OM DENNE EPISODE
From Textile Engineer to Boutique Recruiter: Ben’s Better Than Found Story, Melanoma Wake-Up Call & How AI Is Changing Hiring
Ben, president and CEO of Better Than Found, explains how he moved from textile and industrial engineering into starting a recruiting business after being fired in May 2014, then learning he had stage 3A melanoma, undergoing two surgeries, and becoming cancer-free by July 2014. He describes how emergency savings enabled the leap, how a recruiter mentor introduced a relationship-based “pull” approach to targeted headhunting, and why his firm prioritizes consultative due diligence with companies and candidates over transactional, high-volume recruiting. The conversation covers market uncertainty from elections, tariffs, consolidations, and current talent supply, plus AI’s impact on recruiting—especially commoditizing administrative and transactional work—while emphasizing the enduring value of human judgment, leadership quality, and authenticity in hiring. Ben also discusses working with his wife on finances, family priorities, and his guiding quote from his father.
