Finding Talent Around The World

It didn’t take long for Priya to discover that she’d taken the right job. “One week into my job, my mentor asked me to accompany her to Moscow, where we were hiring for MSN Search. Starting this early and being able to shadow Holly on the job at the offsite location, getting the opportunity to meet great candidates from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine and working with the MSN search team was a very cool experience–and a great learning opportunity.”

A New Kind of HR Department
As a member of the International Recruiting Team, its this kind of experience that Priya proudly relays to the people she now tries to recruit. Whether she’s setting up interviews in Prague, extending job offers in Dubai, or meeting candidates from Pakistan and Istanbul at her desk in Redmond, she’s part of a department that is redefining Human Resources itself.

“A couple of years back, HR was perceived as strictly a personnel job, and the function was very administrative and traditional. Today, however, HR folks are working hand in hand with the business on corporate strategy and driving talent agenda.”

How To Get To Redmond From Minneapolis
While at The Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, Priya was invited for an on-campus internship interview. She was selected and did an internship in the summer of 2005. After graduating early with her Masters in Human Resource and Industrial Relations, she joined Microsoft’s HR Trax program full-time in October, choosing to do a rotation in International Staffing. It’s in this role that Priya has found she makes a real impact on the company.

A World Of Talent
As a detailed-oriented and process-driven person, Priya has been able to use her skills to keep Microsoft ahead of the game talent-wise. “Great recruiters are the difference-makers when the demand for talent exceeds the supply. As the hunt for talent goes global, it's important to maintain focus on the strategy itself, the effectiveness of the underlying processes, and solid execution.”

What makes the job most rewarding is matching the need for premier talent with people who are truly excited to work for Microsoft. “There is something special about extending offers to a college kid in some remote place on the globe and listening to their reaction, feeling the happiness for them and their family and hearing phrases like, ‘Thank you so much, Priya. You don’t know, but you have changed my life.’ Listening to their passionate stories around why they love Microsoft and our products and how cool it will be for them to actually work here and move from using to creating these products…it’s incredible.”

The Best Part of the Job
For Priya, every day brings not only a chance to go new places and meet new people, but it is also an opportunity to bring a new perspective into the Microsoft world. “What I like most about my job is the ability to hire great talent from all around the globe, to meet all these people, learn something new about the market, the talent pool, and the culture everyday. Plus, I love the opportunity to travel all around the globe, and bring back great memories and stories to share with friends, family and peers.”

The best part of her job?

“Hearing people say, ‘Wow, you have a really cool job!’”