Talent Crunch - Berlin - The Talent Pulse (June 2025)
140+ Careers Supported, Free Workshops, Poll Results, and June’s Essential Reads
Welcome to the 2nd June issue of the Talent Crunch Newsletter!
We’re not a media company, but sometimes it feels like it – so let’s go for it.
This issue is dedicated to the big, messy, collaborative, sometimes infuriating but always meaningful work of building real support for talent professionals across the DACH region.
And a note from Andreea:
“I believe deeply that those of us in the Talent space have a responsibility to give back to those in other professions. Hiring isn’t just “our industry”, it shapes opportunities and lives far beyond it.”
That’s why, for everything you’re about to read about below – we do it all pro bono. For our community AND for the people who need it outside of our community.
Also, this month, we support our own 🚀.
You may have seen that we recommend that you follow the Handpicked Berlin Newsletter (and their platforms). And we have something really quite important to share about their work:
👉The 2025 Berlin Salary Trends Report is the most detailed local compensation dataset available.
Unlike generic global surveys or tools, this report dives deep into salaries, bonuses, equity, and attrition risk across 53 job roles. All filtered by experience, company size, gender, and more. There is no integration needed.
If you’re hiring, planning budgets, or just want to see how your comp stacks up, this is essential reading.
If you want to find out more, just drop us a message or contact Igor directly over LinkedIn, he will guide you through this wonderful resource.
🎯 Feature Story: 6 Months in the Making
It really does take a village.
For over six months, we’ve been working behind the scenes with WeAreDevelopers and HR Leaders Summit to bring something genuinely useful to the community – yeah, not another branded booth
This July, at Messe Berlin, we’re doing our biggest ever in-person activation. And all of it is free for ticket holders.
Here’s what we’re delivering
1️⃣ Talent Clinics (10–11 July)
5 fully staffed stations, running from 9:00–17:00
Short, high-impact 30-minute advisory sessions
Covering CV writing, mock interviewing, team-building, leadership, hiring strategy
Capacity to help over 140 attendees over two days
It’s personal. It’s practical. And it’s powered by 33 incredible Talent Partners volunteering their time and expertise.
Check the LinkedIn post coming out on the 3rd of July to read all about it and congratulate these folks, they deserve it!
2️⃣ Exclusive Workshops (9 July)
Also included for event pass holders: a series of immersive, high-value workshops designed specifically for this audience.
⭐ “I’ve Been Assigned to a Project… Now What?”
Facilitator: Bruno Morgante (Founder, Mantegora)
→ Hands-on project management essentials with real stakeholder role-play
⭐ “The Chief Joy Officer and Decoding Effective Teams”
Facilitator: Max Hunter (Chief Joy Officer, Motivators@Work)
→ Build cohesive, resilient teams with his “Togethership” framework
⭐ “From Grind to Balance”
Facilitators: Dagmar Glow & Veronica Ambrosini
→ Recognise burnout early, set better boundaries, protect mental health
Why We’re Doing It
We didn’t design this in a month. Or slap our name on someone else’s work.
This collaboration started over six months ago with the WAD and HRLS teams. Every detail was built with one goal:
Give real, personal, high-quality support to the people who need it.
It’s free for participants, but it costs us time, energy, planning headaches, and a lot of spreadsheets.
At Talent Crunch, we believe we have a responsibility to share our expertise with the broader community – not just those in “Talent” jobs, but anyone in DACH navigating their career, hiring teams, or leadership challenges.
Because we think recruitment should work for everyone.
Poll Check-In
Last time, we asked: “What’s blocking your summer hiring?”
Your answers boiled down to this:
Budgets on hold
Slow approvals
Confusing priorities
No clear plan
Honestly? Many just said: “I don’t even know anymore.”
Our take:
Hiring isn’t slow just because it’s summer. It’s slow because strategy is unclear and teams are stretched.
If that’s you, it might be time to ask:
What’s really holding us back?
What needs to change before autumn?
Let’s not pretend the holidays are the only reason.
The Monthly Talent Download
Quick Takes
100 Recruiting Tools Worth Knowing
Tim Sackett’s 2025 list is no-nonsense. He’s actually used many of them.
From classic ATS to new AI screeners.
A solid map of what’s available if you’re picking your stack.
Worth a look, even just to see what’s hype and what’s real.
Source: Tim Sackett – “Tim Sackett’s 2025 Top Recruiting Technologies: The Full List”
HR Tech’s €2.5 Trillion Problem
25 years. Over €2.5 trillion spent.
Hiring outcomes improved just 12%.
Marketing improved 115% in the same time.
The issue? Prioritising volume and credentials over relationships and actual performance.
The study calls for tech that strengthens human connection, not replaces it.
Source: MoneyballHR – “The HR Technology Stack Failure: A Research Analysis”
“AI-First” Companies: Bold Talk, Messy Reality
Becoming “AI-First” sounds great in the boardroom. Reality’s more complicated.
It’s not just automation. It demands reshaping roles and decision-making.
Duolingo actively redesigned work to make AI genuinely useful…and theeeen backtracked.
Klarna tried going all-in on AI for customer service, then backtracked and rehired humans after quality crashed.
Companies often go from “AI is the future!” to “AI isn’t ready yet” overnight.
Laszlo Bock called out this rapid flip-flopping in a brilliant LinkedIn Post.
Source: “Box - Becoming an AI-First Company: Actionable Steps to Scale AI Across Your Organisation”
(We also designed our own invite-only Metaview event around these lessons.)
Deep Dive: Deloitte’s 2025 Human Capital Trends
Deloitte’s latest report, built from nearly 10,000 leaders globally, shows the tensions we can’t ignore.
AI isn’t about replacing people. Its real value is amplifying human work. But that demands new ways of working, not just bolt-on tools.
Executives talk about roles like “chief human and machine resource officer” to bridge HR and tech.
Yet 60% of workers worry about turnover driven by AI and data collection.
The big organisational tension:
85% of leaders want agile ways of working.
75% of workers want more stability.
Most companies promise both but deliver neither.
Workers now face 10 major changes a year (up from 2 in 2016). No wonder many feel burned out.
The experience gap is growing.
AI handles entry-level tasks.
Harder for people to get the experience they need to grow.
We need new ways to develop talent, beyond “years in role”.
And the manager’s role?
No longer fit for purpose in its old form.
Coaching, developing, and supporting people will matter even more.
Fewer managers, but more responsibility to help teams navigate complexity.
Bottom line:
Organisations that invest in human performance – not just business outcomes – see 1.8x better financial results.
Source: Deloitte – “2025 Global Human Capital Trends: Navigating the Paradoxes of the Future of Work”
Community Highlights
1. The Talent Spotlight
It iss LIVE again 💥. Our 4th Spotlighted Community Member is Anya Voronova. Check out their story here and say “Hi!” 🙌.
Who will be out next Month’s Spotlight?
2. The Talent Services Directory
Talent Crunch Services Directory - We need HELP
After the initial launch, we pulled everything back to redesign the submission process. Thank you for helping us get this right.
Now we need someone to help us clean the data a bit - and reorganise the NEW form with the info from the OLD from - is that person YOU? 😍
Ping us if so!
👉 [Submit your services: [FORM LINK]
👉 [Browse the directory: [DIRECTORY LINK]
Read the Rules First
Every entry will be scrutinised.
Non-compliant listings get removed without questions asked.
Community Corner
We’ve said it before: it takes a village.
July in Berlin is our biggest example yet.
Talent Clinics: 33 incredible professionals offering over 140 personal consultations in two days. All pro bono.
Workshops: Designed specifically for event attendees, giving them real tools they can actually use.
We do this because we believe in giving back to people in every role, not just “Talent” professionals.
Because good hiring and leadership don’t just stay in HR. They shape careers, teams, companies.
A personal ask from Andreea:
If you value this work, help us keep it going.
Talk about it.
Invite someone to join the Talent Crunch community.
Share your ideas with us.
We’re building this together.
🌟 Join the Talent Crunch Community!
Connect and collaborate with a diverse network of talent professionals within the DACH region. We are a proudly non-commercial and deeply inclusive community with a strong focus on delivering practical impact within the talent space. Join the conversation on LinkedIn Page, Humanitix Ticketing Page, Instagram and Slack.
Resource Roundup
Tim Sackett – Tim Sackett’s 2025 Top Recruiting Technologies: The Full List
MoneyballHR – The HR Technology Stack Failure: A Research Analysis
Box - Becoming an AI-First Organisation: The Realities Beyond the Strategy Deck
Deloitte – 2025 Global Human Capital Trends: Navigating the Paradoxes of the Future of Work
Recruiting Brainfood Big List of In-Person Events to Attend in 2025
Thank you for reading the June edition of the Talent Crunch Newsletter! Stay engaged with our community for more valuable insights and updates.
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