People-First Recruiting with Carrie Ariniello of Reser’s Fine Foods
When Carrie Ariniello joined Reser’s Fine Foods as their Talent Acquisition Leader, she brought something most TA leaders only develop over decades: a deep understanding of the operations she was hiring for.
From Nurse Staffing Startup to Opening a Hospital
Carrie’s perspective didn’t come from a textbook. She started at a nurse staffing startup that scaled to become the largest agency on the West Coast before being acquired by what is now Cross Country Nursing. From there, she became an Area Manager at Volt Staffing, running enterprise IT and engineering accounts across Idaho and Oregon.
Her most formative chapter came at Kaiser Permanente, where she led TA for a 10,000-plus-employee region and was tapped to open a brand-new hospital, navigating 11 union contracts and filling 260 positions through internal mobility first, then simultaneously recruiting 700-plus external roles.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she said.
A 75-Year Company With a Forward-Thinking TA Team
Reser’s Fine Foods is a family-owned food manufacturer celebrating 75 years in 2025, with roughly 5,000 employees across plants, distribution centers, and a trucking division nationwide. About 80% of the workforce is frontline, which means every hiring decision is personal.
Why the Human Element Is Non-Negotiable
“People are the core of what we do and how we do it. Keeping the people piece of our recruitment process intact is incredibly important.”
Carrie isn’t looking for automation that removes recruiters from the equation. She’s looking for technology that makes recruiters more effective so they can spend more time on the work only humans can do. People-first recruiting incorporates tools and technology to assist recruiters with their day-to-day workflow, not remove the human conversations from the hiring process.
346 Hours of Recruiter Time Saved
Carrie presents TA results to C-level and VP leadership twice a year. The number she led with: since implementing Honeit in July, her team saved 346 hours of recruiter time, roughly 10 hours per week. Hiring managers also get direct access to candidate summaries, skills-based scorecards, and interview soundbites, eliminating the need for redundant phone screens.
“I haven’t even calculated the hiring manager time savings yet,” she said with a laugh.
Elevating Recruiters, Not Replacing Them
Her recruiters conduct the interviews. Honeit handles scheduling, note-taking, and candidate submission. The result: more time for the relationship-building that actually moves hiring forward.
“It gives us the time to do the relationship building that so often we don’t have the time to do.”
When you remove administrative burden, recruiters don’t disappear. They level up.
The Advice She’d Give Any TA Leader
“Never shy away from opportunities that might steer you in a different direction. My operations experience is truly my superpower. I can say to a hiring manager: I know exactly what you’re talking about, and I can say it with empathy.”
Carrie Ariniello is the Talent Acquisition Leader at Reser’s Fine Foods. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
Honeit is the Interview Platform for Recruiting and Hiring Teams. You do the talking. Honeit handles scheduling, call guides, note-taking, and candidate submissions with skills-based scorecards and interview soundbites.
