How Workable’s Kathleen Schurman Uses Authenticity and AI to Elevate HR Marketing

In an age where automation dominates marketing headlines, Kathleen Schurman, Marketing Director at Workable, is proving that authenticity and storytelling still come first. Her team’s success lies in staying true to Workable’s roots—user-friendly software for hiring teams of all sizes—while adopting AI tools that amplify creativity and efficiency.

We spoke with Kathleen about moving upmarket, staying grounded in brand values, and how her team’s “scrappy” mindset helps them stand out in the crowded HR tech space.

Q: Workable has been making a strong push into the enterprise space. What has surprised you most about that journey?

Kathleen Schurman

It’s definitely a competitive space, but what’s been pleasantly surprising is that our core strengths—like ease of use—still resonate deeply with larger customers. We expected to overhaul our positioning, but we didn’t have to. Whether you have 10 employees or 10,000, people still want HR and recruiting software that’s intuitive and easy to use. That message lands just as well with enterprise teams as it does with smaller businesses.

We’ve learned that simplicity scales. Even large recruiting teams want software that saves time and removes friction.

Q: How have partnerships played into that strategy?

Kathleen Schurman

Partnerships have been a big focus. We’ve leaned into our strategic partnerships with big players like Indeed and LinkedIn. These aren’t just integrations—they’re true long-term collaborations that create new revenue streams for both sides. Our customers benefit from deeper connections, and we get to co-create value with some of the most influential platforms in our industry.

It’s been a huge credibility driver, especially as we expand our enterprise presence.

Q: What advice would you share with marketers entering a more competitive or mature market?

Kathleen Schurman

Lay the groundwork on branding first. In a crowded space, you can’t assume people know who you are—you have to educate them. Building that awareness takes time and patience, but it makes the selling part much easier down the road. Consistency and visibility matter more than quick wins.

Q: Did you have to make big changes to your marketing technology to support this growth?

Kathleen Schurman

We were about 80% there on the tech side. We made some upgrades—like investing in tools such as ZoomInfo and data enrichment platforms—to strengthen our targeting and analytics. But honestly, it’s been more of a people and process shift than a tech one.

Our deal cycles are longer now, and we’re talking to more decision-makers at each company. That means tailoring messaging to multiple personas and training our team to think more strategically about engagement. It’s been about readiness, not just software.

Q: How are you incorporating AI into your work today?

Kathleen Schurman

AI has become a natural part of our toolkit. I use ChatGPT daily, Gemini for image creation, and I’m a big fan of Profound, which helps with insights and content research. Wistia’s video hosting and creation platform has great tools and we have used them to create different video channels and get really creative. I give them a huge shoutout! 

Many of our existing tools—like HubSpot—have also added AI capabilities, and those enhancements have really streamlined our work.

So the good news it, we’re not replacing our systems; we’re augmenting them. The AI we’re using makes what we already do more efficient and helps us be more creative.

Q: You’ve mentioned authenticity as a major focus. How does that show up in your strategy?

Kathleen Schurman

Authenticity is everything. People connect with real voices—employees, founders, customers. We’ve made it a priority to get those voices involved in our content. Whether it’s a customer story, a thought-leadership piece, or a video, it performs better when it’s genuine.

At the end of the day, storytelling will never go out of style. Even in the AI era, it’s how we build trust.

Key Takeaways

• Keep it simple. Ease of use and clarity still win—especially as teams scale.
• Build the brand first. Awareness and trust are the foundation for long-term growth.
• Use AI as an enhancer. From ChatGPT to HubSpot’s built-in tools, AI is accelerating—not replacing—human creativity.
• Stay authentic. Employee and customer voices make marketing feel real.

Favorite part of the job: 

Seeing authentic storytelling drive engagement

On the Radar Takeaway:

Kathleen Schurman’s approach at Workable proves that “scrappy” marketing doesn’t mean just doing more—it means doing what matters most with precision and heart. By blending AI innovation with human authenticity, her team keeps things simple, scalable, and smart.

Want to explore how your brand can use AI to tell better stories and scale smarter? Reach out to the REQ team—we’ll help you get started.