In just a year’s time, Technical Recruiter Leigh Anne Kelley has hired 48 DSFederal employees and contractors. That’s an average of four employees each month, no small feat considering that she’s a one-person recruiting shop.
This former Employee of the Month handles the entire hiring process - on-boarding to orientation, finding candidates for every position from IT to Administrative, Data Science to Biomedical Repair Specialists.
She fills the unique needs of each of our customers while keeping an eye out for cultural fit and the right soft skills, but she usually knows when a person is “the one.”
"It’s a gut feeling. You ask yourself, ‘are they going to fit?’" She looks for soft skills: passion, someone who wants to make a difference and has pride in their work. Someone who wants to be part of a family.
She said turning candidates into employees is a lot of heavy lifting. Last year she had an average of 18 to 20 open positions at any given time, and she had to source, research resumes and make calls to candidates who sometimes didn't call back. Potential employees had to be vetted, interviewed, presented an offer letter and if hired, signed onto Paylocity, on-boarded and taken through orientation.
“It’s a lot of checkpoints along the way,” she said. “It keeps you on your toes. You have to enjoy getting to know people and working closely with them.”
When asked how managers can support her efforts: “Stick to the process; vet solid requisitions before sending them; make sure all details are up to date and most current; continue to provide interview feedback and offer letter request forms so the employee files will be up to date per our policy.”
One of the best features of DSFederal is its work culture. "We have a welcoming culture, from Sophia down. I try to continue that trickle down to new hires. Leigh said, “There’s nothing like when all your ingredients come together and you make this perfect cake.”
It’s a cake with many layers, but she believes in DSFederal.
“I love the feeling when I know I’m able to help someone get in position with a great company to do what they want to do professionally, in addition to serving our Hiring Managers and customers' needs.”
Thank you, Leigh, for enriching our DSFederal family.