A Recruiter Shares Her Hiring Secrets, with Claire Martin
Share
Job seekers often wonder what recruiters are really looking for. On this episode of Find Your Dream Job, former recruiter Claire Martin shares what happens behind the scenes when employers review applications. Claire is the director of employer engagement at Willamette University and has spent more than a decade recruiting and hiring. She explains how recruiters still read resumes, why research matters in interviews and how follow-up fits into the process.
Claire also shares hiring secrets you can use right away. Learn how small details on your resume and LinkedIn profile shape first impressions, how to cultivate connections with an organization and when AI can help or hurt your search. Claire’s advice will help you show up as yourself and stand out in the hiring process.
About Our Guest:
- Claire Martin is the director of employer engagement at Willamette University.
Resources in This Episode:
- Connect with Claire on LinkedIn.
- Willamette Career Center
Transcript
Find Your Dream Job, Episode 538:
A Recruiter Shares Her Hiring Secrets, with Claire Martin
Airdate: February 11, 2026
Mac Prichard:
This is Find Your Dream Job, the podcast that helps you get hired, have the career you want, and make a difference in life.
I’m your host, Mac Prichard. I’m also the founder of Mac’s List. It’s a job board in the Pacific Northwest that helps you find a fulfilling career.
Every Wednesday, I talk to a different expert about the tools you need to get the work you want.
As an applicant, you may find the hiring process both mysterious and opaque.
Former recruiter Claire Martin is here to pull back the curtain and share her hiring secrets.
She’s the director of employer engagement at Willamette University.
Before joining higher education, Claire worked in human resources and helped recruit hundreds of people. She joins us from Salem, Oregon.
Let’s jump right into it. Claire, what are the biggest misconceptions you’ve seen job seekers have about recruiters?
Claire Martin:
Yes, over my 10 years in the industry, I have seen a few misconceptions. This isn’t the case for all recruiters. But I think in general, there is a large misconception that we are not reviewing resumes and that AI has taken over our jobs.
And that is simply not the case in reality for the majority of recruiters. While we use various tools to aid in our review, we are still individual people who are reviewing individual resumes ourselves.
I think there’s also a misconception that recruiters may not generally care too much about the experience. And I think it comes from a lot of frustration from the candidates of getting ghosted or just not getting any type of follow-up from their process.
But a lot of things that go on behind the scenes can cause some of these various misconceptions.
Mac Prichard:
What advice do you have for candidates who haven’t heard back after applying or even interviewing for a job? What do you recommend someone do who finds themselves in that situation?
Claire Martin:
Yeah, definitely follow up. I wouldn’t be afraid of following up with your recruiter, especially if you have already gone through an interview and have talked with a specific person from that organization.
You should absolutely be receiving some type of follow-up from them and emailing them, reaching out, I think, is well within your right as a candidate.
If you haven’t gone through an interview and are maybe just looking for an update, I also think you should feel free to follow up with them via email. Sometimes reaching out on LinkedIn can be useful. That’s also where some ghosting can happen. And it’s also because there are many other candidates who may be doing the same thing.
And so I think at the end of the day, it’s also protecting yourself as a candidate and realizing and acknowledging that you could be doing everything right and still not have your preferred outcome. And so giving yourself some grace for that, too.
Mac Prichard:
Well, let’s talk about hiring and the hiring secrets that you learned as a recruiter. One of the first things I know is that you encourage candidates to understand the importance of researching a company.
Why do recruiters care about this? Why is it important to an employer that a candidate has researched a company?
Claire Martin:
Yeah, this may sound very corporate of an answer, but we do generally want to have candidates who are interested in the organization that they are applying to.
And being able to answer during an interview, “What do you know about us? What are some things you have heard about this company?” Having an answer for that can really show your general interest and passion towards that organization and its mission.
And it is something that internally recruiters, team members and leadership of that organization do tend to care about. And being able to align yourself with that organization can go a long way in the interview process.
Mac Prichard:
And can recruiters tell if a candidate hasn’t done the homework?
Claire Martin:
Yes, we really can in a similar way that we can tell if you’re using ChatGPT for all of your answers. You may be reading directly from our website. You may be reading directly from a prompt. And those are things that maybe internally we wrote.
And so we know if you’re saying them verbatim back to us in an interview. What we’re really looking for is that personal connection that you may have.
Again, whether it’s to the organization and maybe their product itself, or the values and mission that the organization has. I think finding that personal connection is what makes you stand out as a candidate.
Mac Prichard:
What is the best way to talk about that personal connection? What have you seen work in the interviews that you were part of as a recruiter? What’s been effective, Claire?
Claire Martin:
Yeah, you know, finding anything that you may have in common with that company, even if it doesn’t seem clear or obvious.
For example, there are many candidates who go into the tech industry who may not have a technical background, but they feel very passionate about the values that the company may have, the overarching mission statement that they may have.
And aligning yourself to that, even though it’s not direct to the tech industry per se, is still aligning yourself with that organization and adds that personal connection when you’re discussing it with a recruiter.
Mac Prichard:
And to do this research, you really have to be selective about the companies that you’re where you’re applying, don’t you?
Claire Martin:
You do. And the research doesn’t need to be extensive, but getting the baseline of what this organization does, who their audience is, and how they have been able to get to where they are.
Those are some simple things that you are typically able to find on their general company page, especially on their careers page. Most companies these days have a dedicated website that explains all of these things for them as an organization.
And to help candidates determine when they should be diving into a company, I often like to recommend having your applications fall within two buckets, one being the quantity of applications, where these may be companies that you aren’t as interested in.
Maybe you don’t have the most personal alignment or passion towards it, but you are wanting to apply to get your name in the ring. And then you have the other bucket of more intentional applications.
And these are the ones where maybe they are some of your dream companies, organizations that you do feel closely aligned with. And those would be the ones I would recommend dedicating more of that time to do the in-depth research.
Mac Prichard:
All right, let’s pause there, Claire, and take a break. When we come back, Claire Martin will continue to share her hiring secrets that she learned as a recruiter. Stay with us.
We’re back in the Mac’s List studio, I’m talking with Claire Martin. She’s the director of employer engagement at Willamette University.
Before joining higher education, Claire worked in human resources and helped recruit hundreds of people. She joins us from Salem, Oregon.
Now, Claire, before the break, we were talking about the hiring secrets you learned as a recruiter before you joined higher education.
And we talked about some of the frustrations candidates might experience during the recruitment process, and you began to share hiring secrets that you learned in your time as a recruiter.
You talked about the importance of research, doing your homework, and knowing about a company so that you can be prepared to talk about that in both applications and interviews. A second hiring secret you have, Claire, is the importance of details.
What details do you have in mind exactly, and why do recruiters care about these details?
Claire Martin:
Yes, and some of these details that I’ll mention may seem very trivial, but can actually have a fairly large impact when recruiters are reviewing your application materials.
For example, I always like to recommend paying really close attention to some of the small things in your resume. For example, any inconsistent formatting, spelling errors or small details like that may seem trivial, but to a recruiter, it can show a lack of attention to detail.
And to candidates, as you are reviewing job descriptions, you are probably seeing attention to detail as a very common qualification listed. And this formatting issue can be something small, but make an impact when a job has hundreds or, again, thousands of applications.
Mac Prichard:
How about your LinkedIn profile? What do recruiters think when they search for a candidate online? And you all do that, don’t you, when you’re recruiting? Yes.
Claire Martin:
Yeah. We definitely go to LinkedIn. I would say a majority. I’ve seen in a few different reports in the past year that around 97% of recruiters, hiring managers, and talent acquisition teams use LinkedIn as a secondary source when reviewing application materials.
And so having a comprehensive LinkedIn profile can be key to standing out as a candidate. And the details still apply. For example, not having a photo on your LinkedIn may seem very small, but to a recruiter, it could actually be a sign that maybe this individual doesn’t exist.
Maybe it is a bot account. Similarly, when there are fraudulent job postings, there are fraudulent LinkedIn pages, and that can be an indicator. So paying attention to those details is key.
Mac Prichard:
Okay, are there any other details that just scream out to a recruiter when they’re looking at a LinkedIn page, and they say, I wish the candidate had done this or not done that, that come to mind besides the photo or the possibility that the page might be fraudulent?
Claire Martin:
Yes, I always appreciate, and I think many recruiters appreciate having something filled in in that about section for any individual’s LinkedIn profile.
I like to call this section the more updated cover letter, where you can use this to tell your story, go beyond the experiences that you’ve had, and tie them directly to the passions that you have and the impact that you want to make.
And this can help signal to a recruiter, not only your passion for what you’re hoping to do, but your level of commitment when you have a completed profile.
Mac Prichard:
Okay, so use your About section to show both your passion and your commitment. I know another hiring secret that you learned when you were recruiting was the importance of showing up as yourself.
In your experience, Claire, do people try to be somebody other than they are when they’re applying for a job? And if that happens, why does that backfire?
Claire Martin:
Yes, it’s often not intentional, and I do typically see this when I’m working closely with students or those maybe early in their career, but it can absolutely be any candidate who is on their career journey.
I think the invention and increased use of ChatGPT or other AI tools to prepare for interviews has led to a bit of this rise in seeming maybe false in interviews or creating a mismatch when you are hired, sounding one way in your interviews and then not being that way when you’re hired.
The importance here is that once you’re hired and you no longer match what you appeared to be in your interview, this can lead to a lot of complications down the road while you are employed.
Mac Prichard:
You’ve mentioned AI, ChatGPT and similar tools a number of times now. And I was surprised to hear you say that people actually would read answers generated by AI.
How often did you see that happen in your time as a recruiter? And how quickly could you tell that that indeed is what was happening?
Claire Martin:
Yes, I thankfully didn’t see it too many times while I was recruiting, probably a handful of situations myself, but I’ve also heard this from others in the field that it is becoming more common practice during interviews to type a question as it’s being asked by the recruiter, and read what is prompted.
We can generally tell for a couple of different reasons. One may be that this new answer of yours may not match the typical speaking style that you have previously been conducting yourself in during the interview.
It can also lead to additional complications if you are hired. For example, if you don’t know an answer and you’re looking it up, that won’t help you down the line when all of a sudden you’re in this job that maybe you didn’t have all of the information for.
And I think it scares candidates during the interview to not know an answer. They’d rather ChatGPT it. But again, thinking about these long-term complications may change your answer there.
Mac Prichard:
What’s a positive way that you recommend candidates use AI from a recruiter’s point of view? How can it be a useful tool for someone looking for the next job?
Claire Martin:
Yes, it can definitely be useful when you are using it to maybe help you formulate your answers in a clearer and more concise manner.
For example, I really love it when candidates use this as a prompt in ChatGBT of putting in a situation or experience they had and using ChatGPT to format it in the STAR format, which is a great format to use when you’re interviewing.
And it gives a clear start and finish. And using it in that way can be really helpful to give yourself a clear and concise way of answering a question while still using your own experiences to guide that answer.
Mac Prichard:
Well, it’s been a great conversation. Clare, now tell us what’s next for you.
Claire Martin:
Yes, well, I’m excited to continue building relationships with local employers to engage with our students at Willamette University, getting various organizations and nonprofits connected with our students to really help both sides achieve our goals, particularly within our local community that we are all living in.
Mac Prichard:
Terrific. know that our audience can learn more about you and your work at Willamette University by visiting the Willamette University Career Development site, as well as connect with you on LinkedIn.
And we’ll be sure to include URLs for both of those sites in the show notes. When you do reach out to Claire on LinkedIn, please mention you heard or saw her on Find Your Dream Job.
Now, Claire, given all the great advice you’ve shared today, what’s the one thing you want our audience to remember about the hiring secrets you learned as a recruiter that you’ve shared today?
Claire Martin:
I would recommend showing up as yourself. That is always the best and single piece of advice that I could give.
Mac Prichard:
Next week, our guest will be Jennifer Schwartz.
She’s an executive and life coach.
Jennifer supports high achievers who’ve checked every box and still feel something’s missing.
Tell your friends you’re ready to change jobs, and they will ask you this:
What are you looking for?
Sounds like a simple question, doesn’t it?
But your answer makes a huge difference in the success of your job search.
Join us next Wednesday when Jennifer Schwartz and I talk about how to answer the question: What do you really want?
Until next time, thanks for letting us help you find your dream job.
This show is produced by Mac’s List.
Susan Thornton-Hough schedules our guests and writes our newsletter. Lisa Kislingbury Anderson manages our social media and creates our transcripts.
Our sound engineer and editor is Anna McClain. And our music is by Freddy Trujillo.
This is Mac Prichard. See you next week.
###