Maine’s Pioneering Approach to Talent Attraction

At a time when “talent attraction” wasn’t yet an industry, a non-profit in Maine took a leap of faith that sparked a movement.  

On this episode of Talent Wars, host Patience Fairbrother sits down with Katie Shorey, Director of Engagement at Live + Work in Maine—the first employer-led talent attraction initiative in the country—to unpack how a scrappy statewide effort grew into a national model. 

Launched in 2015, Live + Work in Maine started with a simple message: you don’t have to leave Maine to build a great career. Today, their grassroots tactics—from guerrilla marketing and airport takeovers to boomerang swag drops and bold employer partnerships—are delivering real results, including outperforming LinkedIn and Indeed for one of the state’s largest health systems. 

Listen in to learn: 

• How Maine turned its image as a vacationland into a long-term talent attraction asset 

• Why an employer-led model gave the campaign both staying power and strategic independence 

• How Live + Work in Maine used authentic marketing and regional partnerships to build a statewide funnel for talent 

• What other states can learn about measuring ROI and building community from the ground up 

If you’re launching or evolving a talent attraction initiative, the Live + Work in Maine story offers a roadmap for starting small, scaling smart and keeping authenticity at the center of your efforts. 

Listen and subscribe to Talent Wars on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. To submit guest or episode topic ideas, email patience.fairbrother@aboutdci.com.