This recruiter prioritizes meeting candidates where they’re at, provides five-star service along the way

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John Geaney’s hired for the gamut of roles, from forklift drivers and laborers to finance executives and technologists. He’s currently senior corporate recruiter at discount variety retail giant Dollar Tree.

Geaney told HR Brew he’s not satisfied with the status quo in recruiting. It’s an ever-evolving field, he said, and he aims to deliver “white-glove service” to candidates as their “confidant, advocate, therapist.” He’s shared his personal cell and has even dolled out neighborhood and school recs for candidates relocating to his native Hampton Roads area of Virginia, where Dollar Tree is headquartered.

The extra effort isn’t just for candidates. Geaney has worked with hiring managers over the years with a variety of personalities and levels of interest in TA, from the super disengaged to the super hands-on. He said the best way to deliver is to meet people where they’re at and to transparently explain the steps and process, compliance, and budget, and flag potential roadblocks early. The hiring process between recruiters and hiring managers is symbiotic. “Both are required to fill the role and get the right person,” he said.

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

What’s the best change you’ve made at a place you’ve worked?

At Dollar Tree, I shifted recruiting from reactive “post and pray” to proactive pipeline building. Instead of waiting for applicants, I built structured LinkedIn Recruiter projects segmented by uncontacted, contacted, replied, and passive prospects. I created consistent screening notes that tied directly to job competencies and business impact. The result: stronger slate quality, faster time-to-hire, and hiring managers who felt like they had a talent advisor, not an order taker.

What’s the biggest misconception people might have about your job?

That recruiting is just scheduling interviews and sending offer letters. It’s actually workforce strategy, compensation alignment, employer branding, competitive market intelligence, and risk mitigation. Every hire is a financial decision. A bad one costs six figures. A great one can influence millions in operational performance. It’s not admin work. It’s business leverage.

What’s the most fulfilling aspect of your job?

When a candidate accepts an offer that meaningfully improves their life. Work-life balance. Better culture. Stronger leadership exposure. More stability. Or simply a fresh start after burnout. There’s something powerful about being the bridge between someone’s next chapter and an organization’s growth plan. It’s transactional on paper, but transformational in reality.

What trend in HR are you most optimistic about? Why?

The rise of data-driven talent strategy and AI-assisted sourcing. Tools that analyze skill adjacency, predictive retention indicators, and talent market intelligence are making recruiting less emotional and more strategic. When used correctly, AI doesn’t replace recruiters. It enhances pattern recognition and allows us to focus on relationship-building and decision quality instead of manual searching.

What trend in HR are you least optimistic about? Why?

Over-automation and the obsession with speed at the expense of candidate experience. Companies are chasing efficiency metrics so aggressively that they forget there’s a human on the other side. Ghosting candidates, six-round interviews, automated rejection emails with no context. Short-term efficiency often damages long-term brand equity. And brand equity in talent is expensive to rebuild.