I had the pleasure of interviewing Michelle Augustin, a Recruiting Associate Manager within the Corporate Functions organization at Accenture, who is an amazing recruiter and team lead that is striving to keep the “human” in “human resources.”
Michelle has been in recruiting for over 15 years, and while her primary focus has been technical recruiting, she has had the pleasure of helping find amazing candidates for wonderful teams in many different areas such as; Information Security, Risk Management, Human Resources, Operations, Finance, and more!
Thank you so much for joining us!
What motivated you to choose technical recruiting as your professional career?
Michelle: I have always loved helping people, but honestly, I feel that technical recruiting chose me! I was looking for an administrative role out of college and received an offer as a Sourcer for an agency. I quickly fell in love with the pace and people! I was quickly promoted to Technical Recruiter, where I was provided the opportunity to learn about technology, the people who work in that industry, and agency-style recruiting.
What is it that excites you about tech recruiting?
Michelle: There is never a dull moment! Technology is always changing, so it provides me the opportunity to always learn something new! It’s incredible to think (and I might age myself here) that there were days when we didn’t have laptops, Wi-Fi, or phones with touch screens! Behind the scenes are designers, programmers, analysts, testers, and more who are changing the way we live personally and professionally every day. Change can cause hesitancy, but in the world we live in, we must adapt, learn, and grow to keep up.
What has been your biggest challenge in tech recruitment?
Michelle: What is challenging about technical recruiting is also the fact that technology is always changing. You really need to take the time to learn about new and evolving technologies so you can find the best possible candidate for each unique opportunity.
In addition, it is a candidate’s market, and employers must move quickly through the interview and offer processes. If we don’t, that perfect candidate could be gone in the blink of an eye! I often see and hear recruiters complaining about the same scenario where we present resumes, interview a few candidates, and find one amazing person that they are excited about, yet, they ask for more resumes… Perfect talent is hard to find, and one of the challenges in day-to-day recruiting today is moving too slowly and expecting too much.
What do you think is the future of tech recruitment, and what state-of-art problems do you think needs to be solved?
Michelle: Finding amazing technical talent is already challenging, but to add to that challenge is that we do need to find amazing people as well! Someone who can do the job itself but will also fit into the team and organization. No longer are the days where you pitch a bunch of resumes to see what sticks.
Recruiters have a greater responsibility upfront when assessing candidates to determine if not only the role is a great fit in the short term, but we also need to ensure that the employer is a great long-term fit as well! We also have to explore new venues in finding great talent as opposed to just hitting the traditional job boards for active talent. We have to find active and passive talent in new ways through networking, events, groups, etc., Then, we have to maintain those relationships with frequent and honest communication.
If you had to share “words of wisdom” with a tech recruiter who’s about to start their journey in tech recruitment, what would they be?
Michelle: There is no such thing as over-communicating! Keeping everyone you work with as up to date as possible in the recruiting process really helps keep the process moving as quickly and as efficiently as possible but helps minimizes surprises.
When it comes specifically to technical recruiting, don’t be afraid to ask questions, especially if it’s a new technology or one you are unfamiliar with, as it will help enormously when you are trying to determine if a candidate would be a fit for an opportunity available.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Michelle: Please feel free to request a connection with me on LinkedIn -> https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelleaugustin/
Thanks for joining us, Michelle! Communication is certainly the key to building relationships and technology can help us take it to next level. Your vision to empower recruitment using technology is inspiring yet realistic.
