Behind the Growth

The Journey Behind Growth by Design with Mike Joyner, Adam Ward, and Jill Macri

For our final episode, the three founding partners of Growth by Design Talent turn the lens on themselves. Mike Joyner, Adam Ward, and Jill Macri sit down together to reflect on the journey of building GBD from scratch, what led them to start the firm, and why they're closing this chapter. They share the inflection points that shaped each of their careers—from Adam's internship that sparked his love for recruiting to Jill's formative years at Backroads learning leadership, to Mike's path through design, tech, and into talent. The conversation covers what it really took to build a consulting firm centered on quality over quantity, the leadership lessons learned along the way, and what they're most proud of after nearly seven years. They discuss why they chose to create the community and support system they wish they'd had in their Head of Talent and RecOps roles, and how they proved that companies truly value strategic talent work as a differentiator. An honest reflection on partnership, building something meaningful, and what comes next when you close one chapter to open another. This is career development for the people who develop careers—one last time.

Leading with Heart: 30 Years of Talent Leadership with Miranda Kalinowski

Miranda Kalinowski's 30-year journey from HR generalist in Australia to Head of Global Recruiting at Stripe reveals what it takes to lead talent through transformational growth. She scaled Facebook from 6,000 to over 84,000 employees while learning that your internal culture is your external brand. You'll hear why she chose recruiting from day one and the advice that changed her leadership approach—"lead with heart and minds will follow." She also opens up about the builder mode energy she found at Stripe, her philosophy on investing in the recruiting profession rather than just hiring from it, and the systems that keep her productive—from dictation while walking to AI transcription tools that save thousands of hours. This is an authentic conversation about scaling with quality, leading through the heart, and finding the right next chapter after reaching the top.

Building Sustainable Operations Across Hypergrowth with Samara Crasilneck

From Google and Facebook to Airbnb, Lyft, and Discord, Samara Crasilneck has built recruiting operations at some of the most influential tech companies of the past decade. Her career spans the full spectrum of hypergrowth chaos and post-growth stabilization, teaching her that success isn't about moving fast all the time—it's about knowing when to move fast and when to slow down. Samara shares her refreshing practical approach to tools and innovation: start with pilots, find champions who aren't on the ops team, and remember that sometimes the basics work just as well as the latest technology. You'll hear about her leadership philosophy—from the productivity systems and boundaries that keep her effective, to why she believes great leaders communicate clearly and know when to let problems breathe rather than rushing to solve everything immediately. An authentic conversation about sustainable leadership, building operations that empower rather than constrain your team, and why knowing when to slow down is just as important as knowing how to move fast.

From Agency Recruiting to Building In-House Teams with Emil Yeargin

Emil Yeargin's career path took him from agency recruiting to leading talent teams at Lyft and Gusto. His transition from individual contributor to people leader wasn't just about managing more people—it required a fundamental shift in how he defined success. You'll hear why agency recruiting skills translate so well to high-growth startups (and where they fall short), his framework for creating conditions of success rather than managing people's work, and why sometimes the most caring thing a leader can do is make the tough decisions others avoid. An authentic conversation about transitioning from solo contributor to team builder, balancing empathy with accountability, and why taking care of yourself isn't selfish—it's how you create capacity to serve others.

Building a Career on Impact, Not Titles with Becky McCullough

Becky McCullough's decade at HubSpot has been defined by one core philosophy: focus on the work itself, not the title. From executive search to leading teams at McKinsey, and now as VP of Talent Acquisition at HubSpot, she's built her career by doing great work and letting recognition follow. You'll hear why she believes you should always take the call (even when you're happy where you are), her framework for evaluating opportunities based on skills rather than job descriptions, and the hyper-scheduling system that keeps her productive without burning out. Becky also shares the conversation that led her from consulting to tech, and why she tells her team to look externally—even when she doesn't want them to leave. Her approach to leadership is built on transparency, communication, and the belief that if you bring people along through change, sustainable success follows. An authentic conversation about building careers on impact, leading with intention, and why great work speaks louder than any title. ---------------------------------------- This episode is brought you by Ashby [https://www.ashbyhq.com/] is all-in-one recruiting software that weaves AI through every layer – from ATS and CRM to sourcing, scheduling, and analytics.