High Performance Talent Acquisition Teams

Welcome back to Recruiting Wisdom! This week’s insights come from Corey Archard, currently VP Talent at Bumble and former leader at Wayfair and Collinson.

In this article we focus on how he’s applying principles of high performance in professional sport to his own recruiting teams.

If you’d like to hear about his experience interviewing Steven Bartlett or working remotely as a recruiter, find a full interview on YouTube, Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Drawing from his background in professional sport, Corey shares specific frameworks for building high-performing recruitment teams:

1. Measure EVERYTHING

"Professional sports teams measure almost everything, if you think about an athlete, they track their time, their stats, their skills, and everything's about getting that edge."

For talent teams, this means:

• Setting clear, measurable goals

• Creating trackable metrics

• Establishing performance baselines

• Regular progress reviews

2. Create a Culture of Direct Feedback

"In sport, coaches aren't there to make you feel good, they're there to make you better."

However, this directness must be balanced with care in a corporate environment. How he’s implementing this:

• Make feedback direct but empathetic

• Deliver feedback consistently

• Focus on improvement

• Frame constructive feedback as kindness

He also highlighted it’s important not to avoid having difficult conversations. "Not having that conversation with that individual and knowing something that could help them get better, improve, that's unkind."

3. Identify Your "Cup Finals"

While corporate teams don't have literal championships to win, Corey suggests identifying your key moments. Examples such as:

• Major hiring initiatives

• Annual planning cycles

• Performance reviews

• Strategic projects

"There's no trophy to lift at the end of doing year-end planning, but there are moments to celebrate together and to learn together and to grow together." Creating cycles allows his recruiting teams to:

1. Focus team intensity around specific goals

2. Create clear deadlines and outcomes

3. Learn and improve for next time

"As all good sports teams do, win or lose, they'll go back through and analyse the result. And did we win? If we did win, did we just scrape it? If we lost, why did we lose?"

The Corporate Difference

Corey emphasises that while sport is binary (win/lose), corporate high performance is different.

"High performance culture within the corporate sense is ultimately about fostering that growth mindset. And there's a journey of improvement. And that journey of improvement is as valued as the end destination."

Summary of Creating Your Own High-Performance Environment

1. Set Clear Standards

• Define what excellence looks like

• Establish measurable goals

• Create accountability frameworks

• Maintain consistent expectations

2. Build Support Systems

• Regular feedback mechanisms

• Clear communication channels

• Team celebration moments

• Learning opportunities

3. Focus on Growth

• Value continuous improvement

• Celebrate progress

• Learn from setbacks

• Keep pushing forward

Corey's key message: High performance isn't just about hitting metrics - it's about creating an environment where people are pushed to be the best version of themselves.

Interested in learning more?

✅ That's it for this week! We hope these practical tips help you improve transparency in your recruitment process. Please reply to this email with any feedback - we'd love to hear it.

💜 If you’re interested in learning more from TA leaders, check out PURPL. We have courses on candidate experience + ALL other areas of operational talent acquisition within a single subscription