Hiring Is Hard Right Now. Here Is What Still Works.
Chris Sund is a labor shortage speaker who sees the problem from the hiring side every day. He runs one of the largest healthcare staffing organizations in the country, where finding, hiring and keeping people is the whole business, and he brings what his teams have learned about recruiting, retention and employer brand to conferences and company meetings in any industry that is short on people.
Why Hear About the Labor Shortage From a Staffing Executive?
When a hospital cannot fill a nursing shift or a clinic is short a therapist, the call often comes to a staffing company. That puts Chris in an unusual seat. His organization competes for scarce candidates every single day, in one of the tightest labor markets there is, and the only way it grows is by being the place good people would rather work.
So his sessions are not a tour of national charts. They are about the decisions an employer controls: how fast you respond to an applicant, what your company sounds like from the outside, who you are willing to consider, and what makes someone stay once they are in the door. Those choices work the same way whether the open role is a nurse, a driver, a lineworker or a customer service rep.
Recruiting
Speed to contact, referrals that actually happen, and job posts written for the person you want to hire.
Retention
The first ninety days, the supervisor relationship, and the reasons good people leave quietly.
Employer Brand
Becoming the company people tell their friends about, the core of Winning the Talent Battle.
Hiring for Traits
Looking past the resume to the character that predicts who will grow into the job.
Hiring for Traits Over Experience
One of the stories Chris tells most often is about a recruiter he hired whose past work had nothing to do with the role. On paper it did not make much sense. In the interview, though, the man was humble, driven, emotionally intelligent and honest in a way that was hard to miss, so Chris took the chance. The team trained him on the job, he took to it quickly, and before long he was winning top producer awards.
That hire changed how Chris interviews. Skills can be taught in weeks, but humility, drive, emotional intelligence and integrity are much harder to build in someone. So he asks every candidate the same question: “What’s the hardest thing you’ve done in your life?” The answer tells him more about how a person handles difficulty than any job title on a resume, and in a shortage it opens the door to people other employers overlook.
- Widen the pool. Career changers, people without degrees and people with unusual paths, judged on who they are rather than where they have been.
- Ask a better question. Interview questions that surface grit and character, not rehearsed answers.
- Train with intent. A first-month plan that turns a trait-based hire into a confident performer.
- Keep the ones you build. Recognition and visible next steps, so people grow with you instead of leaving.
Proof From Recruiting and Staffing Stages
Chris speaks to the people who live with the shortage every day: healthcare recruiters at NAHCR, staffing leaders at TalentTrack and California Staffing and Recruiting, and HR leaders at DisruptHR. He also presented Winning the Talent Battle: How to Build a Magnetic Brand for NAHCR members.
Chris consistently brings a wealth of knowledge, insight, and practical advice to every presentation. At our NAHCR Conference he led two impactful sessions, acknowledged the real challenges we face, and shared valuable strategies. His deep understanding of our audience and commitment to the profession elevate the value he brings to every engagement.
I’ve heard Chris present several times. His topics are well researched, his presentation style has a good flow, and he weaves in practical tips and real-life examples that make the discussion realistic and relatable. We would love to have him present again.
Chris would be an incredible addition to any live audience. I’ve had the privilege of seeing Chris speak a few times now, including at our company’s Sales Kickoff in front of 800+ people — which he crushed. Each time he finds a unique way to connect with his audience on both a personal and professional level, keeping everyone engaged and attentive.
Programs for Employers Facing a Talent Shortage
Every program is shaped around your industry and the roles your members find hardest to fill.
Winning the Talent Battle
Recruiting and employer brand: how to become the place people want to work when every employer is hiring.
Employee Retention
Why good people leave and the supervisor habits that keep them.
You Are Capable of a Better Culture
The SPARK framework for a culture that does half of your recruiting for you.
You Are Capable of More: Leadership
For managers who will train and develop the trait-based hires.
Take Back Your Time with AI
Practical AI for job posts, outreach and follow-up, so short-staffed teams get hours back.
Formats
Each program runs as a keynote, a breakout, a half-day workshop or a full-day workshop, delivered in person.
Keynote
A general session on what still works in a tight labor market, with stories from the hiring side.
Breakout
A focused session for recruiters, HR teams or hiring managers, with time for their questions.
Half Day
The keynote plus working time, where teams rewrite a job post and redesign their first ninety days.
Full Day
A full day for a leadership team to rebuild recruiting, onboarding and retention together.
Who Books This Session
Related pages: Recruiting & Talent Acquisition Speaker · Employee Retention Speaker · Staffing Industry Keynote Speaker
What Planners Ask About a Labor Shortage Keynote
Why book a staffing executive to speak about the labor shortage?
Because recruiting and keeping people is his company’s entire business. Chris runs one of the largest healthcare staffing organizations in the country, so he sees the shortage from the hiring side every day and teaches what his teams do to win candidates and keep them.
Does the session apply outside healthcare?
Yes. The practices are about recruiting speed, employer brand, hiring for traits and keeping people through the first year, and they work the same way for contractors, manufacturers, carriers, banks and associations. Chris tailors examples to your industry.
What is Winning the Talent Battle?
It is his recruiting and employer brand program. It covers how to become the company people want to work for, how to reach candidates before competitors do, and how to turn your current employees into your best source of referrals.
Can attendees earn continuing education credit?
Yes, and it has been done before. His sessions have been approved for CE credit at past conferences. The host association handles the CE application with its accrediting body.
What formats are available?
A keynote, a breakout, a half-day workshop or a full-day workshop, all in person. A common pairing is a general-session keynote followed by a working session for recruiters or hiring managers.
You Are Capable of More
The bestselling book behind the keynote, and the winner of the How-To category at the 2026 Paris Book Festival. Its ten principles are about closing the distance between what people are doing today and what they are capable of, which is exactly the bet an employer makes on a trait-based hire.
Hosts often give each attendee a copy, so hiring managers leave with something to keep on the desk and hand to the next person they decide to take a chance on.
He Recruits and Keeps People for a Living
Chris is President & COO of Uniti Med and GQR Healthcare and COO of Nebula, an AI talent sourcing company. He helped grow Uniti Med 10x in revenue in two years, which placed it #3 on the Inc. Regionals list of the fastest-growing companies in the Midwest and earned a Fortune Best Workplaces award.
He has spent the past decade in healthcare staffing, chairs the Membership Committee for NAHCR (National Association of Health Care Recruiters) and serves as Vice President of the NATHO Board of Directors.
He is the bestselling author of You Are Capable of More, a Maxwell Leadership Certified coach, and he writes for Forbes and Inc.
Stages I Have Spoken On
Where Recruiting and HR Audiences Hear Chris
Recruiting, staffing and HR stages where Winning the Talent Battle was built and tested.
NAHCRHealthcare recruitersTalentTrackStaffing industryCalifornia Staffing & Recruiting ProfessionalsStaffing industryDisruptHR OmahaOmaha, NEDisruptHR Kansas CityKansas CityGreater Omaha Chamber POWER ConferenceOmaha, NEAlso: How to Recruit Skilled Trades Workers · Workforce Development Speaker · All Industries · See all speaking engagements →
Bring Chris to Your Conference or Leadership Meeting
Tell Chris which roles your members are struggling to fill, who will be in the room and the format you are considering. You’ll get a quick, honest answer on fit and availability.
Check Availability & FeesResponse within one business day · Speaker kit, bio & headshots