“Human-First": Your People Strategy Isn't Just Part of Your Brand. It IS Your Brand.
By Amanda Mintz Founder & CEO AMCM Brand Builder Human Capital, Advisor, Angel Investor
Every Thursday, THE BOARD BRIEFING brings you curated industry insights directly from our Experts to your inbox.
The brand and talent landscape isn't just evolving, it's experiencing a seismic shift. With economic volatility, shifting consumer behaviors, and a nation at political crossroads, uncertainty isn't just creating market challenges – it's forcing a complete reimagining of how companies attract and nurture their most valuable asset: their people.
The new reality: 'Talent Acquisition' nowadays means something radically different than it did even two years ago. AI- leveraged with human skills is top of mind. Real Relationships and Communities are everything.
How do I know?
For nearly 20 years, I have worked with founders, iconic brands, category disruptors, leading agencies and the best creative leaders, brand builders, unicorns, and rising stars across multiple functions and industries of expertise. I help companies grow and individuals build their dream careers. My business was built strictly through word of mouth and relationships that stand the test of time.
Here’s What I’m Seeing:
Clients are not coming to me to “fill a role.” They aren't looking for a traditional Creative Director or CMO. Oftentimes, it’s hard for them to articulate exactly what it is they think they need.
They’re looking for someone with skills leading the “new” Omni- Channel reality: Digital first, AI + Creative Hybrid Skills, Multi-platform mastery; data, performance and creative metrics;brand-system thinking, behavioral science, UGC strategy/creation, understanding platform nuances, social commerce, sustainability, VR, TikTok-native creative thinking….
TRANSLATION: IT'S A CANDIDATE'S MARKET.
Exceptional talent has a multitude of choices. The winners aren't the biggest brands or highest bidders: They're the human first companies with vision. They understand authenticity and embody radical transparency throughout the organization. They are thinking about talent and brand as one.
Top organizations and brands are adaptive, embrace culture, and are building an engaged community within the company that translates externally to the consumer. Those that routinely “win” the best talent have three things in common:
They hire with speed. Companies are losing desired talent because of lengthy interview to offer timelines and dragging their feet in decision making, extensive interview processes and time between. Move quickly! 6-8 weeks isn’t winning the best talent in this market.
They embrace “hybrid” and flex work arrangements, as well as competitive salaries.
They offer clear paths for development and growth.
So, What are the biggest challenges for brands hiring for creative and marketing roles?
The top challenge is finding true hybrid talent who can seamlessly blend traditional creative craft with AI tools, data fluency, and multi-platform expertise. The most valuable creative and marketing talent isn't just creative anymore – they're business strategists, tech innovators, and community architects all in one. Add to this the massive salary inflation (we're seeing 20-30% jumps) driven by competition from tech companies and the creator economy; and, the real challenge isn't just hiring, it's fundamentally rethinking how creative teams need to be structured and developed for this new reality.
The need for and rise of fractional experts.
Enter THE BOARD. As a member of this vetted community of C-Suite talent from worlds of Fashion, Beauty, Tech and more. Whether your brand needs a 'Dream Team' to create a data-driven roadmap for what's next or an on-call advisor to provide objective feedback on your strategy, THE BOARD has you covered.
