Starting with a bad hire (that created an opportunity)

Anastasija's first job came through an unusual path. A contact center needed someone who spoke Slovenian, maybe 1% of people in Belgrade have that skill. She aced the interview and thought the job was secured. Then silence. One week, two weeks, nothing. When she finally called back, they told her she wasn't chosen. "I remember I was crying for three days." But then they called again: the referral they'd hired instead didn't actually speak Slovenian. A bad hire created her opportunity. She was 19, and they'd initially rejected her for being "too young, not responsible enough", conclusions they reached without asking her any real questions.

The problem is staying in your loop, not the skills

When asked what separates her from recruiters who don't understand business, Anastasija pushed back on the premise. She's not that different. The real problem is behavior.

"If you are a talent acquisition partner and you don't download financial reports, don't listen to company updates, don't talk to people beyond intake meetings, you're not connecting with what's actually happening."

The best conversations she's had weren't in formal intake meetings, they were more casual chats with teams. Understanding what's really going on is the actual stakeholder management. That's knowing the business, and too many recruiters skip it.

AI won't replace emotional intelligence

Anastasija uses AI daily, but she's clear about what it can't do:

"I don't think AI is going to replace emotional intelligence, stakeholder management, having difficult conversations, understanding the strategy."

Her warning: if your process is already broken, automating it with AI just gives you "automated broken processes." Use AI to help you think better, thumbs up. Use AI to think on your behalf? Then why do you even exist?

The TA function will merge or disappear

In three years, Anastasija sees admin work fully automated. Scheduling, job descriptions, all gone. What remains is candidate experience, stakeholder experience, business acumen, and emotional intelligence. TA partners who can't deliver on those will be absorbed by HR business partners. The silos between talent acquisition and talent management will collapse. Supporting functions will shift toward generalists, not specialists.

"Talent acquisition needs to learn that we are not order takers. You need to use your brain. Showcase what you can bring."

Hiring for potential, not just performance

Her proudest hires? Convincing hiring managers to bet on potential. The key is how you interview. Asking salary expectations in a screening call in 2026? Seriously? Instead, she focuses on situational and behavioral questions. How do people react? How do they present themselves? How do they understand the role?

And then there's gut feeling, something she calls an "unpopular opinion" but stands behind.

"Skills you can teach. Behavior is harder to change. Gut feeling isn't just a feeling, it's based on experience, pattern recognition, the flags you've learned to spot."

Her biggest lesson from wrong hires: focusing too much on leadership performance metrics and not enough on how someone actually leads people.

Employer branding without culture is a trap

One practice Anastasija thinks is complete BS: investing heavily in employer branding while internal culture is broken.

"You are selling something that doesn't exist. People stay 6-12 months, then leave. That's your biggest cost."

The fix isn't better marketing. It's being "business honest" in interviews. Tell candidates what's great and what's broken. Let them decide if it matches their values. Your job isn't filling roles, it's finding the right person for the right role. If people know what they're getting into, they stay. If they don't, they leave.

When Budget gets cut, protect the thinkers.

When asked what she'd defend if budgets were slashed and hiring goals doubled, Anastasija didn't hesitate: protect the people who actually think. The ones who understand business, navigate politics, bring real value. What she'd cut? Manual tasks that only exist because processes are broken. And she'd negotiate, frame cuts as reinvestment, show what the savings can deliver in 2-3 years.

Be bold and own your decisions.

Her advice for new recruiters: don't focus too much on tools or making sure your email templates are perfect. Learn to understand people. Go outside of job descriptions, both the one you have and the ones you're hiring for. Build stakeholder relationships. If you're talking to a CFO, think like a CFO. Be curious. Be bold. Be ready for unpleasant conversations.

"Whatever choice you make, you might regret. Choose the one you'll regret less."

The takeaway

Anastasija's philosophy is simple: recruitment is about humans, and the recruiters who win long-term are the ones who understand the business, not just the requisition. AI will automate the admin, but emotional intelligence, gut feeling backed by experience, and honest conversations about culture, those stay human. The function either becomes truly strategic or gets absorbed. There's no middle ground.