Finding, hiring, and training talent can be a challenge for any company—but especially for a fast-growing, healthcare-focused, artificial intelligence and process automation company like Olive. Their CEO was keen on establishing and growing Olive in Columbus, Ohio, because of the access to top talent, the emerging startup ecosystem, and proximity to world-class universities and Fortune 500 employers.

By 2020, rapid product demand drove the company to more than double its existing headcount, specifically requiring talent with skill sets that could handle Olive’s unique product offering. Simultaneously, Olive contemplated shifting to remote operations in response to changes in business culture, hastened by the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic.

Olive realized that it needed help executing an aggressive strategy to support the budget required to recruit, vet, market, and fill the positions. That’s where JobsOhio Talent Acquisition Services (TAS) came in.

Working Together to Identify and Overcome Talent Obstacles

TAS is a service-based incentive that leverages Ohio’s economic development expertise to help a company find, hire, and train talent, executed in partnership with the company. Through TAS, an expert workforce development team works with companies to identify a company’s talent obstacles and build sustainable talent strategies in areas of awareness, engagement, selection, and training. TAS has proven durability, helping companies reach their hiring goals despite the pandemic.

“We are a fast-moving, high-growth startup with a lot of competing priorities,” said Brian Rutkowski, chief talent officer for Olive. “We needed a hands-on partner that could operate as an extension of our talent attraction team.”

The JobsOhio TAS program became that partner. JobsOhio TAS prepared a talent plan that consisted of marketing and attraction, including elements such as creative development, job board campaigns, and digital advertising, as well as a customized training program. For Olive, this multi-faceted, unique approach provided the support they needed to achieve their workforce goals, despite the pandemic.