At ClearanceJobs Connect West, Mount Indie Founder Tommy Weinert delivered a candid and insightful talk on the current state of recruiting in the cleared sector. His message? Recruiting is sales—and process is everything.
In a fast-changing GovCon environment marked by contract uncertainty and rising candidate hesitancy, Weinert urged recruiters to double down on transparency, empathy, and executive alignment. He acknowledged the stress many feel in this space, where recruiters tackle the hardest jobs in government contracting.
Weinert emphasized the importance of aligning recruiting teams with the C-suite. He shared how misaligned expectations and metrics—like relying solely on “time to fill”—can sabotage the hiring process. Instead, he introduced the concept of “time in workflow,” a metric that breaks down each step of the hiring process and assigns accountability across departments.
“Recruiters influence just a fraction of the process,” he said. “Hiring takes an entire company.”
Weinert also spoke to the power of recruiting as marketing. He spotlighted ClearanceJobs Live as a way recruiters can build trust and create content that resonates with candidates who won’t respond to cold outreach. Even a single live session, he said, can produce interviews and offers.
His parting message: You can’t put tech on top of a bad process. AI, flashy platforms, and tools only amplify what already exists—good or bad. To succeed in 2025, recruiters need to act like salespeople, think like marketers, and speak the language of executives.
