The Secrets to Recruiting A-Players – and Proving You’re an A-Player Yourself

In our latest podcast episode, we dive into the tricky world of finding and keeping top talent. It’s a real challenge for many companies these days, so we’re breaking down what makes an A-player and how both recruiters and job seekers can spot and attract these high achievers. We’re lucky to have Michelle Kuo, a recruiting pro with experience at big names like Disney and NFL.com, sharing her insights on what sets A-players apart.

First up, we chat about what exactly defines an A-player. These folks aren’t just your typical high achievers; they’ve got a special mix of skills, mindset, and attitude that really drives their success. Michelle shares some great stories about how she spots these traits during interviews and why it’s important to look beyond just the resume. A-players tend to be adaptable, hardworking, and genuinely passionate about what they do, which can make a huge difference in their contributions to a team.

Next, we dig into the hidden signals that show a candidate might be an A-player. Michelle emphasizes the importance of soft skills. Sure, technical know-how is vital, but being able to communicate well, work with others, and show emotional intelligence is just as crucial. We discuss some practical ways recruiters can assess these traits during interviews, like using behavioral questions and situational scenarios to get a better feel for a candidate’s personality and problem-solving skills.

For job seekers out there, it’s super important to know how to present yourself as an A-player. Michelle shares some awesome tips on personal branding, encouraging candidates to highlight their unique strengths and experiences in ways that really resonate with potential employers. By telling a compelling personal story and tapping into their professional networks, job seekers can boost their visibility and attract the attention of companies looking for top talent.

We also talk about employer branding and how it can help attract A-players. These days, candidates want more than just a paycheck; they’re looking for companies that match their values and offer a great work culture. We discuss how organizations can create a strong employer brand that speaks to high performers, focusing on transparency, inclusivity, and employee engagement to build a workplace that people want to be a part of.

Navigating the interview process can be a bit intimidating for everyone involved. Michelle shares some great insights on how to create a positive interview experience that lets A-players shine. We cover strategies for recruiters to build rapport, ask the right questions, and create a comfortable environment where candidates can really show what they’re made of. For job seekers, we talk about how to prepare, advocate for themselves, and showcase their value during interviews.

Throughout the episode, we also touch on the importance of continuous learning and growth. A-players often have a strong desire to improve and develop. Michelle highlights how crucial it is for companies to support their employees through training, mentorship, and opportunities for advancement. This not only helps keep top talent but also fosters a culture of excellence within the organization.

As we wrap things up, we reflect on how the world of work is changing and what that means for recruiting and talent management. Companies need to adapt their strategies to meet the needs of a diverse and dynamic workforce. We encourage listeners to embrace new ideas in their recruitment processes and stay open to fresh approaches that can improve how they attract talent.

In a nutshell, this episode is packed with practical tips and expert advice for both recruiters and job seekers looking to navigate the challenges of finding and keeping A-players. Whether you’re trying to build an awesome team or elevate your own career, Michelle Kuo’s insights offer a valuable roadmap to success.

So, tune in to catch the full episode and join the conversation! We’d love to hear your thoughts, experiences, and questions as we continue to explore the ever-changing world of recruitment and talent acquisition. Let’s work together to unlock the potential of A-players and create better workplaces for everyone!

 

Transcript:

I literally can’t [00:02:00] wait for this conversation today. Michelle Kuo, welcome to Recruiting Insider.

[00:02:05] Michelle Kuo: Hi, well, thanks for having me on here. It’s exciting. Yes, it’s a pleasure.

[00:02:11] Mary Southern: Michelle helps CEOs business owners and companies, hire fast and hire right. She has led recruiting for multiple startups and IPO companies such as Qualtrics, Chatbooks, Lucid, Health Catalyst, Disney, NFL.

com, Stream Native, WB and Direct TV. She’s been featured in the Salt Lake City Tribune, Business Insider, Utah Business, And she’s a highly sought after speaker and that’s really just touching the surface of what this amazing human does. So Michelle, tell us a little bit more about your career journey.

[00:02:52] Michelle Kuo: Yeah. And I appreciate the intro. I, you know, whenever I hear it, it’s always hard and then I’m like, [00:03:00] Oh yes, I did do a lot of those things. Um,

[00:03:02] Mary Southern: yeah, absolutely.

[00:03:04] Michelle Kuo: So I can start off like, so my career, you know, I’ve always been kind of that straight A. 4. 54. I had above 4. 0. Um, so I was one of those students that literally, like one of my quarters, I got five because of straight A’s, AP classes, honors.

Um, so I’ve been in the, on that track and I know what that looks like. Um, and so I, as soon as I graduated college, I fell into recruiting. Like a lot of people who get into recruiting, they don’t know it’s a profession, but I got into it and I loved it. Um, One of the things I really enjoyed Was just getting to know people and make an impact on their lives.

And you see when they land a job and they absolutely love it. They get a 20 percent increase on their salary. It’s amazing. Like they’re so excited. They’re there for a couple of years. Um, and then when they’re ready to move on, [00:04:00] they contact you and they remember you and they remember that experience. So I’ve been doing it for the last 15 years.

Um, and that’s part of why you see kind of the long list of clients that I’ve worked with. I’ve been on. Agency side, I worked internally at Toyota as well. And then I started my own agency 11 years ago. And a lot of it has been Utah based, but we have worked a lot with companies that are looking for remote workers.

Um, so since COVID, everybody’s gone remote. And so I’m used to working across the U S with a ton of talent. So, um, we can talk more about that, but that’s kind of a little background on my, my career.

[00:04:41] Mary Southern: Thank you for that. And I I’ve spoken with a lot of recruiters lately and it does seem like that’s kind of a trend where it’s like you kind of just trip and fall into, into recruiting and nobody ever really knows what exactly it is.

And then they, you know, kind of take it on and they fall in love with it because it’s a very fulfilling career when you can help people. [00:05:00]

[00:05:00] Michelle Kuo: Oh yeah, yeah, no, it’s, it’s, when I got into it, I mean, I was talking a lot and I loved talking to people, but I realized that, you know, I’m solving an, uh, uh, like I’m making a difference on the candidates lives, but I’m also solving a problem for clients.

So it was, yeah, it’s just the mental challenge of having to find people and finding the right people and finding those eight players. Like that’s what kind of fulfills me. And I love the challenge. I’ve always, I’ve always enjoyed one, one key thing when you’re looking at recruiters, I’ve always enjoyed looking, you know, when you go into these, um, highlight magazines as a kid and you’re like searching, circling.

Like, where do you find the nail? Where do you find this? I love that. That’s the only thing I did. I’d go through every magazine in the library and I’d just be circling it. And that’s the reason why I realized, this is why I enjoy finding people. I love it. Yes, awesome.

[00:05:53] Mary Southern: I love it. I love it when that passion meets your profession.

It’s like, that’s where it’s at. It’s so satisfying. [00:06:00] Yeah. So, so before we really dive deep into the topic today, I want to know from a high level perspective, What actually is an A player?

[00:06:09] Michelle Kuo: So you can kind of think of it as, you know, when you’re in grade school, 90 percent and above, right? Those are the, when you score 90 percent and above, that’s what you look at as, Oh, I got an A.

Um, so A players are the same way. And that’s how I grade candidates. I grade them A minus, A. I don’t rarely give a person an A plus cause that’s usually what you got to get a hundred percent and most people don’t get a hundred percent, right?

[00:06:35] Mary Southern: Yup. So

[00:06:35] Michelle Kuo: I do not grade people most of the time on A plus, but we call them A players.

Um, I do have B’s, C’s and then below some people do fail. Okay.

[00:06:46] Mary Southern: Yeah. The

[00:06:48] Michelle Kuo: A players are really the top 10 percent and they’re people that go over and beyond what is asked of them. And they’re basically, they’re putting in 110%, they’re [00:07:00] connecting the dots, they’re anticipating needs, and they go beyond what the scope of their responsibilities are.

So, for example, they’re on a project, you know, you tell them A, B, and C, well, then they’re thinking, okay, well, I did A, B, and C, and I did it really fast, and I did it really well. But let me see about D and E and, oh, I’m thinking ahead, so I’m going to do F and G. So they’re thinking way ahead and they’re thinking at a bigger, more strategic, um, level, like they’re stepping back and trying to figure out where do they fit in in this piece, but how do they make it easier for everybody else on the team, as well as the company.

So those are how the A players really stand out. Yeah. I love that abstract, but yeah,

[00:07:40] Mary Southern: that, no, that’s perfect. I mean, when I think of an A player. You know, I think of someone, like you said, that’s consistently exceeding those expectations. They’re super creative. Like you said, they’re thinking outside of the box.

They’re solving problems, coming up with ideas and they just really have this [00:08:00] exceptional ability to just like get shit done. Right. Yeah. And they typically get promoted quickly too.

[00:08:05] Michelle Kuo: Oh yeah.

[00:08:06] Mary Southern: Yeah. They do. They

[00:08:07] Michelle Kuo: get promoted and they usually move into leadership roles, um, eventually, or they go out on their own.

So that’s usually what you’ll see with A players.

[00:08:15] Mary Southern: Yeah, and I feel like they could easily get overlooked as well. So how could you actually recognize these people in the hiring process?

[00:08:24] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, no, it’s a good question. So A players are not necessarily the ones that interview the best. So I’ll repeat that.

They do not interview the best and some of them are like, they’re just, they’re great because they have their presence. They have sales, you know, personality. They can kind of. Tell you all the right answers, but there’s a lot, a big portion of them that just don’t know how to interview and they haven’t done it enough.

Um, they’re not like the most articulate they. For the most part, they are personable and they do have great communication skills, but some of the A players are just hidden gems. [00:09:00] And so those are the ones I get really excited about. And so when you’re asking this question, I’m like, yes, let’s talk about this.

[00:09:06] Mary Southern: Yes, please. I wouldn’t have guessed that there, that they don’t interview well. So this is, this is great information.

[00:09:13] Michelle Kuo: I’ve done, I’ve done both. So I keep an open mind. Um, I mean, generally speaking, I would say majority of A players do Speak like they have really great communication skills. You look at their resume, you can tell, but those are the obvious ones, the ones that you’re looking for.

And they always call them purple squirrels. Really? They’re the ones that, you know, they just, they’re, they’re quiet. They’re, they don’t stand out, but they take on a lot. And when you’re talking to them, I usually dig. So you have to ask. Second, third layer questions. And when I say second, third layer questions, I’m talking about if they’re, if you say, okay, well, what did you do on this project?

And they’re like, Oh, you know, I did this X. Then you have to think about the second layer questions. It’s like, okay, well, you told me this. What’s, you know, what was your [00:10:00] contribution to this? And what did your team members do? And so then you can guide it. And then I would ask another question. That’s the third layer question.

You keep digging until you really get a good picture of the person. Okay. And what their contribution to the team has been. So usually people who shy away from responsibilities, like let’s say they only take on 10 percent of the project. Those are usually the lower level people or the people that are just the C players, the B players.

But if you’re, if you look at a project and they’re like, Oh yeah, I took on this, this, this, and this, and Oh, I was taking on somebody else’s responsibilities, but they don’t say it in that way. And they, they’d led that whole project, almost 80, 90 percent of it on a team of two or three. Then, you know, you have an a player and you have to, the, the key is asking those questions to get to the truth.

And I think that’s what a really awesome recruiter does. It’s like asking those questions to really get to the details, to understand who truly was the person that led that project and owned it all.

[00:10:58] Mary Southern: Mm. Love [00:11:00] that. So you have to keep digging and digging and digging until you really figure out who that person is.

Yeah. Can you think of any specific examples of somebody that you interviewed that, you know, maybe going into the interview, you didn’t necessarily see them as an A player, but you kept digging and digging and asking questions and you figured out, Oh my gosh, this person is awesome. I have to hire them. Is there any, is there anybody that comes to mind?

[00:11:28] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, no, that’s a good question. Um, you know, one of the examples, so a couple of years ago I had found a product marketing manager. And again, she was shy, so it’s not like she was the best interviewer and she knew how to, you know, answer questions and speak. Um, she had good English and she was articulate, she was communicative, but as I dug further, I realized that she owned a huge aspect of email marketing, product marketing, like she got her hands into a lot of things.

And as I [00:12:00] kept asking her questions about, okay, well, what software, what are the pros and cons of this software? You know, what have you done here? What do you think about, you know, strategically, how would you assess this company? What would you do with it? So I was asking really detailed questions to get her thought process.

And initially on paper, you’re like, okay, she’s. Five years or seven years in her career. She looks mid level. Um, she’s at some, you You know, you would call it no name company. It’s one of these just generic companies, just mid level, uh, midsize company. So they’re not a big brand. They’re not, you know, a Disney or Google or a Facebook.

So there, so a lot of these eight players. Or you can say they’re hidden gems in these midsize small companies, no name brands, and that’s what I love. I love finding them. And as I was talking to her about her experience throughout the interview process, uh, she started just talking about what she did, what she shared.

And I, and I’m thinking, wow, you’re actually a really high level, like director [00:13:00] strategic level, but your title only says manager. And, but she’s doing these high level strategic thought leadership work. And so I started realizing how good of a person she was. And so she, I mean, she, I placed her at the company I was working with and then she’s gone on to move to a pretty large, well known company.

So you’ll, you’ll see kind of that trajectory, like. I take these candidates that are hidden and then I start to place them. And then afterwards they start to move into really big brand companies because they start to get noticed, you know, and a lot of, a lot of, generally a lot of recruiters or hiring managers like to see, Oh, this person’s from Google or Microsoft or some big name, you know, big company.

Um, but I’d love to find these little gems that are hiding and get them placed into other companies that are a little bit more higher, higher brands. And then they start to get sought out after.

[00:13:55] Mary Southern: Wow. What qualities or personality [00:14:00] traits make them stand apart?

[00:14:03] Michelle Kuo: So what personality and traits make them stand out from the general population?

Um, A players, I think they, they have grit. So that’s one of the things that I’ve noticed is that they will figure it out. They, they don’t give up and they will figure out creative solutions to solve the issues and sometimes they’re thinking one or two steps ahead. So they’re actually delivering on a golden platter.

Here, here’s what you asked for, but here’s one or two steps ahead. And so they’ve done it all. And I’m. It’s amazing to see that. And I have an A player on my team. So I know how that is when you have somebody that you’ve found that’s just a amazing, a player,

a little cheesy. Um, so grit’s one of them. I mean, they, they’re definitely hardworking. So you’ll see them. I mean, they’re not working hard just to work for the sake of working hard. They’re not putting in [00:15:00] like 10 hour days, but they’re working smart as well. They’re trying to figure out, okay, how do I operationalize this process?

How do I think smarter? How do I work smarter? How do we as a company work smarter? And so they’re thinking not about themselves. Well, not only about themselves, but they’re also thinking about the company. And. The team, so they’re thinking holistically of everybody who’s involved and how’s that affecting them.

And so I think a players know, you know, how’s their work going to drive revenue. How’s it going to drive, you know, top of the funnel marketing. Um, how’s it going to drive the code and having quality code so that it, you know, the site doesn’t crash. So they’re thinking of, they’re thinking outside of themselves and on a bigger scale and a bigger picture.

[00:15:46] Mary Southern: Yeah. I love when there’s that. Person on the team where it’s like, you know, you can go to them with any issue and they’re going to figure out some way to solve it. You know, that’s always somebody that you want to have on your side. [00:16:00]

[00:16:00] Michelle Kuo: Oh yeah, no, for sure. And you, you certainly want to have that on your team because they’re like the jacks of all trades.

Like they can figure it out, but they are specialized in one thing or two, but they are also just almost jacks of all trades and you, you You know that it’s going to get done and there’s a fire you put them on it and they increasingly get more and more responsibilities. So that’s the other thing when you look for a players.

You know that maybe they were hired for a junior role, like let’s say customer support, but over time you start to see Oh, well, they were looking they were thrown onto these other projects that were strategic They were thrown onto these emergency projects. They were handling customers. They were doing more higher level Work that was not part of the responsibilities and that’s when you know that you have an a player

[00:16:46] Mary Southern: So what are a few interview questions that you use to get into their mind and figure out how they think?

[00:16:55] Michelle Kuo: Ooh, that’s a, that’s a good one. I mean, you know, I, I have my go to questions, so I’ll [00:17:00] start off with that. I do have my go to interview questions and I usually start off with that. Usually, so I’ll, I’ll, I’ll contrast it. So the terrible candidates usually just answered the surface level question. Um, so let’s, you know, I got to think on the fly here.

So for example, I may say, okay, what are your numbers as a salesperson? What are your numbers? Uh, or what percentage did you achieve? And let’s say a B or C candidate will answer, oh, you know, I met my quota. And that’s, they keep it at that. Yeah, they’re not detailed. It’s short, it’s not descriptive, it doesn’t say anything about their work.

An A player is gonna say, well, you know, over the last quarter, in the last year, I’ve always been a hun, consistently 120% over my quota. I’ve been top 1% out of 34 sales reps. And so. You know, my contribution to the [00:18:00] company, I’ve been able to drive revenue X amount. And, you know, I’ve been in the president’s club, uh, for the last two, three years.

So they’re really descriptive. And so when I. When I ask my go to questions, it’s really, I’m asking the second and third layer questions. Those are probably the key and it’s digging because sometimes they won’t give it to you and then I’ll have to ask, okay, well, you know, did you make it to the president’s club?

Oh yeah, I did. You know, I did for the last four years. Okay, great. Okay. Well, you know, what, what, what, how are other people performing? Yeah. On your team, how are other people performing? How do you compare to them? And so when I can get a compare and contrast, I get a baseline first. Of candidates, and then I understand what are A players doing that are different from the B’s and C’s.

That’s when I start to see the difference. So I don’t know there’s go to questions, but it’s the second and third layer of questions that I’m asking to get to the truth.

[00:18:53] Mary Southern: Okay. So let’s dig a little bit deeper then into the recruiting process. How [00:19:00] do you set up specific recruiting strategies to attract these A players?

[00:19:06] Michelle Kuo: That’s a good one. Um, so A players, they can, most of the time they’re happy and they’re passive. So getting them on board is really tough and I have joined a lot of startups. That had an amazing culture. They just were not known. And so a lot of times I always start with employer branding. That’s first and foremost, you got to start with employer branding.

Um, it’s really having pictures, having a glass door presence, being online, having a career page for the employer. So those are all the critical things that I like to set up when I work with startups. Um, the next piece is you do work on the job description, but a lot of people don’t, Read through the job description.

So even if you spend all that time, we laugh, but it’s true. It’s so true.

[00:19:57] Mary Southern: Yeah. Yeah. A hundred percent.

[00:19:59] Michelle Kuo: So, I mean, you can spend [00:20:00] all day perfecting a job, you know, job description. It’s like perfecting your resume. You can spend all day perfecting it, but for the most part, people are not going to sit there and read word for word.

And so what’s going to really stand out is really the online, your employer brand. And so being able to link it. So you’re like, Hey, here’s a video on our company. Here’s our glass door reviews. Here’s our online presence. You know, that’s, that’s, what’s going to stand out for an a player more so. And even testimonial, like employee testimonials, those are what’s going to stand out more than a job description.

So if I were to guess what percentage you want to spend on it as an employer, maybe 5 percent on your job description, 95 percent on all the employer branding stuff that we talked about.

[00:20:45] Mary Southern: Yeah, for sure.

[00:20:47] Michelle Kuo: And, and it goes, it, it goes with candidates. Same thing. Oh, for sure. Resume is 5%. Maybe, you know, definitely make sure no typos, it reads well, but then I think just having an online presence, [00:21:00] having a video of yourself, like that’s where you get more traction than just a pure resume.

[00:21:06] Mary Southern: Yeah. Do you ever receive any resumes that stand out as an A player or is it more, you know, throughout the interview process where you can really determine whether they’re that A player, B player, or C player?

[00:21:21] Michelle Kuo: With resumes, so it’s really hard. I’ll answer that. Resumes, it’s really hard to detect whether or not they’re A, B, and C.

I can easily detect if there are B’s and C’s because they have typos and they don’t write their resumes well, and maybe it’s not formatted well. It just, but those are like the basics. You have to have those, you know, it’s like having a website and as an employer, you have typos in your, your website, like you have to minimally have it perfect, um, But A players, you won’t know until you actually talk to them.

That’s where, that’s why when having an online presence or having videos or whatnot, it, it, you know, [00:22:00] it’s the same. It applies both to employers and it applies to job seekers in Canvas.

[00:22:06] Mary Southern: How would you attract an A player with a salary or even the company culture?

[00:22:15] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, you know, a players are not really, they’re not driven by money at the end of the day.

Yeah. So salary is always second or third on their list. It’s not the first. And if it’s the first, typically a players are not, they’re not a players unless they’re salespeople. So salespeople definitely, and they should be in sales. If they’re driven by money and they do really amazing job, then they should be in sales.

But if you’re not in sales. Then the money is not their number one. And if they’re driven by money, it’s like, you know, you’re driven by the shiny car, but you’re not really looking at the performance of it. You’re looking at the outside. And so when you’re looking at salary, you know, you want to pay them well, you would, you definitely want to pay them above market, but that’s [00:23:00] not the leading factor.

The leading factor is really the impact that they have on the company. Like what is their role going to be doing? And will they be able to have, um, a huge scope in that role? Um, being able to move up is another thing. Career, career progression, um, is huge for most eight players. Actually, I would say almost all eight players.

And so they’re asking about the future of the company. Where’s the company going to be? What should, you know, what, what is the role going to grow into? What are opportunities look like? Um, so I would say that those are probably the two biggest things that they look for. Um, more than, than the salary.

[00:23:38] Mary Southern: Yeah.

I’ve worked with a lot of clients that I think I would consider A players, you know, and many times. These people seem to be passively searching all the time, or at least open to opportunities. And when you have a truly talented person on your team, to me, I think you want to make sure that you’re recognizing [00:24:00] them and rewarding them, right?

You know, I spoke with a client a few weeks ago, and she’s literally, she’s at the ultra, you know, top performer at her company. She’s an account executive. in the tech space. I mean, her territory revenue literally makes up like 50 percent of the team’s total revenue, which is insane. So, I mean, it would be easy for her to find another job, right, that potentially pays more or even, you know, a company that has more opportunity for growth.

So how would you recommend that employers recognize and reward these people to make sure that they can retain them?

[00:24:39] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, I mean, I’ve seen it. I mean, Uh, companies will spend a lot of money on, you know, just kind of the, I, I call them extra benefits. So they usually go, well, we have, you know, they tout the ping pong table.

We have the free snacks or, you know, happy hours at this time, but ultimately what’s [00:25:00] really important for a players. They’re not driven by those extra, like the gym membership. And I mean, those are all nice to have, but really what they’re looking for are the career progressions. Like how can they better.

Learn skills and improve upon what they know today because they’re driven by it. They have fire under them. And when you have fire under their belly, they’re always constantly learning. They’re trying to figure things out. And so if you don’t have the challenge there and you don’t have opportunity for them to grow and move up, they’re going to leave.

And so. The constant either mentorship or having an amazing manager that is working with them on their progress. That’s probably the biggest key in making sure that you have a leadership team that cares about the eight players that are constantly mentoring and managing them or more leading them, not managing them, it’s more leading them.

[00:25:53] Mary Southern: Yep.

[00:25:54] Michelle Kuo: There’s a difference.

[00:25:55] Mary Southern: Oh, for sure. Okay. So let’s, let’s flip this script just a little bit. [00:26:00] What are some ways. That these A players can go beyond their resume to stand out.

[00:26:07] Michelle Kuo: Yeah. So, I mean, you know, when even, so I know earlier I said, Hey, don’t spend as much time on your resume. You still have to have your resume.

Perfect. Like you don’t want to be making any mistakes. You want to make sure it’s easy. It’s easy. It’s readable. It’s clear and concise on what you’ve done. It’s not convoluted. It’s not a whole CV. Um, so you have to, you definitely need to spend that time on your resume to get to a really good place. And sometimes a players don’t have their resumes.

That’s what I realized. Like sometimes I’m getting passive candidates and they don’t have resumes and they haven’t touched a resume for 10 years. Um, but I would say that in this market, you do need a resume because everybody’s looking for a job. They’re on the market and you have to have a resume. So that is probably the number one key, um, is making sure your, your resumes in a very good, tight.

As almost perfect as you can possibly get it. Um, because it is very [00:27:00] critical. Um, the other piece is really getting their, getting their name out there. So whether it’s promoting what they’ve done, case studies, projects, maybe sharing thought leadership, like posts on what they’ve learned, what they know, the more they can share their knowledge with the world, the better.

More people can benefit, but also they remember that person. And so when the next opportunity comes up, they’re able to refer them opportunities because those eight players have kind of, they’ve kind of promoted themselves, not in a very hard salesy way, but in a way where it’s like, Hey, I know this, this is my, You know, marketing domain, here’s all the marketing articles I’ve read.

You know, this is what I know about the space. This is what I’ve done at the company. And then when, when the timing’s right, I mean, the best opportunities are really ones that come when you’re not looking.

[00:27:52] Mary Southern: Yeah, for sure. So what are some kind of creative ways that they could market and showcase some of their projects?[00:28:00]

[00:28:01] Michelle Kuo: I’ve seen, so I’ve seen a mix. I’ve seen folks that, I mean, as long as it’s not proprietary, right. And it’s confidential, then you can’t be posting it, but you can talk about it. I mean, you could talk about, Hey, you know, this is what I’ve done generally. This is what I’ve done. We’ve increased, you know, 130, 136 percent of customer retention on this, or we’ve increased the top of the funnel.

So you can actually talk about the numbers. You don’t have to talk about the specific project, but video recording. You may be having a graphic on what you’ve done and here are the numbers. Those always speak volume and it’s ways to promote outside of just, Hey, here’s my resume and here’s what I’ve done.

Um, it’s, it’s just another example. And I think it’s a little bit easier. I mean, you’ve got to look at your audience. Like they don’t have time in the day to go through your resume. So it’s like, okay, what’s a snapshot. It’s an image infographic, you know, a quick video about what you’ve done. So I think the [00:29:00] constant promotion is helpful.

Um, for those that are looking to kind of get out there and showcase what they’ve done.

[00:29:07] Mary Southern: I love the idea. Of just a two or three minute video. And that’s something that I’ve heard over and over again over the last couple of months. And, you know, I think that that’s a way to really go above and beyond your resume and your LinkedIn profile to show the hiring manager or the recruiter who you are, but then it also personalizes it too.

So you can show your hard skills, but it also allows you to show some of those soft skills.

[00:29:33] Michelle Kuo: Oh yeah. And a huge piece of what companies hire for is a culture fit. We call it culture fit, but really it’s, do I, can I see myself and envision myself working with you? Like, are you a human being versus like an AI bot?

And AI bots can be perfect, right? Not perfect, but yeah. They, they, you know, they produce really great work, but they’re a robot. And so it’s, people want to see people. They don’t want to see, Hey, you’re just a [00:30:00] perfect, you know, here’s a perfect resume. Here’s your perfect portfolio. Here’s everything. It’s like, I want to see the real human.

I want to see eyes. I want to see somebody who I’m going to be working with.

[00:30:09] Mary Southern: Yeah. Yeah. So for any of our listeners who are out there that either. Want to be an a player or they are an a player and they want to position themselves as such, and they’ve already kind of nailed their resume. What are some other ways that they could really create a strong online presence and personal brand to get noticed?

[00:30:32] Michelle Kuo: Yeah. I mean, definitely the first one, um, that comes to mind is LinkedIn. Cause all, almost all professionals are on LinkedIn. So build out your LinkedIn, make sure it is, you know, Clear and concise on what you do and what you do for who, um, that’s a big key. So if you have that, that’s very obvious. Um, I think having images on maybe the clients you’ve worked with or the companies you’ve worked with, those are always [00:31:00] really, really important.

Um, so there’s a credibility factor to it. Um, the other key is, you know, if you have time as an a player to write articles, those are always really great. So post. Posts, articles, things that have your name attached to it is always a really excellent way to kind of promote yourself and share, I mean, at the end of the day, you’re sharing your knowledge and showing the world that, Hey, I know this stuff.

This is what I know and you’re sharing it, you know, to kind of provide some impact out there. So, um, I would say those are probably the three things that I would really focus on.

[00:31:35] Mary Southern: Okay. And what are some questions that an a player could ask during the interview itself?

[00:31:42] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, there’s a, you know, usually a players know what to ask, but if they don’t, yeah, usually, usually they’re asking me like when, so, you know, it’s funny because when I interview, uh, I start sometimes people, it’s not obvious that they’re a players, but as I start to talk to [00:32:00] them about their backgrounds, the other piece that I look for is just what kind of questions are they asking?

Are they curious? You know, are they asking about the company, the hiring manager, the colleagues? Um, just what the, yeah. So they’re, they’re asking much more than just a job description that they see on paper. They’re really asking questions about, you know, just who’s the hiring manager? What are their beliefs?

Why did they join the company? Who are their colleagues? Why did they join the company? What’s the company culture? You know, what’s the opportunity for growth? Um, where do you see yourself in? Well, where do you, where, where is the company going to be in the next three to five years and where is this role going to be?

So they’re really thinking ahead of time or ahead and. Those they’re they’re thinking bigger picture. They’re not just thinking what’s day one salary. What’s my benefits? What’s my they’re less about day one and oh the ping pong table. Is it there is pizza there? You know is a happy hour there like they’re not thinking [00:33:00] about day one They’re actually thinking about day 90 day a year from now, you know day day Five years from now and where they’re gonna be so they’re planning ahead of time And those are some of the questions that they ask.

[00:33:12] Mary Southern: Yeah, I mean, they really want to know how they can step in and make that immediate impact. And then, how can I actually grow with the company? How can I make an impact on this position? How can I impact the team and make them better? And how can I really grow with the organization? Yeah. That’s, those are some great insights.

So what, what are the top three takeaways from our conversation today?

[00:33:37] Michelle Kuo: I know we shared a lot, so I have to think about this. Um, who would be the target? As you’d say, top three takeaways. For A players, Ooh, that’s a tough one. I know we talked about a lot, so I’m just trying to figure out how to summarize what I’ve talked about and what are the top three takeaways.

Um, so I would say the top three takeaways from [00:34:00] today is A players are the top 10%. And the only reason why they are the top 10 percent is because they’re thinking ahead. They’ve got the hunger, they got the drive. They’re thinking not just day one, but they’re thinking day two. A year, three years, five years out, and they’re planning ahead.

Um, two, A players are not always those that are on line touting what they’ve done. Sometimes you find a lot of hidden gems and I do, I find a ton of the hidden gems that are, are in companies. They’re quiet. They’re the introverts. They don’t tout their skills and they’re not even getting paid what they’re supposed to be.

And so I think the third point is for those who are quiet and introverted, but they are a players, it’s really, how do you build your personal brand so that it is out there? And those are through posts, getting your LinkedIn in a good place, writing articles, getting featured in places, because the more that [00:35:00] you are out there, the more You don’t have to brag, but somebody else is helping you promote and that’s going to be really important.

So those are three of the points I would say that would summarize our conversation.

[00:35:12] Mary Southern: I love it. So what are you up to now and where can we find you on social media?

[00:35:17] Michelle Kuo: Yeah. Uh, so, uh, you know, I’ve been doing recruiting for 15 years. I’ve been running my own firm called Jump Search Recruiting for the last 11 years.

Um, most of my clients have been in tech, but I’ve also done B2C. You know, not hardware, uh, we’ve done other industries and we’ve, a lot, a lot of what we focus on have been startups to smaller companies, but they’ve also been hyper growth companies like Qualtrics and Lucid. Um, so that’s where my bread and butter is on the recruiting side.

You can find us on jumpstartrecruiting. com. Um, and then the other piece that I’m also building out is a virtual assistant company, And that’s all in [00:36:00] recruiting. So it’s either recruiting for companies or it’s recruiting for solopreneurs. Entrepreneurs, people who want to lift in what they do day to day, and they just don’t have enough time in the day to do all the mundane tasks.

So having an amazing virtual, I’d say executive assistant is key. And that’s the key to growing a business. So those are the two businesses. Um, it’s called JumpSearch VA, and I can also send you a link to, um, the, uh, the website so that way you have those links.

[00:36:29] Mary Southern: Perfect. Well, thank you so much for coming on today, Michelle.

It’s been a pleasure.

[00:36:34] Michelle Kuo: Yeah, I appreciate all these questions. It’s been amazing.

[00:36:39] Mary Southern: Thanks for listening. I will be releasing episodes every Monday, so be sure to subscribe on the platform that you are watching this, give it a five star review, and we’ll see you next time.