In this episode of Recruiters on the Rise, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Dennis Ivanov, Director of Global Talent Acquisition at Unimacts Global and former Amazon recruiting leader. Dennis has made over 400 hires in under three years with almost no dedicated recruiting team, including several C-suite executive searches, at a company that grew from under $100 million to nearly half a billion. Before any of that, he was tracking endangered snow leopards in Siberia for a National Geographic conservation program. He brings the same fearlessness from the field into every boardroom, and this conversation is full of hard-won, practical insight on what it actually looks like to build a recruiting function from scratch with limited resources, big expectations, and a lot of creativity.
Takeaways:
~ Lead with fearlessness. The best recruiters don't wait for permission or comfort. Push past hesitation, speak up with senior leaders, and refuse to settle for "good enough" just because it's easier.
~ Frugality forces creativity. When the budget is tight, look for unconventional solutions first. Printing job ads at bus stops or leaning on state workforce programs can outperform expensive vendors.
~ Build inward before going outward. Post every role internally for a week before hitting the external market. You'll promote hidden talent, boost morale, and cut time-to-fill at the same time.
~ Train your way to scale. If you don't have dedicated recruiters, develop the people you do have. A few months of structured training and shadowing can turn HR generalists into capable recruiting partners.
~ Measure what matters and set a high bar. Don't accept a 70% offer acceptance rate just because it's the industry norm. Commit to aggressive targets around time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and retention, then build the process to hit them.
Quote of the Show:
"It's when the deadlines are short and execution is not optional. It has to happen. So that's where the real magic, I believe, happens." - Dennis Ivanov
Links:
~ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisviktorovichivanov
~ Website: https://www.unimacts.com/
Ways to Tune In:
~ Recruiters On The Rise Website: https://recruitersontherise.com/
~ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6j8LK95YtqW7ZMU4kwBNgR
~ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/recruiters-on-the-rise/id1891705495
~ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7f77aa2-de4c-4e5c-b5de-cfe60fe39c77
~ iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/328811219/
~ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recruitersontherise
Takeaways:
~ Lead with fearlessness. The best recruiters don't wait for permission or comfort. Push past hesitation, speak up with senior leaders, and refuse to settle for "good enough" just because it's easier.
~ Frugality forces creativity. When the budget is tight, look for unconventional solutions first. Printing job ads at bus stops or leaning on state workforce programs can outperform expensive vendors.
~ Build inward before going outward. Post every role internally for a week before hitting the external market. You'll promote hidden talent, boost morale, and cut time-to-fill at the same time.
~ Train your way to scale. If you don't have dedicated recruiters, develop the people you do have. A few months of structured training and shadowing can turn HR generalists into capable recruiting partners.
~ Measure what matters and set a high bar. Don't accept a 70% offer acceptance rate just because it's the industry norm. Commit to aggressive targets around time-to-fill, offer acceptance, and retention, then build the process to hit them.
Quote of the Show:
"It's when the deadlines are short and execution is not optional. It has to happen. So that's where the real magic, I believe, happens." - Dennis Ivanov
Links:
~ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisviktorovichivanov
~ Website: https://www.unimacts.com/
Ways to Tune In:
~ Recruiters On The Rise Website: https://recruitersontherise.com/
~ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6j8LK95YtqW7ZMU4kwBNgR
~ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/recruiters-on-the-rise/id1891705495
~ Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b7f77aa2-de4c-4e5c-b5de-cfe60fe39c77
~ iHeart Radio: https://iheart.com/podcast/328811219/
~ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@recruitersontherise