Building Capacity Models with JT Haskell, Talent Leader @ Formerly: Reddit, Kraken, & Zapier

Forecasting and capacity planning are cornerstones of making recruiting a true strategic partner within any business.

JT Haskell, a talent acquisition veteran with over 15 years of experience at high-growth tech startups like AirWatch, PinDrop, Zapier, Kraken, and Reddit, joins to share his insights. You’ll learn how forecasting and capacity planning help effectively scale a recruiting system that works for your organization.

In his conversation with host Shannon Ogborn, JT shares how being proactive in forecasting not only helps in meeting hiring goals but also positions recruiting teams as essential strategic advisors to the business.

Key Takeaways:
1. Incorporate time off: When creating your capacity models, include time off, holidays, and events in your capacity models to keep recruiting forecasts realistic and avoid bottlenecks and hiring delays.
2. Over-deliver on hiring goals: A well-structured capacity model allows you to accurately predict and meet your hiring goals, enabling your team to over-deliver and enhancing your reputation as a reliable and strategic partner within the business.
3. Integrate project work to reduce burnout: Integrating project work into your capacity model reduces burnout and keeps your team motivated, leading to a more engaged, productive, and innovative recruiting team.

Timestamps:
(00:00) Introduction
(04:00) Capacity planning and forecasting
(06:00) How to build a capacity model
(10:00) Prioritizing hiring needs in large companies
(12:00) Scaling down goals to achieve better outcomes
(15:00) The benefits of integrating project work into capacity models
(16:00) Considering time off and holidays in capacity planning
(21:00) How forecasting can help with business strategy
(23:00) JT’s hot take on automation in recruiting
(25:00) TA automation tools to check out