Joanna Chavers of Atrium On How To Identify and Engage The Best Talent For Your Organization

An Interview With Rachel Kline

Obtain feedback — During the interview process, I get feedback from the hiring manager first and then go to the candidate. If their impressions of the process and fit are aligned, then we have synergy. If they are different, then we missed something that may mean they aren’t a good fit.

Companies are always on the lookout for exceptional talent in today’s work environment. In addition, the perks needed to keep talent have changed as people are not simply running after a paycheck. They want something more. What does a company need to do to identify and engage the best talent for their organization? In this interview series, we are talking to HR experts who can share ideas and insights from their experience. As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Joanna Chavers.

Joanna Chavers is Executive Director, Talent Strategy at Atrium, a WBENC (Women’s Business Enterprise National Council)-certified leader with a legacy of helping employer brands source unparalleled talent and technology-driven workforce solutions that put people first. With a decorated track record placing top talent in permanent roles across various industries and disciplines, Joanna used her skill set to organically grow Atrium’s first-ever Internal Talent Management department. She has been featured in several leading business and trade publications.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before diving in, our readers would love to get to know you. Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to this specific career path?

I fell into my recruiting career at Atrium by happenstance. I applied to Atrium for a client opportunity and left the interview with a recruiting position. The Atrium recruiter recognized my entrepreneurial spirit and hired me to run a staffing desk. I worked on both temporary and direct hire positions and eventually began managing my own team.

As my career advanced, I realized I had a keen eye for placing internal positions. This interest led me to pivot, and Atrium’s internal talent acquisition program was born. I also enjoy consulting on talent acquisition topics for clients.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you first started? Then, can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

While I don’t have an example of a funny mistake, I can say that the main lesson I have learned in the talent acquisition business is that we are in the business of people. We don’t work with products or services; we work with people. My priority is always making the best match for the candidate and the client. The best way to do this is to get to know your candidates as well as you can. The benefits are two-fold — you have a happy candidate and you build a good rapport with the client.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote” and how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Treat others the way you want to be treated.” This truly goes back to remembering that we are in the people business. My team understands that the candidates with whom we deal are moms, dads, sisters, and brothers — real people with real lives. We should be ensuring that we are guiding them in the right direction. Ultimately, we want to make sure our candidates are happy and that we present candidates we believe will succeed in a position. I always try to provide advice that aligns with what I would give a friend.

Are you working on any exciting new projects at your company? How is this helping people?

Atrium’s multi-year partnership with a premiere professional sports league is a special project for me. Through our collaboration, we are helping former professional athletes transition into non-athletic-based careers. Atrium supports the partnership with resume preparation, predictive index assessments, job matching consultations, and interview coaching. This program has truly been transformational as we help the players understand how the skills they developed on the field can translate to the workplace.

Wonderful. Now let’s jump into the main focus of our series. Hiring can be very time-consuming and challenging. Can you share with our readers a bit about your experience with identifying and hiring talent? What’s been your most successful recruitment-related initiative so far?

Atrium is a workforce solutions company, so shifting gears and focusing on recruiting internal talent takes a very different approach. There are certain competencies that we look for in an environment heavily driven by commission. We look at what the profile of a successful sales candidate is. And then we need to translate all of that beyond what we see on paper. We look at their story and hone in on key identifiers through predictive analysis.

Throughout the process of internal recruiting, our focus is always on maintaining an unbiased lens. One way we ensure this is by holding every first interview over the phone, thereby eliminating any visuals that may influence first impressions.

We also look at the competitive talent landscape for positions throughout the company. We strive to set ourselves apart from other firms in order to attract the best talent.

Once talent is engaged, what’s your advice for creating a great candidate experience and ensuring the right people go through the process?

Our team is typically the first point of contact for a candidate, and they continue to be involved throughout the hiring process. We ensure a great candidate experience by staying close to both the candidate and hiring manager, which allows us to continuously highlight our culture, differentiators, and benefits, while the hiring manager focuses on the job.

Based on your experience, how can HR and culture professionals work with the broader organization to identify talent needs?

This goes back to the people piece that I mentioned earlier. HR knows better than anybody that it’s more than just a job — people care about benefits, guidance, interactions, and support. To be successful, I approach recruiting as a full-cycle talent development process. This goes beyond assessing a person’s fit as a candidate but also includes making the person feel supported, whole, and valued — from recruiting to tenure.

Is there anything you see that recruiters, internal or otherwise, do regularly that makes you think, “No, stop doing that!”?

Yes, there are two things. The first error is when recruiters push people into roles just to check the box when it is not the right fit. This may seem like an easy solution, but it will undoubtedly create more problems on the backend.

The second mistake is hiring people just because you like their personality. You shouldn’t be hiring people just because you would like to be their friend and hang out with them. The best recruiters look for people who are a personality fit for the organization but are also of value to the company because they have the skills to help take the business to the next level.

With so much noise and competition out there, what are your top 3 ways to attract and engage the best talent in an industry when they haven’t already reached out to you?

1. Marketing campaigns — We create targeted campaigns to deliver content specific to that population and position Atrium as an Employer of Choice.
2. Highlighting our culture — I love to discuss Atrium’s culture with candidates and how it sets us apart. Our founder, Rebecca Cenni-Leventhal set the tone more than 25 years ago when she formed the company as an applicant-centric™ organization, putting people first. We are also proud of the fact that we have motivated, bright, and engaging people who drive our organization. We are always seeking to expand this with additional talent.
3. Supplier diversity initiatives — As a long-time champion of supplier diversity initiatives, Atrium has been certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) for almost 20 years. Many candidates are interested in careers at Atrium because of this status.

What are the three most effective strategies you use to retain employees?

1. Checking in regularly — We perform 30, 60, and 90-day check-ins. This information, coupled with feedback from the manager, helps us to identify employees at risk of leaving. Early and frequent check-ins can help solve potential issues that when noted and resolved, can create happy and productive employees with stronger ties to our organization.
2. Talent development — We stay close to employees holistically through training and support. HR is woven into this process. This not only ensures a great employee experience but also that the recruiters on our team are aware of the results of their efforts.
3. Employee Resource Groups and other outlets outside of work — ERGs and other wellness programs enable our people to collaborate with staff members they may never work with otherwise.

Here is the main question of our interview. Can you share five techniques that you use to identify the talent that would be best suited for the job you want to fill? Please share an example for each idea.

1. Assess motivators and drivers — We use the Predictive Index (“PI”) Behavioral Assessment to see what factors could be at play in a candidate’s day-to-day work. And while we certainly don’t put all our eggs in the PI basket, we have found that it provides great insight into their work style.
2. Look for soft skills — When discussing a performance or commission-related role like sales with a candidate, I try to identify a history of achievement. For instance, examples of a time when they overcame adversity and displayed perseverance often make up for a lack of direct sales experience.
3. Obtain feedback — During the interview process, I get feedback from the hiring manager first and then go to the candidate. If their impressions of the process and fit are aligned, then we have synergy. If they are different, then we missed something that may mean they aren’t a good fit.
4. Consider transferable skill sets — I find it beneficial to get candidates on the phone even if their skill set doesn’t immediately seem like an exact fit. I ask them to provide examples that bridge that gap and try to glean whether they have the tools in their toolbox to do the job. For example, an Account Manager candidate may not have worked with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) before, but that person could have a history of client services interactions, customer service skills, and problem-solving skills that address the core fundamentals of the job.
5. Ask why — I always ask why the candidate wants the job. Do they know who we are and what we do? By asking, I am assessing the why behind their interest to see if it aligns with our business goals and corporate culture.

We are very blessed to have some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have a private lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this.

As I believe you can learn so much from so many people, I’m happy to talk to anyone who wants to have lunch with me as I’m sure it would be inspirational!

How can our readers continue to follow your work online?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/joanna-chavers-13054a13/

Thank you so much for these fantastic insights!