From the desk of Sam Y: “The incredible value of diversity of thought”

This article is part of a series called “From the Desk Of.” Check out the full series here.

As I continue to reflect on Recruitadelphia, I keep going back to the thought of courage. As Recruiters, we need to be courageous not only when it comes to the diversity we are presenting, but also to the skill sets and backgrounds we are presenting to our hiring managers. Once again, it is our role to advocate for our candidates that are seeking new opportunities within our organizations, or our client partners for those of us in an agency setting. 

Prior to my current role, I was tasked with building an RPO division here at Juno Search Partners. Toss a pandemic into the mix that not only reshaped the way we did business and hire talent, I had to start thinking about how we can hire not only for the NOW, but for the future growth we were no doubt going to continue to see - shout out to the Juno Talent Solutions team for continuing to grow like wildfire after I passed the torch! 

It started with a conversation with a dear friend at a BBQ about what she should do next. Teaching had burnt her out throughout the course of the pandemic and she was searching for so much more and a major change. Enter me, wanting to help my friend and also thinking - constantly - about how we can continue to hire great folks to the team. I shared with her, without thinking twice, that maybe she should think about recruiting as her next career. Her eyes LIT UP. I knew at that moment she was going to be great - and sure enough, she was the first ex-teacher that we hired at Juno and she is absolutely kicking butt. That got me thinking even more - there is something really special about teachers and their capacity to be advocates for those around them, the patience of saints (which if you are not in Talent Acquisition, I can attest that is one of the top qualities you need!) and an insane amount of transferable skills. Then, I started seeking out prior educators, my team began sending me referrals of teacher friends they knew were ready for a change and the rest is history. We have since hired 5+ prior educators here at Juno, and I will let you in on a little secret: THEY ARE ALL AMAZING and Juno is also better because of those folks. 

My (long-winded) point is that diversity covers a lot of areas, and diversity of thought and background is something that truly adds to an organization's value and overall success. We learned this through the panel “The Great Reskilling,” which is a must-watch (if you have not yet - click here)! 

The panel shared how throughout the last few years, there has been such a change in what people want to do with their lives. People have drilled down to what really matters to them within their work and lives. Taking chances on folks that have incredible skills that may not be exactly - or even remotely close -  as a job description is outlined is a risk, but boy oh boy is the reward greater than the risk. 

How incredible would our teams and organizations be if we took those chances? If we took the time to look at our current teams and people and see where there is a hidden passion, or a spark for something that maybe they have never done before - and we TEACH THEM HOW TO GET THERE? I ask every client I work with why there is not an internal person identified for the role, or teed up within a succession plan and too many times the answer is “someone is not ready” or “no one is interested in learning XYZ skills” … we can stop this if we start digging in to truly identifying what our people want. Not only does that allow us to have succession planning in place in unique ways, but think about the retention that allows for organizations to have if their people know that they do not need to leave to learn something new, they can get it where they have spent their time, created relationships and have countless opportunities to grow?

Our opening speaker for Recruitadelphia was the incredible Dan Rhoton from HopeWorks. He shared with us COUNTLESS ways of how HopeWorks is setting some pretty incredible people up for careers of fulfillment and success from the ground up. Investing in people who want to make something of themselves, and learn skills and careers that they may otherwise not have a chance for, is what HopeWorks is all about. Do yourself a favor and watch Dan’s keynote here.

I could go ON AND ON about this (clearly) but I will leave you with this slightly unrelated tidbit as a perfect example of what I am trying to hopefully convey. Our firm started working with a new client who shared with us that when they welcome someone on their first day, they do not say welcome to your new job, they say WELCOME TO YOUR NEW CAREER. The intent is that every individual that joins that organization has the ability and opportunity to grow throughout the organization, wherever they have interest and desire to grow as they continue their career. They have incredible retention within their organization, and internal movement and promotions and I have got to think, they are doing something right. 

Until next time.

Meet the Author

Samantha Yanczak
Principal, Executive Search

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