The podcast for Talent & People Professionals. Discussing the working landscape, trends and hot topics.
Podcast produced and distributed by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The podcast for Talent & People Professionals. Discussing the working landscape, trends and hot topics.
Podcast produced and distributed by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 20 - Thank You
A big thank you to everyone of our fantastic guests for series 2. It's been enjoyable, insightful and great fun. We wish everyone a happy 2026, we'll be back for S3 with new ideas, new guests and great tips and tricks!
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 19 - Talking Talking with Badger The Recruiters
We have a candid honest conversation with two fantastic TA professionals, Kye Lovelace & Tracy Chau, who share their TA stories, big wins, experiences and interesting interviews! They also tell all about how Badger The Recruiters started, their side blog and future podcast (hopefully early 2026 so keep your eyes peeled!). They have some really exciting tips and lessons available on their website, so be sure to check them out in the link below:
Visit: https://badgertherecruiters.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badgertherecruiters
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 18 - Talking Talking Employer Branding with Scrumptious Marketing & Events
This week we discuss all things employer branding. We all know how important, yet overlooked this area is within organisations, especially those that fit within the SME category. Sam Chance, Founder @ Scrumptious Marketing & Events, and Alice Ashe, Marketing Director @ Scrumptious, give us the low down of quick wins, essentials around branding, and some very interesting statistics about candidate behaviours.
Scrumptious are brilliant, make sure to check them out here:
https://www.scrumptiousmarketing.com/employer-branding
If you want any additional information please email Sam chance directly who is more than happy to jump on a call!
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 17 - Email Extravaganza
In this episode we finally get round to answering some of your questions you've sent in!
If you want your question answered, write to us via our LinkedIn page or to Ben or Dale directly.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 16 - Questions
In this episode we finally get round to answering some of your questions you've sent in!
If you want your question answered, write to us via our LinkedIn page or to Ben or Dale directly.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 15 - Talking Talent with Dan Ashdown - Head of Memberships at IHR (In-House Recruitment)
This week Dan Ashdown joins us on the show to discuss the benefits of IHR, what they offer and the value they can add to your talent teams via their networking events, seminars and learning materials.
Dan also shares his expertise and findings around the current talent climate, of course AI gets a mention, plus the weird hiring situation both hiring teams and candidates themselves in currently. Dan speaks to talent teams from all sectors, so is very well placed to give us insights, plus being a previous Recruiter himself, he knows his stuff!
Check out the benefits of IHR: https://www.inhouserecruitment.co.uk/member-benefits/
To join IHR, follow this link: https://www.inhouserecruitment.co.uk/become-a-member/
If you have any questions feel free to reach out to Dan directly via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danashdown1/
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 14 - Tech Stacks
Your Hiring Tech Stack is a critical part of the entire hiring process. It has the potential to have a huge impact on the process, from time to hire, experience from both candidate and hiring manager, integrations, and cost to name a few!
We discuss our own experiences with systems like ATS, HRIS, and standalone software too, and the impact they've had on our respective organisations.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 13 - Skills-Based Hiring
It's not some new trend or a game changer, it simply opens up your talent pool further, but is skills-based hiring worth it? We take an in-depth look into the pro's and con's compared to job-based hiring, and try to come up with the perfect answer.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 12 - Recruitment is Broken
The TA market is a very strange place right now. "Companies aren't hiring" & "Candidates aren't applying" are ringing through TA teams and LinkedIn alike. Dominic Joyce captured this perfect on a post on LinkedIn (link below) when he said “Everyone’s hiring, but no one’s getting hired.” and it couldn't be more true.
We take a deep dive into what we're seeing happen across teams, our thoughts, our opinions, and current experiences given we're both hiring manager and candidate right now so we know first hand what's happening.
Here's a link to Dominic's post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dominic-joyce_the-job-market-in-202526-everyones-activity-7386312161167568896-CFPR?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAABeuRrkByAkpiN6N-Fx5xlYp2j1eREeX_CU
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 11 - Levlr
This week we have the Co-Founders of Levlr join us on the show. Neil & Mike have spent the last 20+ years in Recruitment, whether it be from an agency perspective or job board setting, so they know a thing or two about the Ta market, which is how Levlr came about. The gents discuss the Ta market, the ever changing role, and why Ta is truly broken currently and how there is a golden opportunity to make a positive change for the long haul.
Levlr is built for HR and talent teams in high-churn industries like hospitality and retail. We help you reduce time-to-hire, improve candidate experience, and get better hiring results — without burning out your team or budget.
Our mission is simple: make recruitment faster, fairer, and more human for both employers and candidates.
Check our their site and request a trial now, and one of their team will be in touch!
https://www.levlr.io/
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 10 - Talking Talent with Rob Vinke
This week we have Rob Vinke join us on the podcast, bringing some great content and highlighting the pre-judgement culture around age in candidates.
We need to shift the biased first impressions, and harness the experience of someone who has had a great career, and use this to help bring another wave of success to the organisation. by harnessing and utilising their skillset to the benefit of the wider teams.
We also discuss the agency to in-house recruiter and operations shifts, and using all skills to become the top TA specialist Rob is today!
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 9 - Candid Hospitality
Delighted0 this week to have one of our podcast partners, the legends of Candid Hospitality! Co-founder Sam Brown & Head of Community Izzy Schwenn join us this week to talk about Candid, and their journeys in the talent space. Both from different backgrounds, but with a unified mission and passion to make job hunting better, easier and fair for everyone!
A really great episode, delving into the early careers of both Sam & Izzy, the beginnings of Candid, and the interesting placeholder name that nearly shaped a very different public image of Candid Hospitality!
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 8 - Talking Talent With Jo Knowler
Jo has worked at some CV attention grabbing organisations, Lipsy London, LADbible, Supercar Blondie Media Group. Some great names that attract a lot of attention. But does this make it easier to attract talent? To retain talent? Employer branding is more than what the brand is actually known for when it comes to talent. It goes beyond the name, it's things such as benefits that people REALLY want, not your classic gym discount and high street shop discounts.
Jo is one of the many who have stepped across from Recruitment & TA into the HR/People space, and is absolutely thriving! She shares what made it easy for her to switch across, overcoming the self-doubt, and tackling global people teams and establishing ways to collaborate and build up that teamwork ethic and mindset.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 7 - Working Patterns
4-day working weeks, hybrid working, remote, office work. What's the best? why do organisations inists on one or the other? We deep dive into what is a huge divisive "benefit" and "offering" in the tricky market.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 6 - The state of play in TA
The TA space is in a pretty dire place currently, with so many fantastic Talent Professionals donning the green LinkedIn banner. Organisations are trimming People teams, especially Recruitment/TA roles in order to combat budget cuts, rise in costs, and restructures. We take a deep dive into some of the problems facing the market, plus personal journey's where Ben is re-entering the market pending the end of his FTC.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 5 - Talking Talent with Mel Kelly - MK Talent Advisory
The world of Recruitment and TA is evolving rapidly as you're probably more than aware, and so many more niche branches are shooting off the overarching TA umbrella. Mel realised this, analysed her strengths, weaknesses, passions and favourite parts of the Recruitment cycle/process, and set up MK Talent Advisory!
We discuss how this process happens, experience working across very different sectors, from Finance/Advisory to Hospitality. We also discuss the alternative segments of Recruitment, fractional, imbedded, advisory, outsourced. There's lots of differences and similarities, and always a place in organisations for someone to offer something!
Be sure to give Mel a a follow, and if you're looking for a fantastic Ta Advisor, look no further than MK!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/melkelly-ta/
https://mktalentadvisory.com/
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 4 - Talking Talent with Holly Hobbs - urfuture.io
This week we've had the pleasure of welcoming Holly Hobbs onto the show to share her unique and expert insight to the world of Gen-Z. Gen-Z is more than a tagline blanket word for "young people", it's a generation that are shaping new norms, a generation that are empowered to challenge, grow, demonstrate entrepreneurship and be real trailblazers.
As for Holly, she identified a big issue around apprenticeships, how confusing they can all be, what's the best option for someone to navigate and forge a career? This is how Apprentivia, and subsequent merger with urfuture came to life! Holly's a hugely driven ambitious Gen-Z'er, and summarises perfectly the values of workers of this era, Purpose, Pay, Progression.
If you're a People Leader of any organisation large or small, looking to focus on new talent pools, then this episode, and urfuture are going to be insightful and key to your strategies!
If you want to know more about urfuture, then head over to their website >>> https://www.urfuture.io/
Be sure to give Holly a follow over on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollyhobbss/
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 3 - Recfest 2025
We've both wanted to attend Recfest for a number of years, it's the leading TA event in the UK where vendors, guest speakers and Talent professionals gather to learn, collaborate and network. Seemed the perfect place for us to meet friends, colleagues, upskill and plug the pod with our very own merch!
We discuss our experience at Recfest, from the scorching temperatures, to great talks, not so great talks, and the buzzwords (did someone say AI?!) used throughout the day. We've seen someone refer to this years event as aifest...
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome to Season 2!
This week we jump onto the buzz-line of "Quiet Quitting". What is it? How can it affect company cultures, company morale? Is it because of the company or is it a personal employee thing? We deep dive into this with some different opinions.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome to Season 2!
We're back, with a slightly refreshed look, format, and merch!
We're talking about the case with Workday and it's (mis)use of AI in it's processes and how far is "too far" when it comes to AI? We discuss summer socials with networking (big thanks to Harri & A2H for the invite), and trying to be a social butterfly whilst overcoming anxiety.
Please give us a follow over on Spotify/Apple, TikTok, Instagram & LinkedIn!
__________
Sponsored by Harri - The Employee Experience Platform
www.harri.com
In Association with A2H Solutions - Connecting Talent & Opportunity Seamlessly
https://a2hsolutions.com/
Partnered with Candid Hospitality, your anonymous matchmaker for hospitality careers.
https://candidhospitality.co.uk/
Podcast powered by Talent Xchange.
Produced by BenJam Media.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.