Candidate Driven Market discussions with Cassidy Wright of Fort Robotics

- Or not just hitting a metric or a KPI. You're taking the time to actually dig a little bit deeper. - We're learning about your business and like you said, be more of that partner to you. - Yeah, exactly, 'cause there's so many of us out there. So it's like, you kinda stand out a little bit. - Absolutely. (upbeat music) - Hello everyone, welcome to another episode of the Hiring State of Mind. Today we have a special guest on the show, Cassidy, right? Cassidy's actually the Senior Talent Acquisition Manager for Fort Robotics and coming onto today's show, she holds a lot of experience within recruiting HR and also talent acquisition. I definitely wanted to have her on to pick her brain a little bit about hiring practices, challenges she has within the HR realm. And more importantly, just get to know a little bit more about her. So Cassidy, welcome to the show. - Thank you, so happy to be here. - Absolutely, we're happy to have you. So you know, I figured we'd jump right into it. It's just by you talking a little bit about, you know, your history and I guess maybe how you came into recruiting and let's just say HR. - Yeah, so I have been, I guess, in the industry now for a little bit over eight years and I actually got started in university recruiting for a company that was called at the time, Tureko Holidays, which is now actually called Hotel Bed. So it was an amazing position right out of college, you know, got to travel around, do a lot of career fairs domestically and internationally, where I was brought in to really build out a lot of the sales programs for the company. So really recruiting in top graduates from, you know, the different universities that we targeted and did that for a couple of years. And then I actually chose to go into staffing, which I know is always, you know, people always laugh at that, but I really wanted to get my feet wet. I credit that four years I did with K-Force, a ton because it's all about sourcing, cold calling, interviewing, you know, really learning about the candidate experience and client relationship. I worked with our clients specifically in the Orlando area, which at the time is where I was living and I was partnered with them in their vertical technology department. So I worked with Universal Studios, Walt Disney, some of our healthcare clients and I think that's really where I found my passion for technology. So after doing that for, I think it was about four years, I was with K-Force, you know, I wanted to work for a company that really focused in technology. So that's how I kind of fell into the startup that I currently work for today, which like you mentioned is Fort Robotics. So what we build is a first of its kind robotics control platform. So we really bring robot builders and users that safe, secure, and dynamic control of their machine. So it was totally different from the last two roles I just mentioned because I came in to essentially nothing. So it was a very building, heavily focused role where I came in was a thought partner with our VP of people to really kind of build out, I'm talent acquisition, what that looks like for Fort, what that really means from candidate experience, interviewing, and so on. And then like you said too, obviously working for a startup, I wear a lot of hats. So I've been diving in the last two years too with operations and HR and doing all the things. - Nice, very well first background there. - Yes, a little bit of everything. - Stopping in house, you know, university recruitment. - Absolutely. I actually have been in the staffing and recruitment industry for the past 13 years. - It's amazing. I loved it. Like I loved my time doing it. It's a lot of work, but I think it really makes a good recruiter 'cause you learn all the things. - 100% 100%. And right now I'm the owner of my own recruiting firm. So, you know, as you mentioned wearing a lot of hats, I'm constantly doing that on a daily basis. You know, I get involved with it. I sometimes have to put on my accounting hat, sometimes have to put on my HR hat, as well as recruiting hats. So I know exactly what you mean coming from, you know, the startup that you're operating at right now. - Yeah, it takes a lot, a lot of mental capacity, but it's fun. You have that entrepreneurial spirit for startup and a business owner, very similar. - Absolutely, cool. Well, I wanna kind of touch on K-Force a little bit. So, obviously you were doing recruiting there, and so you spent a lot of years there. I think I saw you actually did IT recruiting as well, right? - Yes, yes. So it's helped me a little bit about how recruiting was for you then, and maybe how it's changed since then, and how you're doing it now. - Yeah, I think the biggest difference, you know, from K-Force to kind of where I'm at now, is really the fast pace, I think, of just connecting with candidates, you know, getting the run down on really their skills and background, and really trying to get them marketed out as fast as you possibly can to, you know, maybe one client or all different clients. And I think back then it was a little bit more faster in the sense of the process of getting to know the candidate and getting them out, and nowadays I feel like we're really kind of shifting more into candidate experience, what that looks like, taking a little bit more time, especially a little bit more on the in-house position that I'm in now, you know, really making sure we're understanding, you know, the candidates' values is that really matching up with our organizational culture, our mission and our vision. You know, I would say those are the two biggest kind of differences where K-Force obviously, it's sales-based, so I was a little bit more of that transactional kind of fast pace. We're now, I get to slow down a little bit and really say, hey, they're gonna be in my organization for quite some time, so I really wanna make sure they're gonna be, you know, the absolute right fit that we need. - You know, it's funny to say that, I think even in the recruiting industry, staffing industry, today, it's changed in that capacity as well, so I think you hit the nail on the head when you said that. I think one of the reasons that is the case too is because we're so much in more of a candidate-driven market now. Would you say that? - Yes. - Yeah. - I would say most definitely candidate-driven market, it's all about recruitment marketing, it's all about what the company is putting out there, whether it's a staffing agency or an actual, you know, corporate organization, startup organization, what are people saying about your company, right? And it's how you're kind of showcasing that, how you're treating candidates. The biggest thing at KForce was we always wanted to follow up, we always wanted to make sure our candidates are feeling really, you know, welcomed and, you know, taking care of, and it's the same way, I think, I think it's gotten even more important, you know, through these last couple of years with all of the layoffs, people are frustrated, you know, people are frustrated with the broken process, and I think a company can really stand out in this market by how they're treating people, you know, in that pipeline and in that process all around. - 100%, I mean, I see it daily, I think that's what differentiates a lot of recruiting firm some others is, you know, the timely responses, the way they're treating their individuals, and, you know, candidates take a liking towards that, because if you can differentiate yourself from your competition, then more people are just gonna come to war too, it's like in any industry, right? - Yeah, and it's the simplest thing. It's just, hey, we didn't hear back, but I wanna keep working with you, like, and it's like a two sentence touch point that can make a difference, you know, on you as a recruiter and then the candidate, so I totally agree with you. - 100%, and even same thing on the client, you know, sometimes I'm sure you can attest to this, sometimes as recruiters, we don't really hit maybe deadlines we'd like to, or we're not getting candidates in a timely fashion, right? Because I don't know, maybe the market is, you know, saturated with a certain type of skill set, whatever it might be, right? But keeping the client in mind and letting them know, hey, you know, having forgotten about you, we're still working on this position for you, and just keeping them in the neuro, I think, is key to. - Yeah, and just being honest, you know, one of the things that I always did was like, you know what, I haven't heard back from client X. Now I'm just being real with you, and people were like, well, thanks for just letting me know, you know, you don't always have to have all the answers, I think just keeping people in the loop of everything, totally helps. - Thank you, thank you for sharing that perspective. I don't think a lot of people understand how important that is within the recruiting industry, and especially, you know, if you're a job seeker and you're airing is like, you know, it's key, like, you know, it's key that you keep that in mind that there are people out there that do care about what we're doing and making sure that you do find employment. - Mm-hmm, yeah. - So I guess while working at K-Force, 'cause I've been in the industry, like I mentioned, for 13 years, and I know, you know, it's a role across your industry. You have your ups and downs, you said it's very fast pace, which is true. For you, what were some of those, I guess you can say challenges that you experienced while you were at K-Force, and then also maybe things that led you to kind of stay within this industry for as long as you've been within. And that's a great question. I mean, there's so many challenges I feel like, you know, that you kind of come across. I think, you know, the challenges from a K-Force perspective was having maybe not so much information, like not having the full picture on, you know, maybe the culture and the interview team and the process and really just trying to find the best fit that you possibly can with what you have. and still really. making sure that the hiring manager is you're working with, like, understand your process and understand also where you're coming from. You know, I think what's really kept me in the industry for this long is people. You know, I absolutely love working with people and I think we're so caught up in the day to day that sometimes you forget, you really truly are helping people, you know, get those salary increases, you know, get them a position whether it's they just need a position for right now or if it's for like a long term type of thing, like, for instance, with Fort Robotics. So it's, you know, it's a great industry to be in. I think it's really evolving the talent acquisition in the HR industry. You know, I don't even really like calling it HR anymore because we're so many different things where organizational development or leadership or learning and development where talent acquisition. Like we are literally everything you could possibly think of. So it's always evolving. It's always changing even though there's so many layoffs happening across the board in talent acquisition. We are awesome people who can always be utilizing some sort of way. It's just making sure you understand how to really showcase your transferable skills, you know, when you are out there in the marketplace. So at the end of the day, people is the short answer. So yeah, I can definitely attest. Cassie, I think that people is definitely one of the reasons I've stayed in the industry for as long as I've been. But also, I think the fact that it's very rewarding what we do and the fact that we actually are, you know, essentially putting food on people's tables. And I think that that's one of the reasons that also has kept me in this industry for as long as I've been in it. So, you know, long story short, it is people though. Right. Yeah, you have to have to love connecting with people if you don't, it's probably not the right industry for you, you know. Absolutely, absolutely. So obviously, you know, K-Force, IT recruiting, then I guess you obviously moved into a position where you are currently right now, senior talent acquisition manager at Fort Robotics. So told to me a little bit about how talent acquisition is different from maybe recruiting. Yeah, I think talent acquisition, you know, it compasses a lot more. I was kind of thinking about this the other day. I came in as a recruiter and I've become a strategist. So you are shifting your mindset from, you know, maybe just getting job requisitions, sourcing, getting your can out-smitted and moving on with the day and it's more encompassing strategy for the organization overall. So how are you kind of looking at retention? How are you looking at performance management? How are you looking at their career growth? So you're taking a candidate and you're really trying to see them as a whole picture on how they're fitting into that organization. And I would say that's a little bit more of the talent acquisition piece. You know, you're really kind of thinking a little bit of everything like I mentioned earlier, like learning and development, you have the HR piece of it and you're really trying to just kind of make this candidate a culture ad into your organization. So, you know, I would say though recruiters, there's a lot out there that are doing this now, whether they're in staffing or they're in an organization. I think, you know, talent acquisition has a lot to just that recruiter title, but it's kind of like how are you shifting your mindset to be just a recruiter who does their day in and day out to more of that strategist who's really thinking about the long term, whether it's for your client or for your organization that you're working with. Yeah, that's very true. You know, one of a couple weeks back, we actually had a guest on the show and we spoke about just how dynamic the recruiting talent acquisition, human resources, industries are, you know, like I don't know too many other industries that you're responsible for speaking to candidates, then you're speaking to clients, then you're sometimes providing like benefits and information to candidates as well. And then from there, you're also, you know, responsible for training and development and also onboarding. So, it's a very dynamic industry and I think a lot of people don't even understand how dynamic it can be because you could also be responsible for like administrative work as well. So it's a good point that you mentioned. Cool. Right now, I guess, you know, coming from KForce and obviously being, you know, senior talent acquisition manager now, I know you said it's a startup company, but do you guys utilize any like recruiting firms or temporary employees? Yeah, so when I came in, that's all they were using. So we didn't have obviously anyone in talent acquisition. I came in as the 30th employee, realized we just were using external vendors, staffing agencies. So I was really brought in to do a lot of the cost saving with what they were doing. So I think in the beginning of Fort's history, it was amazing for, you know, utilizing staffing agencies, getting our engineering department up and running, you know, getting some of those key players in. But as of right now, we don't. So I am myself and then I have one team member on board with us. So we are also not hiring a ton. You know, it's been that slow drip over the last two years. So as of right now, we're very capable, you know, in terms of filling those job requisitions. But I think, you know, being a series A to a series B company, hopefully to a series C and beyond, you know, in the startup world, I think it's one of those things where, you know, we'll start to kind of shift our mindset and think more about the skill based, which I think is where a lot of our contractors and our contractor needs will come in. So it's never say never. I think for right now, we're doing what we need to do. But I think for growth in the future, you know, I love to push the contractor side of things because, you know, if we're not really knowing the vision or we're trying out a new project for a client or some of our new things, like I was saying, you know, I think, you know, contract workers are going to be pivotal for for in the future. I think it was super important in the beginning stages of the company. Obviously, I was brought in to kind of slow down some of those costs and the needs. And then, you know, I think where we're at right now and where we're going, it's definitely a conversation. Being a startup, we're always doing new projects and trying new things. So I think contract needs, you know, will definitely come available. Got you. And I'm curious to know, have you being that you're now in senior talent acquisition? Have you ever had the experience of working with a recruiting firm before? Like, obviously, you came from that industry and came from that side of the business, but have you ever had the experience of working with another recruiter before? Yeah, a ton. So like I said, when I came in to Fort, they were pretty much just solely utilizing a different staffing agency. So, came in, you know, got to introduce myself, be kind of the point of contact for things and finish up some of the hiring that I walked into, you know, with Fort. Yeah, I love that I have been on both sides because like I said, I absolutely loved my staffing agency experience and I, you know, have the most respect for any recruiter, any talent acquisition person on either side of the game. So, you know, coming in and having the experience, you know, from my previous employer, it was awesome. You know, we got to connect and laugh about things and it just brought like a different human connection, you know, to the relationship. So, yes, I definitely have. Perfect. Yeah, I, that's the one experience I've never had. I've always been in staffing and recruitment. So, you know, on the other side, I can only imagine what it's like and how you get inundated with probably messages and phone calls from recruiters and sales reps. So, I guess for you, you know, being on that side now, I'm always curious to know because I'm still in the staffing and recruitment industry world. For you, like, what, what is that determining factor for you that makes you say, okay, I'm going to work with company A as opposed to company B or C? Yeah, I think it's just making again that connection with someone, you know, instead of the cold call email, which like, listen, hey, you know, you got to do some cold call emails and phone calls, right? But it's like, instead of just emailing, you know, I think the worst is people will email about a position we had like posted a month ago. And sometimes I'm just like, if you actually went on our job website, it's not there anymore. So clearly, you're not paying attention, you know, to what's going on in the business. So I think what stands out is, you know, having that business knowledge, you know, you've maybe been reading some of our LinkedIn posts. You know, you'll make a actual business case in an email versus just like, here's a DevOps engineer, right? I mean, there's so many DevOps engineer. I can go find one on LinkedIn recruiters. So it's like, what's the difference of working with you versus me just doing a 30 minutes search? You know, I think really having, oh, hey, I've been keeping up with for quite some time. You know, I've noticed you guys have a 6% growth in the last couple months. Like, it would be so interested in getting on a quick call and like learning a little bit about the business and what you guys do instead of approaching it from, here's a candidate, I can help you source. And it's like, okay, you know, so can everyone else, you know, so it's like being more of that thought partner, that business partner, I think is what stands out to me personally. But I think that differs for every company, right? You know, if they're trying to hire a ton and they just got to get some people in, that not might be the case, you know, but I think it's finding out who you're speaking to. is important, you know, too. What is, what do they care about, you know? - And I guess for all the recruiters and sales reps that are out there, I know in today's world, it's like, you know, co-coals, they're not really that prevalent as they were probably when you were actually, you know, in recruiting and staffing, let's just say. Today, it's like most managers, you know, don't really pick up their phones for these recruiters or staffing sales reps. So, you know, when you get an email or a LinkedIn message, you know, what makes you want to say, all right, let me respond to this one. Is there something that kind of captures your attention about those emails? - Yeah, so what catches my attention, like I was mentioning is just a little bit more of that time on focusing about the business. So, again, instead of just like, here's a candidate, I can help you with sourcing. You know, it's that, okay, do they understand what Fort Robotics does? Like, are they keeping up with what we're posting about? I think in an email, that stands out even. Even if it's like a call out, you know, on, hey, you know, I saw this review or I saw XYZ happen at the company, like we could kind of help be a partner to maybe enhance or grow or, you know, like I said, just a little bit more of that business knowledge because it shows that you're not just like hitting a metric or a KPI, you're taking the time to actually dig a little bit deeper. - Right, learn about your business. And like you said, be more of that partner to you. So it's like, you gotta stand out a little bit. - Absolutely, absolutely. So right now, obviously, you know, senior talent acquisition manager at Fort Robotics, I know you said it's a startup right now. At this point, but how often are you involved in hiring on a daily basis now? - Yeah, pretty, pretty involved. Every day we're talking about, you know, whether it's the growth, I'm involved in a little bit more of the organizational kind of structure and development of a department and really kind of working with our director of people operations on, what does that next position look like? What is the business telling us we need? And then I'm working with, you know, my director, pour on kind of building out what that looks like, you know, from the interview process to the sourcing process. So we've been super heavily involved since day one. You know, I think I will say, most recently getting my HR certification. I'm taking a little bit more step into that HR world. So I, you know, I would say, I think moving forward, I'll probably be focusing a little bit more on that side versus talent acquisition in the day and in day out. But I also think it's whatever the business needs. So, you know, tomorrow, if we need to go out and hire, you know, 30-something people, then I'm gonna switch back into my talent acquisition, you know, Hatt. So I think it's just, you know, for me personally, working for a startup, it's really what the business needs. But I've been involved since day one on a lot of the development, you know, with talent here at Ford. - Now, one of the questions we typically like to ask most of our guests that come on the show is how are you actually retaining cop talent now? - Yes. So I think besides, you know, career development and compensation and the best benefits, I think my top two on how you can retain great talent is having a strong leadership team. I think if you have a strong leadership team, then your employees are gonna be completely bought in into your organization. If they believe in your leadership, capabilities, your styles, if they believe in the mission and the vision and they can see themselves as a part of that, I think that's the number one thing. You can have an amazing salary, but if they are not bought in on the leadership team and the values of that organization, they're not gonna be there for a while. And then I think really too, it comes down to just caring, you know, and it's so simple, but it's truly caring about your people. Again, you can have all the money in the world, but if you feel like you are literally not cared for, you're just a number in an organization, where is the fun and that, where's the growth in that? So I think, you know, really having one-on-ones with your employees and showing them that they're a part of this mission, you care about them, asking them what they're liking, what they don't. I think it can go very far in retaining people. - Absolutely. That's a really good point for you. And you know, since you mentioned, you're very involved with the hiring. What traits or qualities to some of maybe your best hires that you've ever had possessed? - Yeah, so besides like our organizational values, so we have a whole interview process where we just focus on our values and how our candidates are kind of showing up in those values. I would say just the adaptability, wearing multiple hats, you know, candidates that aren't scared to, you know, maybe come in with their job description that says, A, but then they're gonna have to pivot and do a little bit of B and C. So someone that's really versatile is a go-getter, has a really positive attitude. And again, it's just really bought in on the mission and vision of Ford. Obviously we're moving so fast-paced that we need people who are passionate and who believe in what we're doing because at the end of the day, a startup doesn't survive without their investors. So you have to be completely bought in and sold on what you're really trying to do. - For the candidates that you are interviewing nowadays, I'm sure you probably are getting involved with interviews whether it be virtually or in person. I always like to ask everyone this, what's your favorite interview question to ask someone? - I always like to ask what value of ours really hit home for you and that just kind of shows me, did they actually go and, you know, read our mission and vision statement? Did they read about our values or were they just really reading the job description to prepare for the job? So I think that really stands out. We like to look at our people and say, they're great in this value and this team is really shining in this value. So it's in the interview process, we're really trying to look for people who could be a culture ad and not a culture fit. So I think seeing if they're looking at our values and really looking at the mission and vision statement, that's what I always like to ask. - Absolutely, that's a great question. It kind of shows whether or not someone is actually doing their homework, right? So it's a great one. And I guess, you know, one of my last questions that I have for you, being that you're interviewing and involved with hiring and just have so many years of experience and knowledge within the industry, what maybe one piece of advice that you would give to a job secret today? - Just, I mean, it's a uphill battle right now, I think across the board. But, you know, my best advice would really be, um, be adaptable, you know, show those transferable skills, be open to maybe a position that's titled, not necessarily like what your background is in, and then network a ton, you know, every position I've ever got is because I reached out on LinkedIn, introduce myself, try to go the extra mile, you know, I think if you're just really open to opportunities they'll come to you, but if you kind of put yourself in this box or a job title or a job description, you know, there's so many other people that are doing that. So it's like if you can have a little bit of an open mind on your career and where you're going, I think it definitely helps. - Great, great piece of advice for all the job seekers that are out there today. I think, you know, it's about being more proactive than reactive, and then also, you know, I think when you're looking for a job, you've probably, you know, you've heard this all the time as well, it's a full-time job when you're looking for a job. So you have to really also kind of differentiate yourself from all the job seekers that are out there. - Yeah, it's time consuming, but to your point, you know, another piece of advice is tailor those resumes. You know, you wanna tailor them, make sure you're hitting on those, you know, job descriptions, the qualifications, you know, tailoring every resume. It's so time consuming, but it does make the difference. - Absolutely, and tailoring it to the position is you're actually applying for it, right? So, 100%. Perfect, well, Cassidy, this was great. I really appreciate you coming onto the show today and giving us a view of your perspective within the industry. For everyone that would like to get in touch with you out there, how can I get in touch with you? - LinkedIn, LinkedIn's the best way. So if they just put first name, last name, and then Fort Robotics, I should pop up, so. - And this is, you know, obviously just another episode of the hiring state of mind. Please like, comment, subscribe to the video, and I'm sure we can look to have more awesome guests, just like Cassidy on the show. (upbeat music)