The In-House Recruitment (IHR) Awards 2024 was a night for glitz and glamour, and celebrating the best that the recruitment industry has to offer.
But behind all the celebrations were companies, teams, and individuals blazing a trail and delivering innovative solutions to some of the toughest problems that recruiters face.
As a sponsor of the 2024 IHR Awards, we had the opportunity to speak to some of the finalists for the In-House Recruiter (Individual) award. Our co-founder, Charlotte Hall, sat down with them to chat through career highlights, their 2025 predictions, and more.
Our interviewees:
- Cheryl Stobo, Ofgem
- Daniel Brace, Onward
- Eddie Marshall, Urenco (Morson Group)
- James Chambers, Realise Learning & Employment
- Olivia Adams, Tandem Bank
- Flynn Hall, LV= (Hudson RPO)
- Hayley Wright, InHealth
- Paris Alderman, Softcat
What sourcing strategies have enabled you to be a top recruiter?
Posting jobs and collecting applications doesn’t cut it in a highly competitive landscape — you need to understand what the business priorities are. “You really need to understand where your vacancies are, not just now but in the future,” said Cheryl. “Understand what you're going to fill in six month's time, a year's time, even five year's time, and start building those talent pipelines to match your future requirements.”
Olivia found that sticking to the basics helped her the most — but with an extra twist: “Don't overcomplicate it. We've got our ATS, we've got recruiters, we use the job boards. What I would say is our secret sauce is our referrals. This year alone, we've had 20% of vacancies filled by referrals. Good people know good people.”
Dan focuses on finding other ways of evaluating candidates. “We're bringing in a skills platform,” he said, to combat unspecific CVs. “We can test for skills and behaviours within that short, sharp test that allows us to then whittle that population of candidates into a more defined shortlist.”
How do you stay ahead of the competition in attracting talent?
All of our interviewees have had to get creative when it comes to beating their competition in crowded markets. “It's really tricky at the moment,” said Dan. “We benchmark our roles very clearly to be as competitive as possible. We also have a really strong benefits offer, which we feel offers something really unique for our colleagues.”
"Luckily, because we're a further education provider and we champion people learning, we look further than the talent pool,” said James. “We can look at people who might be too nervous because they've not got the experience. So we grab them and say, ‘We can train you.’ Some of our best trainers, managers, and executives have come from that."
Flynn agreed that it wasn’t all about the skills on paper. “You stay on top by investing in curiosity. I came from catering into finance, and I was given the opportunity because I was allowed for my voice to speak and my personality to come across. That's why I love my job — being at the forefront of someone's inception into a particular industry.”
Paris prefers to not get caught up in what others are doing. “The best thing you can do is focus on you, ensure that what you're doing is to a really high standard, and ensure you're making the impact that you aspire to achieve. My best advice would be to not get complacent, never stop learning, and to identify and work on your blind spots.”
How do you balance speed and quality in the process without compromising candidate experience?
While technology and innovation can help recruit candidates faster, everyone agrees that you can’t lose the personal touch when it comes to hiring. Olivia said, “We do have a lot of tools, luckily, so it's trying to automate and streamline some of the touchpoints and the processes, but also maintaining that personal piece — making sure they're getting a true sense of the culture, and enough time to ask questions.”
“I suppose for me it starts with a clear map of what the recruitment process will look like,” said Eddie. “When it comes to the candidate side of things, overcommunicating at times so they're not under any doubt that something's happening in the background.”
Hayley agreed that setting out clear steps made the process easier for her and candidates. “Just maintaining communication, keeping candidates up to date throughout the process, and sending those regular automated updates about their status of application can make a big difference with very little effort.”
James highlighted that sometimes, you just have to jump on opportunities when they come up, as was the case when they started recruiting the employees of a struggling competitor. "We had to speak with them really mindfully, being sensitive to the current situation.” The result? “We recruited roughly 16 people in a week. It was a really tricky situation because our competitors were going to be circling like sharks to get into the talent pool, so I had to act quick.”
What’s your biggest challenge this year?
Career highlights can’t come without challenges that provide contrast. Many of our finalists described efforts to work more closely with hiring managers and bring more colleagues along on the recruitment process.
Cheryl threw herself into building all-important relationships with her hiring managers, which took time. “I wanted every single one to feel valued,” she said, as she worked to execute a big shift in how her company recruited. And when she finally had the data to show hiring managers the results, “that's what really brings it to life, and I think I brought all my hiring managers at all levels along that journey with me.”
Dan’s challenge was a bit more strategic, with a focus on planning at his organisation. “We're now having much deeper conversations with the business about that future horizon in terms of planning succession and growth within the business.” Instead of looking at year-to-year planning, he’s brought in the big picture.
For Flynn, holding candidate experience and business expectations equally was a priority. “You've got to keep in the mindset of both sides — it is a business, it is money generating, but it's people. People are different, and there's lots of diversity. And holding two similar, flexible priorities is where the heart of recruitment comes in. We have the KPIs to hit, but we do that by embodying those values.”
What’s been your biggest career highlight to date?
Being nominated for an IHR Award was a huge accomplishment for everyone we spoke to. “First of all, just hearing that I'd been nominated by my team was the best,” said Paris. “Walking into that room was just a humbling experience. 750 people in a room, they're the best people in the industry and being there within them was incredible.”
But they’ve all accomplished incredible things to get the nomination in the first place.
“My work with EDI is probably my life highlight,” said James, citing the work he’s done with programs from Stonewall UK and efforts to collect pay gap data at his company. “It’s something that I’m insanely proud of.”
Cheryl also highlighted her work in making Ofgem a more equitable employer, resulting in increased D&I statistics.
Eddie’s work helped drive a large culture change around attitudes to the recruitment experience and process at his company, moving them towards a candidate-centric experience. “I’m working towards aligning their business needs with that of the candidates they want to attract instead of seeing only the business demand”, he said. “It’s a two-year mission to get that buy-in from senior stakeholders.”
Hayley highlighted her work recruiting endoscopy nurses across the UK and overseas to support the NHS. “It significantly impacted not only the operations teams by having that consistent and well-trained workforce, but also the quality of care that we can now provide. That plays a crucial role in reducing the waiting lists and working in partnership with the NHS. Ultimately, it’s saving lives. So to be involved in that is amazing.”
Olivia recounted a make-or-break moment from her career in Singapore, where she hit a second year slump after a successful first year. “I had two options: make this work and enjoy living my life in Singapore, or go back to very wet Wales with what I could barely describe as a tan and my tail between my legs,” she told us. “Naturally, the competitor in me rallied and I ended up becoming Asia's top biller the following year.”
Final thoughts: Building your recruitment career
All our finalists had unique stories with one thing in common — when they see opportunities, they take them.
So how can you be a top recruiter?
- Every problem is an opportunity for innovation. From pay gaps to business silos, look for solutions that you can implement to make things work better at your organisation.
- Worth with your hiring managers, not just for them. Whether it’s diving deep into industry data or having conversations about what hiring managers need most, clearer communication makes your job easier.
- Think of yourself as a key strategic partner. Succession planning and workforce roadmaps are perfect ways for you to make your mark on the long-term success of your company.
Who knows — maybe we’ll see you at next year’s IHR awards.
Want to learn more about how Zinc can help you speed up your time to hire and save you hours of admin time on background checks? Book a demo here.
.svg){kind=icon}
%201.png)
