Hyper-growth: Airbnb's recruitment transformation journey by Jill Riopelle, Global Head of Recruiting, Airbnb When Jill Riopelle joined Airbnb in 2012, the candidate experience was far from perfect. She herself had to wait weeks to get her offer letter after the phone call came with the good news of her new job. Her first mission upon joining: partner with the founding team to overhaul the candidate experience in a company experiencing hyper-growth. In an engaging, informal style, Jill recounts how Airbnb’s talent acquisition team drew a roadmap of their ideal candidate experience via story-boarding, invested in better recruiter communication, and took extra steps to foster a more candidate-centric culture.

1. Designing Candidate Experience
J I L L R I O P E L L E , G L O B A L H E A D O F R E C R U I T I N G , A I R B N B

2. Airbnb began by solving a problem.

5. 1 Million Listings

6. Our vision

7. 0M
6M
12M
18M
24M
30M
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
30M+January 2015
TOTAL AIRBNB GUESTS

8. January 20, 2012
Dear Jill,
I signed a contract for another company tonight.
I would have loved to be a part of your team but after round
about one and a half months with one interview in person,
three interviews via skype, three references and no decision
from your side, I needed to make a decision for myself.
Silvia

11. Designing the Experience

17. Define critical moments that are universal
Don’t let reality get in the way
S T O R Y B O A R D I N G
Be true to the candidate

18. Rejections are as important as offers
Set expectations often
Use your brand voice
U S E R I N S I G H T S
Maximize what makes you different

19. Bringing the Storyboard to Life

21. Section Break

22. Outcome

23. Candidate Survey
“I would have appreciated an email address linked to my application where I
could email the recruiting team personally … Although understandably busy,
Airbnb is a VERY hard company to track down.”
“I am really impressed that I heard back on my application
within a few days. Even though the answer was a ‘no’ this level
of attention was very much appreciated.”
“Sucks!”
C A N D I D A T E S U R V E Y

24. Q1 Survey
I was treated with courtesy
and respect.
93%
I had a positive interviewing
experience
83%
I have a more positive
impression of the company
having gone through their
recruiting process.
80%

25. Summary of Feedback
N E W H I R E S U R V E Y
Clarity Host Culture
Candidates want to know
a little more about what
they can expect in
between stages.
We do a great job of
making candidates
feel at home.
The most talked about
topic throughout the
survey! Let’s keep
highlighting all the great
things we have to offer.

26. “I appreciate how responsive the recruiters
are, how quick the process is, and how excited
the interviewers are about the company and
their individual roles.”
Analytics
N E W H I R E S U R V E Y

27. 0M
6M
12M
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24M
30M
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
30M+January 2015
TOTAL AIRBNB GUESTS

28. 0
10000
20000
30000
40000
50000
Q1'12
Q2'12
Q3'12
Q4'12
Q1'13
Q2'13
Q3'13
Q4'13
Q1'14
Q2'14
Q3'14
Q4'14
Q1'15
50K+Q1 2015
APPLICANTS PER QUARTER