Shaker Unfiltered: Ep. 6 – Mark Smith

Well folks, welcome back to another episode of Shaker Unfiltered. We are bringing you conversations from our people, our partners, our clients, and we are live at the Vision Lab at Recrefest 2025. I have a industry jewel with me today. Uh you will be enamored not only by his eyes, but his accent. Uh and I’m not putting any more pressure on you than that, sir. But I’d love for you to introduce yourself, tell the people who you are, where you are, and what you do, and then we’ll get into it. >> Thank you. Thank you for that. That’s an amazing introduction. >> That’s right. As well. >> That’s right. So, Mark Smith, uh, where I am right now, obviously, this beautiful place, sitting with you in this great booth. Um, but where I live is Minnesota. I live in a place called Still Water. I work for Medronic. I’m the vice president of global TA for this wonderful organization. I’ve been there nearly two years and uh yeah, privileged to be here with you, John. >> Likewise, my friend. Look, we we uh we we share a common birthday month uh and zodiac sign and we both suffer from being visionaries. Uh but that’s helpful in the work that we do. I’d love to know how you got into this crazy space of talent, of employer brand, of recruiting. Um, where did you get your where did you get your start? Where did you build your jobs? [snorts] >> It was close university, England, High Street, what Americans would call downtown. I was in the high street of Leicester. And I, it was a moment where I walked into a deco and they said, um, I want I want I was like, I want a job. I was I was I was very young, very naive. >> Pounding the pavement. I was >> Yeah, let me go. >> I went to one agency before called Blue Arrow that I don’t think exists, but I went to a deco. >> Yeah. >> And I had two opportunities. They said, “Hey, you can work for us. >> It was £450 an hour or you can work on this temp job at Otus Elevators, which is £5 an hour.” >> Now, I wanted to say 5 hour because I want more money, but she was there. She was saying, “You can work for me, Ada.” So, there was this instant situation of like if I turn her down, this is going to be awkward. So, I was actually really selfless in that moment. But to sacrifice that 50 p an hour led to a really wonderful career. So I had the I could have been maybe I don’t know you know a notice lifts elevator guy but >> that’s where it started and then what’s kept me in for that was 20 2002 rather. >> Okay. >> So that was like September 2002. Okay. >> And now it’s been what 20 just over 23 years in TA. What’s kept me is this is solution. It’s it’s the obsession with designing, deploying, improving new solutions. that that’s what’s kept me and it it’s thinking as you say you futuristic is uh my number one strength and thing and I’ve always wanted to do things differently like how whatever it is you know clean my teeth or washing my hair what you know even you know making strong enough like I just how can I tweak this to be better the best recipe or the best you know clean teeth I can >> sure yeah >> which is difficult as a >> specific >> yeah but No, I I love that. And and there’s no shortage of things to improve in this space. I mean, it’s never like, “Yeah, I think we’re good. We’ll stay here.” It’s always evolving. So, that’s helpful. >> Um, and I and I love that you had to make a decision. Do I chase the money or do I see the opportunity long term? And, you know, we don’t have the foresight at that point that this is going to be that defining moment, but connecting that dot backwards is amazing. I I I’d love to know and hear your perspective on what you’ve seen that evolution be, right? Where you’ve been able to make impact and advance and move things forward. Has it been technology? Has it been uh more people centered? Is it is it organizationally? Where have you seen those improvements and advances? Yeah, I I think I start off with probably the peop people is there’s definitely increasing alignment to technology in the last five 10 years. There’s been such a shift. I mean I I was in TA in that period when print advertising print recruitment marketing was the norm. Job boards were still kicking off. Not everyone had an internet or an email. So I so I’ve been through a lot of changes but through my time especially as a leader it’s been the people making sure it’s some very cliche comments but surrounding yourself by people that are not not just aligned and sopantically aligned to your your vision and purpose but are actually going to be providing attention to that like a a really beautiful difficult tension of debate and discussion. pragmatism, not not anti, you know, we got to we got to get purpose and process moving together in in harmony. But yeah, I think that what what’s helped me is I’ I think I’ve elevated standard of people I’ve been hiring and engagement with >> and I’ve been fortunate to inherit in other organizations really good people. So it’s definitely people and it has been a peoplebased role because you the environment managers and candidates and you have a team. The recent addition is is technologies and the autom automation opportunities. I was going to create a new word then the automation opportunities that are created with especially AI. >> Sure. uh but good coding that will allow us to I hope create more capacity for recruiters to be and I said this a few I’m going to get this on air but I think TA will remain remain the same but the A will be swapped out for architecture not acquisition so talent acquisition will replace by talent architecture the the recruiters will become talent architects >> that’s that’s where I see the future is where recruiters I’m going to riff on a little bit more here while you’re enjoying the track. [laughter] >> This is good. This is good. We’re already at the at the end part where I’m asking for your fiveyear vision on this, but no, >> that’s futuristic, man. >> That is you. We live We got to live there. Wait for the world to catch up. >> Yeah. >> That’s that’s fascinating. And and I think I’m pretty sure you’re going to be right on that because the acquisition isn’t the work anymore, right? There’s no shortage of people who need a job >> if you hire people. >> If you hire people and I don’t think it’s we’re not acquiring anything, right? like even like human resources I think needs to be reimagined right but but in the talent space where it’s attraction where it’s engagement where it’s architecture uh where it’s experience I think there has to be a shift towards um really getting it right for who you are >> not by like the measures of your competitor or other industries because I think there was a period there where everybody wanted to be like Google how do we make our offices more fun, right? But you’re not a fun company. That’s not in your DNA. >> Yeah. >> How do you how have you balanced because I know, you know, Medronic in the uh medte space >> is uh is doing groundbreaking work all over the world. >> Um how do you infuse sort of this energy of personality, of culture, of purpose and vision into the storytelling that you’re doing to differentiate and stand out? Uh yeah. >> Yeah. We’re actually planning I’ got a good live example of that. I’m working with my team to plan our next GTA global talent acquisition town hall. Currently acquisition. >> Yeah, that will change. >> Architecture and training. >> Yeah, it’s it’s there for the future. But in that we’re we’re planning segments of that 90minute town hall. So we would like to make sure there’s patient centricity to that because what >> what our products do very different to the world of CPG that I was in in the past that there was this tangible product you could taste it you could smell it feel it you know it had texture whereas with our devices it’s very personal it’s very private and often it can be very traumatic as well but the purpose of what we do to help the lives of patients is is so powerful um that it it does create this this steam and it this in the engine of people working there and however when you’re not either building the product or selling the product and you’re in a corporate function like HR and it’s the same for finance procurement legal I think a lot of the times in that you’re you’re so distant so I think what’s really important is bringing the patient what the product close to the people in the team and then the customer so we’re going to have a segment of patient story about our product how we make an impact and how we impact that. Uh we hire the people that can build or design or sell that product to help that patient. So we we play this fundamental role in that chain of events and then the customer you know listen to the end customer learning about the business. So I think what what helps shape it keeps it fresh keeps it relevant is capturing the voice of and even another another live event is I’m working with my team to schedule voice of recruiter. So we have over 100 recruiters globally. >> I’d like to listen to each and every one of them. It probably be not individual, not as personal as this, but it’ll be in groups of six to eight people. But listening to the truth, I think finding finding so we implemented work day. How’s it going? How’s it really going? >> And I think that that >> be honest. >> Yeah. Getting to the truth is I think that I think where where that come from for me is probably having a father that was in the police. you know, he was looking for the the facts, the details, the truth. >> That’s right. >> And that that um I think it’s been uh you know, stored within me somewhere. So I I’m really and the humility one of my like I have you know my own mini affirm affirmations. Check yourself. Do you want to know my check please? I’d love to hear >> civility. >> Okay. >> Humility, empathy, composure, kindness. So that is how I try and lead is and that’s quite in recent I think in a world where there’s so much more >> polarization and and quick to judge >> um and a lack of critical thinking skills because of >> media and because of digitization of stuff and you know this this unwillingness but I think I’ve I’ve sometimes been pulled into that so that that’s think going going back to your question where I mentioned that affirmation, that check is is important to drive I think the the second letter, humility. >> So that’s powerful. And if I could if I could steer us in a direction uh more into the person, >> um you have a tremendous story of resilience, recovery, um triumph over adversity to say the least. uh and I know you’ll be speaking about that soon, but uh if you don’t mind sharing with the folks uh what’s happened to you from the patient side recently. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. So last August 2024, I was uh we just moved into our new home, it was one wonderful warm day in August and I was helping my wife in the yard and putting branches and from trees so we could have a better view of Wisconsin in the distance and >> um uh on the last branch, the last tree, I moved the ladder. I think this must have been tree 15 >> and I went up high. I was on the top of the ladder. So, it was a I hadn’t secured the ladder. So, all these things you when I know what happened, but I was 9 foot up with my foot and my head I’m 6’12ish that um I I then fell the ladder ve to the right and I had a flow states experience. Everything’s slow and I’ve been reading a lot about this and you how your brain changes to adapt to the situation. You hear about people in combat which life or death that they can almost see the bullet you know they you know and in that moment I saw the tree I actually went to bear hug it >> um I’ve seen this on video cuz I had a camera like a wildlife camera and it’s fast it’s just it’s like a second or two that I fell but it fell like 8 n seconds for me. >> Okay. >> Tried to bear over the tree but my leg was pulled the ladder um and I hit a boulder once and then twice with whiplaps from my uh right hand side of body. So, I tore my ACL, broke my arm, I had teeth cracked, eventually fall out and most worryingly was this um gash on the back of my head, which was, you know, bleeding. Uh I was blacked out. I I stumbled up like a boxer, heavyweight boxer. I’ve been a hit. I was, you know, dazed in my head. I thought this is it. Uh fast forward, thankfully, it wasn’t the serious. It was a traumatic brain injury, a huge amount of swelling on the brain. uh but not life-threatening but certainly life-changing and what what it meant and I’ll be talking about this tomorrow is I’ve had to adapt I’ve actually there’s the best worst thing that happened to me and I think you know you’ve seen the slides and I appreciate your counsel on them >> of course >> that I I actually value that I always find the silver lining like even there’s a problem I say you know I’m going to find the silver lining here I’m going to make this work we’re going to make this work in that situation it was I I couldn’t watch TV I I couldn’t go to the store. The brain was struggling with data information because I hit the occipital lobe and it’s where you receive and perceive information. Even dreams, heavy dreams, I’d wake up more tired than I was before I went to sleep. >> So, I’ve had to you it’s hard to not dream. I can’t change that. But, um what what I’ve had to adapt is how I utilize my eyes, my attention, and as a consequence, and what I’ll be talking tomorrow is how I’ve realized how that’s one of the most powerful things. If you pay attention to your life, to your wife, to your job, stop having your head down in all the other things that pull you away, whether that be the technology, your watch, media, other things. So for me, and I see it a lot in leaders especially, that they’re so pulled in so many directions. So they’re not actually present. So that’s that’s the you know the be here now is the last box on my slide tomorrow which is a kind of preview for for you and you already read it but >> that’s the premise of it is to be here now be in the moment. We lack that. >> First of all thank you for sharing that. Um powerful story. Uh folks if you if you’re if you have a chance to hear Mark speak please pay attention be there now. Um I I I want to wrap with this. How has that experience impacted the way that you approach this work? Yeah, good question. Yeah, I’d say the work of TA is is probably it’s reaffirmed to focus on what matters most. Really purify it down to to filter through what what does success look like? So I think in the in the past because of my experience I’d perhaps been lost in the noise and I was in all the colors but what color is matters to this moment. So it’s actually it actually helped me red eyes find the find that color and find the truth and and that’s why as I mentioned like more listening I think as a leader in TA you can often get sucked into some of the political uh enttrapments of of that and the storytelling and actually you’re you’re telling a story you actually don’t understand but that’s my greatest fear is that ivy tower complex and that I’ll always be the recruiter I don’t announce myself. I’m head of recruitment, you know, future head of talent architecture. That that what what what this accidents help me is just to focus on what matters most more with more discipline and rigor. >> Love it. I think that’s a perfect place to end. Uh and I want to thank you for sharing your time, your talent, your perspective, and your experience with us. >> And uh come back anytime. >> Everyone happy take. Thank you, John. Folks, another episode of Shaker Unfiltered in the Books. Uh we hope that you have uh heard something that you can take away and apply to your practice today. Thanks again to uh Mark Smith for joining us. We’ll see you on another episode of Shake Unfiltered soon.