Inside our hiring process with Cristiana Martins
Senior Talent Acquisition Functional Lead, Cristiana Martins, gives us an insider look into Zalando’s recruitment approach, from her perspective as a passionate tech recruiter. Hint: it’s all about honesty.
Can you give us an outline of your career path to this point?
I have a Masters in Organizational Psychology. I started my career in Portugal, doing sales, marketing and software engineering recruitment. I wanted international experience, so I got a job in tech recruitment and employer branding at a Berlin startup. Around five years ago, I was invited to join Zalando. I started as a recruiter, then grew into the Functional Lead position, before taking on my current role as Senior Talent Acquisition Functional Lead. I focus on the Central Functions of Zalando.
How would you describe your responsibilities?
I built my own small specialist team within the Central Functions area, which specializes in tech recruitment. I make sure that everyone is happy and performing to their maximum potential. I also do a lot of stakeholder management — connecting with stakeholders up to SVP level — as well as working on hiring strategy and taking care of other organizational aspects.
What is your favorite part of your role?
As you can tell by my psychology background, I have a huge love of people. My absolute favorite part of my role is stakeholder management. I enjoy talking to people and defining strategies and solutions with them. It has been great to bring my learnings as an individual contributor to the leadership side. I am passionate about recruitment, especially in tech, which is a really special area. I have always been interested in the behind the scenes of a product. For example, you might not immediately recognize a Software Engineer’s work just by looking at it. Zalando makes such great products, and I’m happy that I get to see what goes into creating them.
You recently took part in our Candidate Experience Webinar together with some other industry experts. Could you tell us more about that?
Kerstin Schartner, who leads Zalando’s Talent Relationship & Talent Acquisition team, invited me, as she knew that I have a real interest in the candidate experience. It was really special to discuss the topic with an external expert — Tosin Anifowose, a Senior Tech Recruiter from Delivery Hero — and to engage with the audience. I shared my approach, which is that creating a smooth experience for the candidate should be the top priority of the hiring process. In my experience, it pays off because, even if they don’t accept the job, they usually recommend the company to their friends, as they can tell it’s a great place to work.
How would you describe the Zalando candidate experience?
Firstly, we have a very structured, open and mature recruitment process. We make sure the candidate knows what to expect from the very beginning. As a recruiter, I listen carefully to them and honestly tell them what the gaps in their experience might be, or what kind of questions they can expect at the interview stage. We want them to be prepared to be at their best. Secondly, we always give feedback. I promise feedback to all of my candidates from day one; wherever their process ends, they are welcome to book a slot in my calendar so that we can debrief. We also collect their feedback so that we can identify any areas in which we can improve. Finally, we provide a lot of training to interviewers and Hiring Managers to enable them to guide candidates through the process in the best possible way.
What would be your advice to candidates applying for a job at Zalando?
First, do some research about Zalando and understand if it’s a company that you want to join. If you find an opening that aligns with your career goals, my best advice is to think about how your experience fits the requirements, and what you could bring to the role. Make sure this is reflected in your CV — but don’t worry if you don’t match with everything. Potential is the unwritten rule of Zalando’s job ads. Lastly, don’t be afraid to be open with us in articulating your hopes and concerns. We recruiters are here to create a connection and a safe environment for candidates. I always ask candidates to share any feedback or feelings that come up. I love this level of honesty.
If all of this goes well, it’s very likely that you will be able to join Zalando in the future. If, for any reason, the application cannot proceed, there are no closing doors at Zalando. There is always a possibility to come back later and reapply.
