobs, like absolutely none. You couldn’t find anything. At the time when I had graduated, I really was set at the time on, you know, attending law school and I had these big dreams of, you know, being a lawyer.

[00:01:58] I had [00:02:00] interned at the courthouse, especially like in the criminal sector. And I was really passionate about doing that. And I was, you know, really wanting to advocate for change and really be able to, you know, support those who were wrongfully in prison. But anyway, with the recession and there were no jobs.

[00:02:18] Yep. And there were not even unpaid jobs. So I did have student loans to take into consideration. So those dreams kind of got put on hold temporarily and I really was, you know, just wanting to take a few years and go into the corporate sector and see what was available. And one of my friends had worked over at center.

[00:02:40] And she had mentioned to me at the time, listen, you know, you’re super outgoing and you have an oddly strange fascination with numbers and math. You might want to consider advertising and you know, media buying. And I was like this- I don’t think this is for me, especially because I do have, you know, a sister [00:03:00] who is, you know, very senior in the media and advertising community and she and I could not be further apart in terms of how we approach things and our personality, and she loves what she does as well.

[00:03:10] And I was like, there’s no way this is for me. That’s kind of her thing. But anyway, so I really listened to some of my friends and on a whim they said that, you know, they knew people, you know, within the IPG network. And they were like, if you’re interested in this, I could send your resume over as a referral.

[00:03:27] And so she did. And then, a few weeks later I had a call from a recruiter and they asked if I was interested in an assistant media planner buyer role. And I was like, I have absolutely nothing to lose. I was working part-time and again, I really wanted to pay off my student loans. My parents who were, you know, super happy that I graduated were also like, you need to get a job.

[00:03:51] So, I interviewed. I thankfully got the position. And I, you know, did that probably for [00:04:00] about, I would say like a year, year and a half. And in between, you know, being with IPG and then, you know, moving over, you know, to Omni as a media planner, again, I- I wasn’t unhappy. I was content. I could do the job, but I definitely wasn’t myself and I definitely wasn’t

[00:04:16] thrilled about it. Like I love the agency environment. I love how fast paced it was. I loved working within a team, but I didn’t like the actual component of what my job entailed. So with that said, I really just started researching. Again, I was at a very different point in my career where I was very much not afraid of risk.

[00:04:36] And I was saying, I’m like, well, if I’m going to make a change, I want to make sure that I research correctly and that I’m making the right long-term decision. So I started looking up different careers that, you know, really met the things that I enjoyed about my role. And what I kept coming back to is human resources. I get excited when I’m engaged with people and meeting people.

[00:04:56] And that really kind of, you know, energizes me. [00:05:00] So I had spoken with a few family friends who were in human resources, one who is still a generalist, not in this industry. One who is in benefits, again, not in this industry. And what they did say was like, if you are interested in going into hr, we actually do suggest you start in recruiting first.

[00:05:18] Because when you start in recruiting, you actually get to know the entire organization, like you know who the stakeholders are. You get to fundamentally know what the business is doing. And from there, because you’re in HR in general, you’ll be able to understand what role recruiting plays in human resources in general.

[00:05:36] So I took their advice, and again, I was gainfully employed. I was in a junior level position. But I went on LinkedIn and I looked up opportunities for a recruiting coordinator or recruiter. I must have applied to, I would say over a hundred roles. And no one got back to me.

[00:05:58] And again, in recruiting, you have [00:06:00] to get used to rejection pretty quickly. But I, you know, kept at it. And there was this one opportunity, and it was a freelance recruiting coordinator role with mediacom. And I was very persistent and I had reached out to the recruiter. I remember I looked at the specific job and the recruiter who is listed, her name is Liz.

[00:06:21] I won’t reveal her last name because I don’t want her to get called out or anything, but I kept following up with her and I was like, “Hey, I know I have no experience. I know this is freelance but I know this industry. I know how to look for talent. I know this is super junior, it’s a lot of administrative work.

[00:06:39] And I’m like, but I’m willing to work hard and learn”. And so she finally gave me a chance and she gave me a phone screen and I passed the phone screen and there was an in-person interview. So I left for the in-person interview, and I remember it was the head of recruiting at the time, someone who is now with Omnicom. [00:07:00] And he asked me point blank, he was like, you have a full-time job in media, like, you really wanna do this?

[00:07:06] And I’m like, yes. I, I know this is not for me, but I’m pretty sure that this is. And I mean it’s, you know, and I said, I’m like, this is no risk to you at all. I’m like, I’m taking on all the risks, but I’m pretty sure I can do this. And, you know, it went well. And, you know, they offered me the position and so I made a choice.

[00:07:25] So I left the full-time position to take this freelance recruiting coordinator role. A few days before I had started the freelance recruiting coordinator role, they called me and they’re like, “Hey, this is a long shot, but we know we originally hired you as a recruiting coordinator. Would you be interested in maybe being a recruiter that oversees all of our entry level recruiting?”.

[00:07:46] And I was like, sure, why not? You know? I learned pretty quickly in my first few corporate roles, like to just always say yes to an opportunity. Yeah. So I said yes, and I started and I, you know, was really good at it. So I [00:08:00] hired a lot of entry level people my first year and then I quickly expanded to not just hiring all assistant media planners and assistant search planners and assistant media buyers, but it expanded to media planners and media supervisors.

[00:08:15] By the end of year, I think I hired close to like 120 people. But again, and I liked what I was doing and I had a great relationship, but I was cognizant it was still only freelance and my objective was to secure, you know, a full-time HR opportunity. Recruiting was just to supposed to be kind of like a foot in the door.

[00:08:34] So they recognized that I was still interested in HR opportunity, so there were about a few different HR coordinator roles within the group at Network that they asked if I’d be interested in, and I had to decide. I interviewed for them and I had to decide between it was Mindshare or MEC at the time, which is now Wavemaker. And

[00:08:55] I chose MEC. So I, went from being a freelance recruiting [00:09:00] coordinator with Mediacom to an HR coordinator at MEC. And then that’s really where my, I think my career kind of just took off. So I was a coordinator, so I was managing like the entire new hire experience, onboarding, working with payroll. After six months, they promoted me to HR generalists, so I was very much a hybrid. So I was still helping out the recruiting team

[00:09:22] recruiting for like media planners and like sometimes media supervisors, but in tandem, like operationally handling the junior level HR work. So really starting to like get my feet wet into employee relations. And I did that for probably about a collective like three years. And I was just not as jazzed about the er exp- employee relations component that I thought I would be.

[00:09:48] Again, and it’s just all about like what you’re really passionate about in the human resources realm. And I really valued, you know, giving great news to people and, you know, really thinking [00:10:00] about how to keep our hiring managers happy. So I explained to them like, listen, I don’t think that I’m

[00:10:06] suited to ultimately manage employee relations. That’s just not my thing. And they were honest to me. They’re like saying, “Hey, totally get it. But if you are not comfortable with employee relations, like you really, you know, have to think about like what it is like within hr you really want to do, because employee relations is a big component and a big factor”.

[00:10:27] So I pivoted back to recruiting, as the recruiting manager for MEC. And I had about one to two direct reports supporting me, and I reported directly into, you know, the CTO over there. And yeah. So collectively within the Group M Network, I was there for about five years. So I really, you know, I, I think every organization and every role serves a purpose, but I don’t think I’d be in my career

[00:10:54] now if I did not have that foundation from Group M and like really kind of learning so much [00:11:00] at a junior level about hr, payroll benefits, recruiting. So anyway, after five years, I was approached to lead media recruiting as like the first ever media senior recruiter hire for media hub, which is part of IPG.

[00:11:17] Very interesting opportunity because it, I would not report directly into the CTO. I’d have a dual reporting structure into the head of media and the head of hr. And I’m always up for a challenge. I’m like, this is really cool. I feel like I’ll get awesome visibility and I will learn more, and I’m always up for a challenge, so I took it.

[00:11:36] They were headquartered and still are in Boston. So I had a lot of opportunity to travel to the Boston office, get to know their leaders. They were wonderful in being able to put me in a lot of meetings that I probably wouldn’t have been exposed to at that point in my career. Because since I was the first media recruiter, they really wanted me to know who they were.

[00:11:55] They were like, please, like, ask us questions, get to know us because if you know our business, you [00:12:00] will know what to look for. And so I did. So I was traveling to Boston, traveling to their California offices, getting to know everybody. And it was great. But, you know, I was starting to get a little bit more clear on what it was I wanted out of my career and my role. And I really wanted to start leading.

[00:12:18] And I was very strong tactically as a recruiter, but I really wanted to start to influence other people rather than do it myself. So, M Booth- I’m about a year into it, they were like, “Hey, we have a director of recruiting opportunity where you’ll kind of still functionally recruit, but also have an opportunity to lead people.

[00:12:37] And we need someone who’s interested in systems and operations because we are going to be onboarding a new applicant tracking system. So you have to be excited about it”, which I am. And I had a lot of experience, you know, being on the op side over at Group M. So I went over to M Booth. And again

[00:12:53] different experience. I was so used to paid media and with an M booth, it’s a full service agency that [00:13:00] is really focused on, I would say, organic versus paid and very heavy traditional pr. So I would say the first two or three months I was like, this is a totally different world and universe and how they think in an approach

[00:13:12] hiring is different and I loved it. I love my manager. I love my team. You know, I really had exposure to rolling out Greenhouse and bringing it to the organization. And again, at Group M and with IPG media, have very big employee populations versus M Booth. I feel like I got to be a little bit more intimate in my approach because it was about 250, 300 and I had never worked for an organization that small before.

[00:13:36] But the benefit of that is you really get to kind of perfect your craft. And you really get to kind of not just be a jack of all trades, but to really start to become a master and really like learn how to like, pivot your recruitment strategy and pivot how you’re leading a team, like based on each hiring manager you’re working with.

[00:13:55] So I really got a lot of confidence from that position. And I was there for [00:14:00] about two years through the pandemic- pretty dark times. Yep. And then towards the end of 2020, so probably like a little bit, no, around Thanksgiving of 2020, so four years ago, I was approached to come here and oversee recruiting, not with just like two or three direct reports, but you know, like a team of 6, 7, 8 people. For the centralized services division for Publicis Media. So again, at first I was like, oh, like Zenit or Spark or Starcom. They’re like, no, this is shared services. So this is like internal and we support the agencies.

[00:14:36] And I’m like, this is really cool. Because again, at Group M, like they had that model too. So like there was like the Group M internal support and then there were the respective agencies like Mindshare, Wavemaker, and so forth. So again, I always just believe in, you know, trusting myself and wanting a new challenge.

[00:14:52] So I accepted it. And then, I’ve been here ever since. So I started close to four years ago and I’ve seen [00:15:00] my team evolve and do really cool things and I, you know, have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to be promoted from VP to SVP and, you know, really seen my team flourish. And I’ve seen people on my team go from being recruiters to senior recruiters and seeing my team go from being recruiting coordinators to someone who’s now a manager.

[00:15:19] So, you know, to be in this opportunity and, you know, to advocate for my folks is really wonderful. And really being now in, in a point where I can pay it forward and, you know, put people on my team in positions to have access to leadership and, you know, really have them shine. Because that’s what I really feel is important out of leadership is to let your team shine because it’s not all about you.

[00:15:42] Absolutely. Well, and it’s great to see that you started out, I mean, not even in the HR recruiting side. You started out on the media side, which we do see a lot. I feel like your industry, a lot of people start on the business side and then move into hr. But to think that you started there, you took a contract role, which some people are hesitant to do, and now here you are, you know[00:16:00]

[00:16:00] 10, 15 years later, growing a large team and giving people that opportunity. It’s probably all very full circle for you. Oh yes, for sure. And you know, even like talking about it, and I apologize ’cause I really went into a lot of the details. Like I, you kind of forgot like where you started and you know, and it wasn’t always super easy.

[00:16:19] And that’s the thing that I really tried to relate back to my team. I’m like, trust the process. Totally. It’ll be fine. Every mistake is an opportunity to kind of hone your craft and, you know, make tweaks and edits, like we’re all a work in progress. Yep. Absolutely. Well, fascinating, you know, career background as Ro said, you know, it’s always unique and interesting to see how people fall into, to recruiting Amy.

[00:16:41] Usually it’s on the agency or recruiting third party side, but yours was clearly a little different in moving, you know, in more of a buyer role to kind of recruiting role. And it’s unique and rare that you move from not only- basically changing careers, but it usually, it’s very difficult to change careers [00:17:00] and move to a different organization.

[00:17:01] But obviously you had kind of taken on the risk by taking on a contract. Well, and, and to that point, or, you know, and more of the industry related question, I mean, you’ve been throughout your career basically been in the media and ad agency space your entire career. How have you kind of seen the industry change in the past 15 years and how has recruiting kind of evolved in your industry during your time?

[00:17:27] So I’m going to talk about two key things I think is important. Being in this industry now almost 15 years, I think there are two key changes or call to action, if you will. Yeah. One is when things really started to move towards digital. Mm-hmm. So, and again, digital now is not what it was in 2011, 2012.

[00:17:49] Very different. So when I first started again, and I was, I wasn’t a digital buyer or I was on the traditional side. So very much offline media, tv, radio, audio. [00:18:00] And digital was more of a, it wasn’t about Instagram or TikTok or Snapchat. It was very much about, you know, going on ESPN.com and getting a display ad. Or it was Google and doing like a quick search.

[00:18:17] So that was a big change. I would say 2010, 2011, 2012, like we’re moving our ad spend towards digital. And then obviously digital now is all about paid social, organic, social influencer marketing. It’s a whole other ball game. So that’s number one. And then I would say probably it is now 2024, probably since the pandemic, the similar push that I saw for digital and advertisers wanting to shift their approach.

[00:18:47] I would say 2021, the advertisers and the industry moving towards AI. And moving, taking it a step further like okay, we’re going to make this faster, quicker, better with [00:19:00] digital. Now how are we going to make this automated?

[00:19:03] So I think those are the two biggest changes that I’ve seen throughout my career in the industry. Yeah. You feel like with the AI stuff, is your industry ahead, is it kind of like right in the middle? Like how have you embraced that from an industry perspective over the past few years? I would say that, you know, we’re ahead.

[00:19:23] Yeah. I think that Publicis does really wonderful things when we’re looking at core AI and just AI in general. And again, we value efficiency here. Mm-hmm. Myself personally and professionally. So I think anything that’ll make an organization more efficient or a team more efficient, we’re going to stand by.

[00:19:41] Yeah. So that’s how I would position it. Yeah. And I guess being in an industry that is so client based, you know, your business and HR and recruiting is all reflective of like your client demands and winning business and scaling up, down- how do you manage that from a [00:20:00] recruiting function when the business demands can change so quickly?

[00:20:04] I guess both from when you’re working with hiring managers, but then also just how do you scale your team for that? So the way that I believe in doing that, that’s a great question, is in order to be a successful team, you kind of have to anticipate needs always. So you can’t just be thinking about what’s happening this week, like what should we forecast in the next month or two?

[00:20:28] Yeah. So, and the reason I say that is the way that I’ve structured my team is I have a business partner approach. So, for example, the way that my team operates is, we have a variety of different groups called the practices and I have different recruiters who support each different practice. So it’s very much level agnostic.

[00:20:50] So they’re not working on like three or four positions for one group and then three or four positions for another. I think, the way that I like to approach it [00:21:00] is, they’re supporting one group, one line of business across every single level. Because again, while it could be intimidating at first, like, oh my gosh, I’m supporting a junior level media position up through VP, it really creates trust between the business and the recruiter, and that is their person.

[00:21:18] Mm-hmm. So when future needs come or if they’re anticipating a big win or they need to step up, they go immediately to the recruiter to say, “Hey, can we start pipelining for the next two to three months?” or they will say like, “Hey, we’re going to pause on some roles. Anybody that you had in play, maybe just let them know

[00:21:36] we’ll circle back with them in three to four months”. And the way that you know it organically works is the recruiter feels empowered. They really like having the trust of their business and being their go-to and understanding intuitively what to anticipate. And the business really likes it because they have one or two key people that they go to for all of their needs.

[00:21:58] And then with time they become more [00:22:00] comfortable. And it’s almost like instead of recruiting, being its own thing, the way that I look at recruitment is much more that it’s the talent acquisition approach, that recruiting is an extension of the business. So like we are their business partners. We are the ones who know the space.

[00:22:16] We are the ones who should be informing and suggesting them of what to do versus the other way around. Yeah, I love that. More of the consultative approach. A hundred percent. So I think with that consultative business partner approach, it allows the team to be prepared for the future and be prepared to pipeline without having to worry,

[00:22:38] we need to fill 15 positions immediately because they’ve been working on this for the last couple of months or even a year. So they already have that established pipeline built. Yep. Absolutely, absolutely. Well, shifting gears a little bit Amy, in regard to more of the- it’s a little bit geared more towards panels.

[00:22:57] I understand you’re involved in various [00:23:00] panels and speaking discussions within your industry. What do you find is kind of being the most beneficial when attending these speaking events? I look at these events to really kind of look at what new things are we going to do in the recruitment space or not are we going to do, but like let’s learn from each other.

[00:23:20] For example, like let’s- I think there are so many people who are at times reluctant, you know, to share information and, you know, let’s streamline. Like I said, I very much value efficiency and I look at these panels as a way for me to meet colleagues in similar industries. Someone who’s over at Omni or IPG. Or you know, in a smaller shop, you know, hey, how did you solve for this problem?

[00:23:43] How can we focus on representation? And, you know, increasing the hires for 2025. So the way that I look at it is, it’s about like a learning experience and learning best practices from each other within those who are in the same industry. Have you [00:24:00] seen those events change at all?

[00:24:02] After, you know, covid, now that things are a little bit more of a remote world? No, I mean, at least for myself in New York, I think 2022 definitely still a lot of remote, but now pretty much everything is back to onsite. So for example, I just attended a speaking engagement last week that was predominantly virtual the past couple of years, but for this year it was the first back to in person event.

[00:24:30] So I do think that the industry is craving that in-person connectivity. Myself, I’m a big fan of it. Because again, I think especially in recruiting, you have to be able to trust each other. You have to be able to develop relationships with each other and with hiring managers. So a majority of my team is actually in New York, and I see, you know, it constantly now, especially like the last year, everyone’s in person and, you know, they’re vibing off of each other and they’re getting to know each other.

[00:24:58] So, I think a [00:25:00] lot of it has moved back to in-person and a lot has switched to like, how can we learn from each other and implement similar programs or initiatives across the board. Well, and I think especially events like that, if people do work remotely in their day to day, they get really excited about the opportunity to go into an event, get to like network with people in their industry, meet in person.

[00:25:21] So it does feel like there’s excitement around that, which is great to see. You touched on it with the events of, you know, meeting people from different companies, but also when you were talking about your career. You’ve been at small, 200 person firms and then Publicis, which is a, you know, global organization with, you know, so many employees.

[00:25:39] What is the biggest difference you see in recruiting when you’re working at different organizations size-wise, and then also, you know, there’s gotta be some similarities. What are some of the similarities that you might not think of when you think of a 200 person company versus, you know, a 10,000 plus?

[00:25:55] Working for a big organization, like you’re focused on scalability. You [00:26:00] are focused on eficiency by far. And at a smaller organization, you’re fo- It’s not to say that you’re not focused on the relationships at a bigger organization, but there’s a much bigger emphasis on political capital and the relationship building within smaller organizations and how critical it is

[00:26:19] I would say for someone, especially in recruiting to understand the historical of this is who’s historically been in this position, this is who oversaw them. So I think in a smaller organization, you have to understand the politics that exist and working with senior leadership to change perception or if you’re not trying to change perception, working within the confines of what you have.

[00:26:44] So the relationship component is very important in a smaller organization. And in a bigger organization, you have to move super fast. So it is all about maximizing that efficiency a hundred percent. Absolutely. Absolutely. What about [00:27:00] like building out, you know, high performing teams and strong cultures within your organization.

[00:27:05] I know something you’ve excelled at and you spoke about a bit, but in terms of like building out teams from scratch, right. I would imagine, you know, there’s some chall, like it’s a lot different than coming into a team that’s already established and, you know, kind of has their own system and structure in place.

[00:27:22] But how have you kind of approached that and what have you kind of done and in terms of approaching building out, you know, a successful recruiting teams? Two things. And I will continue this with my career no matter what, you cannot do anything as a leader at all. You think you can, but you won’t.

[00:27:39] You can’t do a single thing without buy-in. And you can’t get buy-in without vision. So in order for you to get that vision so that you can set up a buy-in, you have to be able to understand who you’re working for, who you’re trying to make happy, and what problem are you solving for.

[00:27:57] So again, because there’s always going to be [00:28:00] an inherent problem, so it’s always on a leader’s duty to address it and adjust it accordingly. So I think in order to move the needle, you have to understand the dynamics of your leadership team that you are accountable to and saying, how can I, if the number was 10 last year and you want to see it 20, when do you want it done by?

[00:28:22] And tell me like, were we ever able to achieve 20 or is 20 just a lofty goal? So really being consultative with your leadership team, finding out what things excelled, what things didn’t work. And then after having a window of observation, probably like 30, 60 days, having a plan and a vision to say how you’re going to make impact and how quickly you’re looking to make impact is that within 30, 60, 90 days? As a leader, you should always have a short-term and a long-term plan.

[00:28:51] Like, this is what I can solve for immediately. This is what I’m going to have delivered for you by this time next year. So after that vision [00:29:00] is concepted, then working with the same leadership team that you consulted with to talk about all of the things that you would like to address and solve for, getting their buy-in on that vision.

[00:29:11] So once you have that credibility established with that vision, then you can actually make an impactful change. So that is how I have found success, especially within Publicis Media, anything that I’ve ever done, I’ve always had the ability to look at things strategically and always from a business lens. Because again, as a leader, your role is to deliver results and you need to deliver results based on the teams that you support.

[00:29:39] So that’s just my POV. Absolutely. What about in terms of just like, you know, more geared towards, once you’ve actually built out the teams, how do you keep that, you know, that your recruiting team engaged and motivated? We both, you know, especially during up and down times, right? I mean, over just the last four or five years we’ve clearly seen, you know, the [00:30:00] market be crazy and I’m sure recruiters, you have overwhelmed with the amount of jobs they’ve got.

[00:30:06] But then there’s been some lower times to where, you know, the rec load may be a little bit lower and they may, you know, have extra time potentially to where they’re not actually working on particular roles for hiring managers. How do you still keep them engaged? I think it’s setting an expectation with them that if you’re looking for a position that is going to be consistent

[00:30:30] Monday through Friday, nine to five, that things are never going to change, then recruitment in general, doesn’t matter what industry you’re in, definitely not. This space is not for you. So to set that expectation that there are going to be ebbs and flows and there’s going to be certain months where there’s a lot of spikes to just be prepared for that.

[00:30:49] But just like, you know, the peaks that you experience with the rec volume, there’s going to be a few months where it’s not so busy. So I would say it’s looking at it like a glass half full. So [00:31:00] as busy as we are going to be for the next few months, come six months, we’re going to be pretty slow.

[00:31:05] So it’s kind of taking it with a grain of salt, preparing them to say like, we’re going to be really busy, so let’s make sure we have all hands on deck this month. And if we’re going to, you know, be on PTO, like, let’s make sure that we’re all planning for appropriate coverage plans, et cetera, et cetera. So I think it all really just starts with, you know

[00:31:21] preparation and setting that expectation for them. Well it’s a little interesting though, and I’ve always thought about this more so with like consultants or contract recruiters. But do you ever feel, I know a lot of your recruiters are of course, full-time and maybe not on a consultative basis, but

[00:31:37] do you ever have them come to you on a recruiting basis to where, you know, obviously from a goals perspective standpoint, you know, you wanna fill jobs as quickly as possible. However, if roles are kind of down a little bit and you’re filling ’em too quickly and your roles continue to get lower and lower and lower.

[00:31:55] Do you feel like they kind of get the sense like, oh my God, am I working myself out of a job [00:32:00] if I fill these too quickly and whatnot? Right. Like is that discussions you’ve ever necessarily had with folks that have reported into you? No. I’ll be honest. The teams that I have managed, they really, they love being able to give opportunities to people and to support

[00:32:19] the businesses that they have. So all of their focus and energy really is, it’s more of a mindset of, oh my gosh, I just filled 50 positions over the last two months. I can’t wait, you know, to get the next 50 jobs filled. So they really look at it is like, kind of like, wow, I just filled all this.

[00:32:38] Now I can kind of relax for the next few weeks. And perhaps, you know, it’s a different workforce, so it’s a very different outlook and attitude. But like, they very much look like, okay, they’re going to, you know, spend like several weeks like working to fill all these roles and bring all these opportunities to people. And then they look, okay, I’m going to allow myself some grace to kind of, you know, relax [00:33:00] for a little bit before the uptick comes again.

[00:33:02] Got it. So there’s not really, it doesn’t sound like there’s really that worry rec load’s getting too low. The urgency remains there consistently no matter if you’ve got 25 jobs or you’ve got two, essentially. Yes. No, I will say that, you know, the mantra and the ethos that this team has is very much about like hustle harder, find more ways, you know, to be more agile and quicker.

[00:33:24] And working to a degree where we’re delivering top service to our teams, but not working to the point where, you know, we’re burning out. And I’m very cognizant of making sure, like, hey everybody, like let’s log off. Let’s go to lunch, let’s take a walk. Again, because that’s very important too.

[00:33:42] Yeah. I know. And the point you said of like recruiting, the ups and downs. I think it’s so important, whether you’re interviewing for your team or you’re talking to someone who thinks they want to get into recruiting. I really try to be honest about like, this job is different every day. Yeah, the highs are very high, the lows are low, but you have to learn how to kind of stay in the middle

[00:33:59] because I [00:34:00] think a lot of people who haven’t recruited, they’re like, oh, I want to get into recruiting. And then they realize like it is, it’s like this. So I love that you- especially in 2021. Yeah. Yep. Well I did a little stalking before putting the questions together and was looking at your LinkedIn profile, and I love this because, you know, we talked to some folks just about not only branding at their company, but also their internal branding and your LinkedIn profile, which is public shows that you were known for operational

[00:34:29] prowess, results driven and future first. So tell us a little bit about what that means to you and just how have you kind of created and maintained that brand and how, I guess, how did you come up with those three concepts? I guess it’s really, I am just, I’m pretty transparent. I mean we’ve worked together now for quite some time.

[00:34:49] Yeah. So I’m clear and direct in what I’m looking for. And I just find that I came to, you know, these core principles, just how I am as a worker but also [00:35:00] how I want my teams to work and it’s very much not about me. And I think the longer that I’ve been in this leadership position, I very much realize that it is about, you know, developing talent that has those components or wants to have those components.

[00:35:14] So being operationally, having that prowess, I should say. If things are not organized, then to me there’s a problem. Recruitment, in my opinion and talent acquisition, we should be looked to as the guides for this is the status of your openings. This is where it’s at, this is what’s on hold or pending.

[00:35:32] This is, you know, how we can anticipate to close this many roles this month. Like we should be informing our business of what is going to happen on the talent acquisition front versus the other way around. And the only way to do that is to be operationally on point. So number two. I mean, nothing makes me happier than getting stuff done. Yeah. So I like, for me personally and professionally, if something is outstanding, for example, I talk about this all the time with my [00:36:00] team- on Venmo. I’m sure everybody has Venmo.

[00:36:02] And if you don’t, I highly suggest you get it. But if I owe someone something on Venmo, I will short circuit. Like it drives me wild. Like anything pending I’m like, if we go to lunch and I’m like, how much do I owe you? Because again, like I just want to cross it off the list. I don’t like

[00:36:21] inherently having something on my radar that I should be responsible for. So I take that seriously personally, and I carry it over into my professional life because again, I look at it as like recruitment- and I very much look at recruitment is we are a respected group, and in order to maintain and keep that respect, we need to be trusted business partners and getting things done for them and for our business.

[00:36:50] Then lastly, future first. I’m just not a status quo person. And I say that to a lot of people that I talk to. I’m sure being status quo [00:37:00] is great, but I, I believe in moving the needle. I very much believe that like there’s great work to be done and I don’t just believe in, you know, filling a position.

[00:37:10] I really believe in like bringing like career opportunities to people and, you know, we should be selling Publicis in a manner of which, you know, demands, respect and we’re the experts. We’re the ones who are talking to candidates all day, so we should hone our craft and really own it.

[00:37:25] So that’s why I always believe in thinking of like, how can we be faster? Can we do like a live hiring event, which we did for the practices about two and a half years ago, where we had a whole interviewing day for a few of our different businesses, and the same day we had about five candidates receive an offer.

[00:37:43] So that to me is exciting because it’s like we need to fill positions. What can we do to make that happen? So I really like thinking of creative out of the box ways to do that because again, I don’t think that we need to be combined to just, you know, [00:38:00] looking at on a few different avenues for talent.

[00:38:02] Like what can we do to make it exciting and make us stand out? I love that. It’s almost like those are kind of your personal core values of how you operate. Mm-hmm. And the Venmo thing, it’s so funny you say that. I had to like set mine up where I would get texts when I owed because I had it where I wasn’t getting the notifications and it would drive me crazy

[00:38:21] because I’m the same way. I’m like, I’ve got this, I need to take care of it. I have known Bill for so long, he is the exact same way. So maybe it’s the recruiter on all of us.

[00:38:30] Absolutely. Well, last question before we move into a different or final segment, but, when you’re partnering more so with like recruiting firms like Hirewell or other ones out there that partner with agencies, what are kind of, what are the top two or three things you look for in a partner as you’re evaluating which agency to partner with on a particular role or roles?

[00:38:54] Hmm. So what I’m looking for in a partner for like a staffing agency? [00:39:00] Yeah. I mean, it could be retained, it could be staffing, it could be- I mean, you know, obviously whenever we’re partnering with another client that we’re working with, we always look at ourselves obviously as an extension of, you know, an organization and trying to represent them in the best possible way that we can. So knowing kind of the core values and all that type of stuff is really, of course, important to us. But from the other side of the fence to where you’re in the internal side, like when you’re evaluating partnerships, because I’m sure a lot of places like Hirewell say the same things to you, right?

[00:39:31] Oh, we can help you, we specialize in this and that, and yada yada yada. How do you kind of, you know, eliminate the BS in that arena to know if they are a good partner for you on a job or multiple positions. I think you already said it, Bill. So I’ll make this super easy for you. I am looking for an extension of the team.

[00:39:52] So again, like I think, and I say it not just on behalf of me, but you know, my team, they’re looking for a [00:40:00] partner that is going to be consultative with them and just say like, hey, here are some candidates that we’ve identified. But transparently I don’t know if they’re being honest about compensation.

[00:40:11] I think they might, you know, be saying one thing and doing another. I think really, again, leaning in to be transparent with us again, because the ultimate duty that my team or any team has is to, you know, bring the right person aboard for the business. So transparency is what we’re looking for and a consultative and honest approach.

[00:40:32] I think being authentic goes a long way. And the last thing that I think that any recruiter or anyone on my team wants to feel like is if we’re being like sold a bag of rocks. Like, let’s just be honest, like what is the real issue? So I think that goes a long way and I very much value the authenticity and the transparency component of it.

[00:40:50] Absolutely. Yep. Well, we’re going to wrap up here with our unfiltered kind of random section. We’re just going to ask you a few questions, not [00:41:00] HR, TA related, just to kind of get to know you and make it a little bit more fun to wrap up. So first one, if you could start your own company, business, we’d love to hear what that would be and why.

[00:41:12] I would love to open up my own bed and breakfast. Ooh, okay. Yes. I love- I’m a huge fan of Gilmore Girls. Yep. And I just think it would be so fun, of course, that there’s going to be headaches and problems. But similar to like recruitment and like, you know, bringing career opportunities to people. I think just bringing an unforgettable experience, whether it’s like a girls trip or a couple’s anniversary trip or just, you know, a random stop.

[00:41:39] I really wanna be able, like to deliver an experience to people and I just think it’d be so fun. Do you have like a town or a location that you would ideally, well, I mean, I’m guessing probably like a smaller town, but anywhere you’d specifically want to open it at? In Capeman, New Jersey. Okay. It is undoubtedly, one of my most [00:42:00] favorite places in New Jersey, so that would be my wish.

[00:42:03] Okay. I love that. We haven’t heard bed and breakfast yet, so. Yeah, that’s a new one. What is your- how about other question. What is your ideal day look like when you are not working? So I would love, and again, I have a toddler, so this is, you know, taking that into consideration. I would love to sleep in till 9:00 AM and then I’d love to go out to a family breakfast with my husband and my son.

[00:42:29] We could have some pancakes, another in a toddler friendly restaurant. And then after putting him down for his nap, I would love, you know, to binge watch like some Breaking Bad or Sons of Anarchy with my husband. Because are very, very big film and TV enthusiasts. And then, after spending the afternoon at the park or taking our son on a walk or just hanging out at the house, would love to kind of, you know,

[00:42:56] cook like a nice Italian dinner with my husband because he is a very [00:43:00] passionate like Italian cook. And then I’d love to just have like, split a bottle of Chiante and then watch some, you know, survivor reruns. I’m a big survivor fan. Gilmore Girls, Breaking Bad and Survivor. You hit it all. Yes. Yes.

[00:43:15] Great. That is great. Yeah. Yeah. I, the Gilmore Girls thing, I can’t quite relate to it. I’ve heard of it, but I don’t know much else about it other than, uh, kind of what you’ve explained. But I know it was definitely a hit back in what, probably the, was it probably the early nineties? Is that right? No, 2000s.

[00:43:33] Early 2000s. The early 2000s? Yeah 2000s. Yeah. It was, oh, okay. Well, but I mean, culture. People rewatch Gilmore Girls like that is a cult classic, I would say. Yeah. Yeah. Sounds like it. Well, that’s all the time we have for today. Thanks for tuning in to this week’s episode. Today we met with Amy Onori from Publicis Media.

[00:43:56] And we discussed her career in media, PR and the ad space, [00:44:00] and growing high performing teams. We’ll be back again next month with a new special guest. Quick reminder again on how you can support our Beyond the Offer podcast, you can find all our content on our Hirewell social media platform, which you can find at Hirewell.com.

[00:44:15] Take care everyone, and thanks for tuning in. Thanks for joining Amy. Yeah, thanks Amy. No problem. Appreciate it.