---
title: MaryAnn Pelland of Citizens Bank Speaks to Erin Peterson on Big Fish in the Talent Pool
description: MaryAnne studied biology, intending to be a doctor, but morphed her passion for helping others into an early career in staffing scientific talent, then insurance, then Citizens Bank - where she’s been making a difference for 17 years. 
image: https://blog.rpoassociation.org/hubfs/images/Ep%2036%20Blog%20Image.png
---

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# MaryAnn Pelland of Citizens Bank Speaks to Erin Peterson on Big Fish in the Talent Pool

by [Guest](https://blog.rpoassociation.org/blog/author/guest) Thu, Jun 24, 2021 ** Share [**](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://blog.rpoassociation.org/blog/maryann-pelland-of-citizens-bank-speaks-to-erin-peterson-on-big-fish-in-the-talent-pool) [**](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://blog.rpoassociation.org/blog/maryann-pelland-of-citizens-bank-speaks-to-erin-peterson-on-big-fish-in-the-talent-pool&text=) [**](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://blog.rpoassociation.org/blog/maryann-pelland-of-citizens-bank-speaks-to-erin-peterson-on-big-fish-in-the-talent-pool&title=&summary=&source=)

![Ep 36 Blog Image](https://blog.rpoassociation.org/hs-fs/hubfs/images/Ep%2036%20Blog%20Image.png?width=800&name=Ep%2036%20Blog%20Image.png)

Contagious passion, gratitude and optimism for the future of Talent Acquisition characterize my discussion with [**MaryAnne Pelland**](https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryanne-pelland-b34b0a1/)**, Citizens Bank’s Head of TA** **Strategy and Services**, in ***Episode 36 of the Big Fish in the Talent Pool Podcast***. 

I'm always interested in why TA Leaders decided to specialize in Recruiting, which is the challenging mix of creative + transactional HR skills.  Interestingly, MaryAnne studied biology, intending to be a doctor, but morphed her passion for helping others into an early career in staffing scientific talent, then insurance, then Citizens Bank - where she’s been making a difference for 17 years. 

In addition to her early experiences that formed her bold approach to leadership, we talked about all that MaryAnne's team is innovating around customer empathy, diversity/equity/inclusion, and candidate experience.  Skeptics of AI driven candidate engagement and skills matching software will want to listen closely to the well-thought-out use cases [Citizens Bank](https://jobs.citizensbank.com/why-work-with-us) has constructed to essentially transform the candidate experience with TA technology.   Equally inventive is Citizen’s approach to retraining and repurposing branch banking employees during the pandemic! MaryAnne bakes practicality and fresh thinking into a progressive and fascinating TA model. 

On taking calculated risks to innovate, MaryAnne wisely says: “In every opportunity (and outcome), good or bad, you should reflect and think about what you gained from it. Sometimes that gain is *what not to do,* but sometimes it is just recognizing that you *pushed yourself* to do the hard and scary things."  And all that leads to progress!

Be sure to look for the "Easter Egg" in this Big Fish conversation from a surprise (four legged) guest!

Recruitment Process Outsourcing Association (RPOA) is the proud sponsor of Big Fish in the Talent Pool podcast. Rated in the top 10 of Select Software Review’s 100 Top HR and Recruiting Podcasts, Big Fish in the Talent Pool is hosted by [Erin McDermott Peterson](http://www.people-results.com/team-members/erin-peterson/), a Partner with [PeopleResults](https://www.people-results.com/) and a former Global Head of Talent Acquisition and RPO General Manager. She interviews Global Leaders in Talent Acquisition about the joys and challenges of TA Leadership.

[Big Fish in the Talent Pool](https://blog.rpoassociation.org/blog/topic/big-fish-in-the-talent-pool)

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