Global Skills Podcast

What does great recruitment look like when AI can write a convincing CV, but employers still need to understand what someone can actually do?
In this episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I’m joined by Dionne Atwill, CEO and co-founder of Exec TA Social, to explore how AI and skills-based hiring are changing talent acquisition.
From her beginnings in theatre to leading a global community of talent executives, Dionne shares why transferable skills, empathy and curiosity matter. We discuss alternatives to traditional CVs, task-based assessments, and how connecting recruitment with employee development can help organisations recognise talent already within their teams.
Proudly sponsored by Abodoo, helping organisations and educators close the skills gap through skills technology.
Connect and explore
Dionne Atwill on LinkedIn:https://uk.linkedin.com/in/dionneatwill
Exec TA Social:https://www.execta.social/community
Vanessa Wainwright on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/vwainwright/
Global Skills Podcast website and community:https://globalskillspodcast.com/
Global Skills Podcast on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/global-skills-podcast
Abodoo:https://www.abodoo.com/
Resources mentioned
urfuture:https://www.urfuture.io/blog/the-journey-of-urfuture
Simon Squibb:https://www.simonsquibb.com/
Watch and listen
YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@GlobalSkillsPodcast
Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/5T0HisMfolG2JbrQIKqNuV
Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/global-skills-podcast/id1846851119
Podbean:https://globalskillspodcast.podbean.com/

In this episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I’m joined by Tom Verboven, Senior Director at Mercer Talent Enterprise based in Dubai, to explore the future of talent and the changing world of work. Tom shares his international experience across Belgium, the UAE, Lebanon, the UK, and the US, and explains why making the right talent decisions can have a major impact on organizational success.
We explore skills-based organizations, internal talent mobility, reskilling, and upskilling, and why companies need to understand both the skills they have today and the capabilities they will need tomorrow. Tom also explains why talent teams need to collaborate more closely and why having a clear strategy, culture, and focus on key skills can help organizations build stronger talent ecosystems.
We also dive into AI, human skills, assessment, and the future of leadership. Tom shares why organizations may need to assess more for wisdom, judgment, creativity, and experience as AI takes on more knowledge-based tasks. We discuss bias, “noise” in assessment, and how AI could potentially make some aspects of talent evaluation more consistent
 
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https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-verboven-b85a691
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#GlobalSkillsPodcast #TomVerboven #FutureOfWork #TalentStrategy #SkillsBasedOrganization #FutureSkills #TalentManagement #TalentAssessment #AIandHR 

In this episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Deepak Bhootra, a seasoned sales leader, executive coach, and entrepreneur, to explore the skills that can shape our careers and professional success. Deepak shares his journey from growing up in North India and learning the fundamentals of selling from his grandfather to building a global corporate career and eventually moving into entrepreneurship, coaching, and professional development.
We explore why sales is more than simply selling a product or service and why it can be one of the most valuable skills for career growth. Dr. Deepak Bhootra explains how learning to communicate your value, sell yourself, understand people, navigate cognitive biases, and handle rejection can transform the way you approach your career. We also discuss career transitions, redundancy, resilience, and why continuous learning is essential in an evolving world of work.
One of my biggest takeaways from this conversation is that sales is ultimately about understanding people and creating value. Whether you're building a business, looking for your next opportunity, leading a team, or changing careers, the ability to communicate, adapt, recover from setbacks, and understand different perspectives can make a significant difference. Dr. Deepak Bhootra offers practical insights into sales, leadership, career development, and the importance of continually investing in yourself.
Connect With Dr. Deepak Bhootra
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepakbhootra/
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
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#GlobalSkillsPodcast #DeepakButra #SalesSkills #SalesLeadership #CareerGrowth #CareerDevelopment #ExecutiveCoaching #B2BSales #Leadership #CommunicationSkills 

The future of work is already here, and in this episode, I'm joined by Deepak Parija, Chief Talent Officer at Wipro, where he leads talent, leadership, learning, and workforce transformation for more than 230,000 employees across 60 countries. Deepak shares how organizations can embrace AI while keeping people at the centre of every transformation, and why continuous learning has become essential for both individuals and businesses.
Together, we explore how the role of talent leaders is evolving beyond traditional HR to focus on building future-ready workforces. Deepak explains why digital literacy, human skills, and lifelong learning are no longer optional, and how organizations can use AI responsibly to unlock growth, develop talent, and prepare employees for the jobs of tomorrow.
One of my biggest takeaways is that technology alone won't shape the future of work—people will. Deepak reminds us that while AI can enhance productivity, human qualities like empathy, curiosity, adaptability, and leadership will remain the skills that truly set individuals and organizations apart. Whether you're a leader, HR professional, educator, or simply looking to future-proof your career, this conversation offers practical insights into building a workforce that's ready for what's next.
Connect With Deepak Parija
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepak-parija-b83a863/
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
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In this episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I sit down with Stefania Giannini, former Assistant Director-General for Education at UNESCO and former Minister of Education, Universities and Research in Italy, to explore how education must evolve to prepare learners for an AI-powered future. Together, we discuss why the challenge isn't simply a skills shortage, but a skills waste problem, where talent exists but isn't being fully developed or utilized.
We explore the growing importance of lifelong learning, personalized education, multilingualism, and the role AI can play in helping learners unlock their full potential. Stefania also shares why schools and universities must move beyond standardized learning models and focus on developing curiosity, adaptability, and the ability to ask better questions in a rapidly changing world.
Whether you're an educator, policymaker, business leader, parent, or lifelong learner, this conversation offers valuable insights into building education systems that are more inclusive, human-centered, and future-ready. As we celebrate World Youth Skills Day, this episode is a powerful reminder that preparing people for the future of work starts with transforming how we learn today.
Connect With Stefania Giannini
https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefania-giannini-2bb1ab16a/
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
Send us an email at editor@globalskillspodcast.com
 

In this episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Dave Hockham, Associate Head of School at the University of Greenwich, National Teaching Fellow, researcher, and education leader, to explore why creativity and human-centered skills are becoming more valuable than ever in the age of AI. Dave shares his remarkable journey from studying theatre and clowning to leading transformational change in higher education, revealing how curiosity, adaptability, and saying "yes" to new opportunities shaped his career and approach to learning.
Together, we discuss the growing disconnect between education and industry, why organizations need to rethink learning and development, and how employers can better support people through mentoring, onboarding, continuous professional development, and lifelong learning. Dave explains why transferable skills, creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking are essential for building a future-ready workforce, while highlighting the importance of creating stronger partnerships between education providers and employers.
Whether you're a business leader, HR professional, educator, learning and development specialist, or someone planning your next career move, this episode is packed with practical insights for navigating the future of work. We explore workforce development, employability, leadership, skills mapping, innovation, and the human capabilities that AI cannot replace—offering valuable takeaways for anyone passionate about building a more adaptable, inclusive, and resilient workforce.
Connect With Dr. Dave Hockham
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-david-hockham-sfhea-ntf-757a0853
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
Send us an email at editor@globalskillspodcast.com
#GlobalSkillsPodcast #FutureOfWork #FutureSkills #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #HigherEducation #SkillsGap #Upskilling #CareerDevelopment #SkillsBasedHiring #SkillsMapping#FutureWorkforce

I'm joined today by Mark Ramos, a global learning and AI transformation leader who has held senior roles at Google, Novartis, and Cornerstone, and is a Fellow at Harvard's Graduate School of Education Learning Innovation Laboratory. We talk about why human agency might be the resource under the most threat in the workplace right now, and what happens to skills, careers, and middle management as AI takes over more of our daily tasks.
Mark shares a great real-world example of transferable skills in action, the thinking behind Google's internal "Googler to Googler" teaching culture, and his honest take on cognitive offloading, cognitive atrophy, and what he calls learning slop. He makes the case that healthy skepticism, not blind trust, is the real skill of the AI era. This conversation goes deeper into human potential than I expected, and I think anyone thinking about their own learning path will find something here worth taking away.
 
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Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcsramos/ 
 
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Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
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In this special solo episode of the Global Skills Podcast, I wanted to step away from my usual guest interviews and explore a question that has been sitting with me for years: if employers say they can’t find skilled people, and job seekers say they can’t find opportunities, what’s really going wrong?
Drawing on my experience in recruitment, workforce transformation, and skills intelligence, I share the story of a candidate who faced more than 1,000 job rejections before securing a role with a leading technology company and rapidly progressing in their career. That experience shaped my belief that talent is far more abundant than we think. The real challenge is that our systems often struggle to identify, understand, and connect people’s skills to opportunity. As AI continues to reshape work, I believe we need to rethink how we define, measure, and recognise capability.
Throughout this episode, I explore why traditional hiring practices are failing both employers and job seekers, how transferable skills are becoming increasingly valuable, and why a shared skills language could transform the future of work. I also discuss the growing importance of skills-first hiring, lifelong learning, and workforce intelligence, and why making skills visible may be one of the most important challenges facing education, employers, and policymakers today.
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
Send us an email at editor@globalskillspodcast.com
 
#GlobalSkillsPodcast
#SkillsGap
#SkillsFirstHiring
#TalentManagement
#AIandWork
#TransferableSkills
#FutureSkills
 

In this episode, I sit down with Thom Staight, General Manager of Global Talent Acquisition for EMEA and Asia at Microsoft, to explore how AI is reshaping hiring, careers, and the future of work. Thom shares his journey from studying history and philosophy, into recruitment, and eventually leading talent strategy inside one of the world’s biggest tech companies. We talk about the shift from traditional recruitment to skills-first hiring, why learning agility matters more than ever, and how organizations can unlock hidden potential by focusing less on job titles and more on transferable skills.
We also dive into how AI is changing early-career opportunities, internal mobility, and workforce planning. Thom shares practical examples of how Microsoft is using AI tools to help entry-level talent solve more complex problems earlier in their careers, while also freeing experienced employees to focus on higher-value work. Throughout the conversation, we discuss growth mindset, the importance of staying curious with new technology, and why the future of talent will depend on organizations connecting skills, learning, and career development more effectively than ever before.
Connect With Thom  Staight
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomstaight/
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Connect with the Host Vanessa Wainwright LinkedIn
Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
Send us an email at editor@globalskillspodcast.com
 

In this episode, I’m joined by Clare Dygert, a learning systems architect and chief learning strategist at SweetRush, now part of the NIIT group. We explore how AI is transforming learning, why personalized and adaptive learning is becoming essential, and what organizations need to do to truly close the skills gap. Clare shares her incredible career journey from wanting to become a school teacher to designing learning strategies for some of the world’s most complex organizations. We also discuss why employees must take ownership of their own growth, how micro-credentialing could reshape education, and why staying curious is one of the most important career skills anyone can develop.
We also dive into the future of work, transferable skills, and why learning design needs to focus on people first. Clare shares practical advice for professionals wanting to future-proof their careers, including her personal strategy of reviewing job descriptions each year to identify new skills to learn. From designing sitcom-style training for learners with cognitive disabilities to using AI as a creative thinking partner, this conversation is packed with fresh ideas on learning, leadership, creativity, and adaptability. Clare also opens up about her passion for art, team cognition, and building learning cultures where people don’t just use AI — they grow with it.
Connect With Clare Dygert
https://www.linkedin.com/in/claredygert/
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Visit Our Website https://www.globalskillspodcast.com
Send us an email at editor@globalskillspodcast.com