Lars Schmidt

CEO

Herndon, Virginia, United States25 yrs 6 mos experience
Highly StableAI Enabled

Key Highlights

  • Designed recruiting strategies for the Beijing Olympics.
  • Created SpaceX's first employer brand campaign.
  • Award-winning podcast host and bestselling author.
Stackforce AI infers this person is a Talent Acquisition and HR Strategy expert with a focus on AI-driven solutions.

Contact

LinkedIn

Skills

Core Skills

Talent AcquisitionStrategic PlanningConsulting

Other Skills

Artificial Intelligence (AI)Generative AI for HRGlobal Talent AcquisitionCreativity and InnovationDigital MediaDesignGraphic DesignBusiness StrategyTalent ManagementRecruitingEmployer BrandingStrategySocial MediaPublic SpeakingTechnical Recruiting

About

Lars Schmidt is a talent strategist, writer, (former) podcast host, educator, recovering entrepreneur, and builder of people-first recruiting systems. For two decades, Lars has helped companies figure out how to find, attract, and keep great people. He's worked with everyone from scrappy startups to Fortune 500 giants. Over his career, he's designed recruiting strategies for the Beijing Olympics ticketing operations and created SpaceX's first employer brand campaign. He won the inaugural NPR Innovation Award and has delivered keynotes in 10 countries. But his real passion? Making recruiting more human (yes, even in the age of AI. In fact, especially in the age of AI). After eleven years running his own show at Amplify Talent as a consultant, speaker, and author, Lars recently made a bet on himself: he shifted back into an operator role as Vice President of Talent Acquisition & Innovation at Fruitist. Why? Because the best way to stay sharp in this rapidly evolving world is by doing the work, not just talking about it. Lars for Fast Company on the future of work and has taught at places like IESE's School of Founders and LinkedIn Learning. He wrote the bestselling "Redefining HR: Transforming People Teams to Drive Business Performance" and hosted the award-winning "LinkedIn Presents: Redefining Work" podcast, where he interviewed Chief People Officers from Fortune 50 companies to venture-backed startups. His interviewing skills have led to some fascinating conversations, including Jeff Cohen (most would remember him as Chunk from The Goonies, and yes, the Truffle Shuffle came up) and Andy Cohen (fewer shuffles, more sparkle). His approach is simple: skip the hype, focus on what actually works, take creative risks, build sustainable systems, and remember that recruiting is ultimately about people connecting with people. Even when AI enters the chat. Based outside Washington DC, Lars works with companies around the world to rethink how they approach talent. When he's not obsessing over GPTs and design, he's learning guitar and keeping up with his wife and two daughters. Learn more at LarsSchmidt.com. Disclosures: I advise Eightfold.ai

Experience

Fruitist

Vice President, Talent Acquisition & Innovation

Dec 2024 – Present · 1 yr 3 mos · Los Angeles Metropolitan Area · Remote

  • Fruitist is a $1B+ global fresh food company operating at the intersection of agriculture and applied AI — using machine learning, predictive forecasting, and data-driven logistics to modernize an industry historically resistant to technology. With operations across 10+ countries, Fruitist is one of the fastest-growing companies in fresh food, scaling both its supply chain and its technological edge simultaneously. I was hired to build a global enterprise-grade talent infrastructure from the ground up, delivering speed, precision, and measurable business impact.
  • I was brought in to build a global enterprise recruiting function from scratch inside a growing business scaling across 10+ countries. I architected the full infrastructure — ATS implementation, structured interview design, AI-enabled recruiting systems, and an industry-first generative AI employer brand video campaign — while driving 2x headcount growth including senior executives across the C-suite and international markets. By building in-house capability, my team eliminated $1M in annual agency spend and maintained a 30-day time-to-offer across 42 global hires.
  • Ready to grow? We're hiring. 🫐 fruitist.com/careers
Artificial Intelligence (AI)Generative AI for HRStrategic PlanningGlobal Talent AcquisitionCreativity and InnovationTalent Acquisition

Fast company

Contributing Writer

Apr 2017 – Present · 8 yrs 11 mos

  • Contributor to Fast Company where I cover stories at the intersection of talent, brand, recruiting, and innovation.

Amplify talent

Founder & CEO

Dec 2013 – Mar 2025 · 11 yrs 3 mos · Global

  • As Founder and CEO of Amplify Talent, I partner with industry-shaping companies to redefine how they attract, engage, and retain top talent. Through strategic advisory, consulting, and executive search services, I help organizations align their talent strategies with business goals to unlock growth and achieve lasting impact.
  • For over a decade, I’ve advised founders, CEOs, and CHROs at high-growth startups, Fortune 500s, and global brands on navigating complex talent challenges. From designing scalable hiring strategies to building systems that drive retention and culture alignment, my work focuses on delivering practical, results-driven solutions tailored to each organization’s needs.
  • At Amplify Talent, I don’t just solve immediate talent gaps — I help companies build frameworks for long-term success. By focusing on strategy, operational excellence, and culture, we enable organizations to attract exceptional talent while empowering their teams to thrive.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)Generative AI for HRTalent AcquisitionConsulting

Npr

Senior Director, Talent Acquisition & Innovation

Feb 2011 – Dec 2013 · 2 yrs 10 mos · Washington D.C. Metro Area · On-site

  • In this turn-around role I was brought in to lead the rebuilding of the talent acquisition function across NPR as part of a broad HR organizational rebuilding effort. My focus is providing leadership and advocacy for company-wide talent acquisition initiatives that align with NPR’s strategic mission and core values. We achieved this by re-imagining and revamping the NPR recruiting model from a reactive transactional approach that was based on job postings, to a progressive proactive model leveraging social media, recruitment marketing, brand advocates, and employment branding.

Magento

Head of Recruiting

Jul 2010 – Feb 2011 · 7 mos · Greater Los Angeles Area · On-site

  • Responsible for full life-cycle recruiting for a broad range of technical and corporate roles and developing sustainable talent acquisition, development, and branding strategies and procedures. Helped scale the team from 30 to 100+ over that time, helping position Magento for an acquisition by eBay.

Ticketmaster / live nation entertainment

Vice President, Human Resources

Dec 2008 – Jul 2010 · 1 yr 7 mos · Greater Los Angeles Area · Hybrid

  • Joined LiveNation through their acquisition of Ticketmaster. Prior to the Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger, leading teams responsible for recruiting, employee engagement and development and employee communications across Ticketmaster and its related entities. Following the Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger, responsible for developing and leading employee communications strategies and vehicles for the newly formed Live Nation Entertainment as well as various HR projects.

Ticketmaster entertainment

Senior Director, Global Talent

Jun 2003 – Dec 2008 · 5 yrs 6 mos · Greater Los Angeles Area · Hybrid

  • Joined Ticketmaster in June 2003 as a Senior Recruiter and took on increasing levels of recruiting and leadership responsibility. Responsible for leading and developing a geographically dispersed team, developing global employment branding strategies, and hands-on recruiting for global leadership and key positions across the Ticketmaster and its subsidiaries.

Intersperse

Senior Recruiter

Sep 2001 – May 2003 · 1 yr 8 mos · Greater Los Angeles Area · On-site

  • Hired by CTO to create and execute recruiting process in support of a changed business model after they secured their 2nd round of funding from Kleiner Perkins. Hired 40+ technical employees in the first 18 months.

Pencom systems

Account Manager/Senior Technical Recruiter

May 1998 – Aug 2001 · 3 yrs 3 mos · Los Angeles and New York · On-site

  • Responsible for account management and recruiting for this 25 year old software services and technical recruiting firm.

Education

Florida State University

BS — Marketing & International Business

Jan 1993 – Jan 1998

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