Shaun Smith-Taylor is a self-described Product Geek and BBQ enthusiast who got so frustrated with the state of product management recruiting that he set up his own company to fix it. He's keen on AI, the metaverse and the possibilities of using them to bring technological advancement to recruitment and beyond.
Here are some highlights from the episode:
There's still a problem with the quality of product job specsHalf the time, companies don't seem to know what to ask for. This means they confuse candidates and get the wrong people applying for the jobs. A mixture of technology & human consulting is needed to fix this.
But there's also a problem with product management CVsPMs talk about outcomes all the time but need to focus on outcomes in their CVs. Candidates stuff every single thing they've done into their CVs, with little connection to real results & often badly formatted or overlong.
Candidates are still paranoid about Applicant Tracking SystemsIt's common for people to blame the ATS for all of their problems, but ATS systems always involve humans and aren't using as much fancy AI as some might claim. They're not perfect, but nothing is.
The people the AI is trained on can be just as biased as the AIAll people have unconscious biases, and some are downright prejudiced. We should always do what we can to limit the chance of bias, and doing so isn't a personal attack on the hiring manager.
There are metaverse applications for recruitmentIn a world of remote working & different working preferences in general, the metaverse may open up opportunities around in-person assessments as well as remote working. But we've got a long way to go before we get there.
A message from my sponsor - me!I'm currently looking at consulting opportunities. If you'd like to speak to me about how I can help you build great products, or the teams that build great products, check out One Knight Consulting and book a free, no-commitment call to chat about your needs.
Contact ShaunYou can hit Shaun up on LinkedIn, or check out MyProductPath.
Getting to Product/Market Fit and Building Effective Product Teams (with Harpal Singh, Product Consultant & Interim CPO)
Transforming companies & instilling a product mindset (with Dave Martin, founder of Right To Left)
Avoiding the agency trap & ADHD in Product (with Janna Bastow, CEO ProdPad, co-founder Mind the Product)
Lifelong learning & the perils of time-based roadmaps (with Andrea Saez, Product Growth & Education @ ProdPad)
Managing Tension in Product Management (with Marc Abraham, author & Head of Product @ ASOS.com)
Product Processes & the Importance of Work / Life Balance (with Busayomi Omotosho, PM @ Softcom)
Growing a PM career & the importance of side hustles (with Victoria Tkatch, Senior PM @ Sonos)
Technical Product Management & the importance of mentorship (with Mark Yamashita, Technical PM @ Sensibill)
API Product Management & mountain climbing as a metaphor (with Elina Sokolovska, PM @ Flux)
AI Product Management & The Importance of Communication (with Mark Graham, Lead PM @ Sharktower)
Entrepreneurship & being a founder (with Matt Wilkinson, Founder @ Zenquiries)
The role of education in leadership (with Mac Maistrelli, Engineering Leader @ Blocket)
Building inclusive products for all (with Nidhi Wadmark, PM @ PayPal)
Making yourself heard in the workplace (with Priyanka Naik, Growth PM @ Advarisk)
Networking to start your Product career (with Anna Lieberman, aspiring PM)
Using your experience to teach the next generation (with Maanas Bukkuri, PM and educator)
Putting users back at the heart of UX (with Dr Nick Fine PhD, UX consultant)
Being an AI Product Manager (with Pouya Jamshidiat, author & Senior PO at Eagle Genomics)
Getting started in Product (with Becca Vibert, Product School speaker & PM @ Fiit)
Product leadership & how heroism doesn't scale (with Saeed Khan, product consultant @ Transformation Labs)
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