Lori Schwartz Noel
Lori Schwartz Noel
Founder - The People Collective
For Lori Schwartz Noel, recruiting began with a passion for people rather than a plan to enter talent acquisition.
An extrovert by nature, Lori's career started in market research immediately after college, where she spent her days interviewing healthcare professionals about their experiences with medical equipment.
While the work sharpened her communication skills, it also reinforced what she enjoyed most—connecting with people.
That realization led her into collegiate recruiting, where she discovered a passion for helping individuals build their careers while supporting higher education and lifelong learning.
Wanting to make an even greater impact, Lori transitioned into startup and corporate recruiting, later earning a master's degree in Adult Learning and Development to deepen her ability to develop talent within organizations.
What began in market research ultimately became a career centered on helping people grow and organizations thrive.
Learning From Leaders Who Invest in People
Throughout her career, Lori has been influenced by leaders who believed in investing in others.
One former leader gave her the freedom to be creative while trusting her expertise from the very beginning.
More importantly, she dedicated time to teaching, mentoring, and helping Lori grow professionally.
That relationship continues today, long after they stopped working together, and remains one of Lori's most valued professional connections.
Another leader taught Lori the importance of perspective and empathy.
Rather than simply enforcing policies or making decisions from a distance, she demonstrated how great leaders pause, understand where people are in their journey, and meet them where they are.
Those experiences helped shape Lori's leadership philosophy and reinforced her belief that empathy should remain at the center of human resources and talent acquisition.
Balancing AI With Human Connection
Lori sees AI as a powerful tool for improving recruiting efficiency, particularly by helping recruiters move faster and manage growing candidate volumes.
However, she believes technology should enhance—not replace—the human side of recruiting.
For Lori, resumes represent far more than keywords.
They tell the story of someone's career, experiences, and growth.
She cautions against relying too heavily on automated screening or keyword matching alone, noting that some of the strongest hires she has made came from candidates whose resumes did not immediately stand out.
"You can't judge a book by its cover," she says.
Instead, Lori encourages talent leaders to use AI ethically while preserving the human judgment and relationship-building that remain essential to great hiring.
Advice for Talent Leaders
Lori's leadership philosophy is rooted in empowering others.
She encourages leaders to "send the elevator back down" by helping others grow as they advance in their own careers.
For her, leadership is about remaining connected to people, embracing humanity before technology, and always choosing what is right rather than what is easiest.
She also believes great teams are intentionally built through diverse perspectives and complementary strengths.
No single person should have all the answers.
Instead, leaders should surround themselves with people who think differently and contribute unique skills toward a shared goal.
Perhaps the lesson Lori values most is that careers are rarely linear.
Rather than viewing professional growth as climbing a ladder, she encourages others to think of it as a lattice—filled with sideways moves, unexpected opportunities, and experiences that ultimately prepare them for where they are meant to be.
By combining empathy, lifelong learning, people-first leadership, and thoughtful innovation, Lori Schwartz Noel represents the kind of talent leader helping organizations build stronger teams while keeping humanity at the center of recruiting.
