Episode
LinkedIn User #204,097:
39 Years of TA, Told Straight
with Steve Levy
Steve Levy is LinkedIn user #204,097. He co-founded ATAP. He was doing AI in hiring at Pitney Bowes before AI had a Wikipedia page. And unlike a lot of “thought leaders” in this space, he never stopped practicing — he's currently at R1 RCM building production AI/ML sourcing prompt stacks while simultaneously training the next generation of ocean lifeguards at Jones Beach (34 years and counting).
If you don't know Steve — Desiree said it best in the intro: babe, what are you doing? Pause the episode. Google him. Come back.
Des and Ashley sat down with one of the actual OGs of modern Talent Sourcing and asked him to zoom out. What did the profession get right? What did we get embarrassingly wrong? What's AI actually doing? And what do the recruiters listening right now need to be doing to survive what's coming?
Steve came ready. This one is a masterclass wrapped in a roast wrapped in an hour of the funniest, sharpest TA conversation we've had all year.
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Episode Transcript
Full conversation — searchable and screen-reader friendly
Desiree: Alright y'all, I'm just gonna jump right in, because today we are joined by the goat, the master of all, Steve Levy.
Steve Levy: I am not a goat. I don't like goat. Here's the deal — I am grown up. I am not one for idolatry of any form. And that's why I don't like being on lists. We seem to be in list season on the Blue Devil — for those who don't know, LinkedIn is the Blue Devil. With these lists, like: I'm so pleased, I'm so proud to be included on the list for a company that won't be here in three years. Maybe I'll add that to my LinkedIn profile. When the recruiter reads that, they'll go: they're a top 100 list for boring AI, we should hire them.
Desiree: Steve, you're feeling feisty today, so let's do it. What right now are we doing so wrong in TA in 2026?
Steve Levy: The adage: you become so good at using a hammer, everything begins to look like a nail. Do you remember the Sorkin movie, An American President with Michael Douglas? In the final scene, the president says: I've been so busy keeping my job, I forgot to do my job. I wrote something last year on LinkedIn — I called it Thinking vs. Doing, Keeping or Doing the TA Leader. It's not my intention to talk about this issue without aggravating many of those in the targeted roles. Alas, the only way to improve our profession is to identify the barriers that get in the way of clear thinking, decisive action, and a bold future state.
Steve Levy: While AI is unequivocally important to the long-term viability of most organizations, when it comes to doing the jobs of functional leaders, success ultimately comes down to two things and only two things: leadership and character. We got on the AI bandwagon and we forgot the most important element. And so the actions of way too many in TA — hearing that C-levels are looking for ways to cut — we've seen thousands upon thousands of people in our profession get cut through no fault of their own. Strategy gone bad, keep the people who created the bad strategy, get rid of the worker bees. That's not leadership. Leadership is admitting you're wrong and fixing the problem.