Alecia K. Gunn, CDR, CIR, PRC
Alecia Gunn has built an impressive career in talent acquisition and human resources by combining strategic recruiting expertise with a passion for supporting mission-driven organizations. She began her career in human resources in 2021 as a recruiter with Milwaukee Tool, where she quickly distinguished herself through her leadership, organization, and ability to build strong candidate relationships, earning a promotion within just five months. In 2022, she joined St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, where she has continued to advance her career and was promoted to Talent Acquisition Advisor in 2023.
In her current role at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Alecia specializes in recruiting scientists and researchers across highly specialized fields including hematology, neurobiology, genomics, pharmaceutical sciences, pathology, imaging sciences, and translational neuroscience. She collaborates closely with hiring leaders, compensation teams, and immigration experts to attract world-class talent from across the globe while ensuring an exceptional candidate experience throughout the hiring process. Known for her consultative approach, she also trains faculty and leadership teams on interviewing best practices and strategic hiring processes. In addition to her work in talent acquisition, Alecia serves as Vice Chair of Empower, the hospital’s Women and Allies Resource Group, and is also an adjunct professor, reflecting her dedication to mentorship, education, and professional development.
Alecia’s professional philosophy is rooted in service, honesty, integrity, discipline, and excellence. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in education from University of Mississippi and earned her MBA with a concentration in human resources from Belhaven University. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Business Administration degree with a concentration in human resources and expects to complete her doctorate in 2026. Through her leadership, recruiting expertise, and commitment to helping others grow, Alecia continues to make a meaningful impact both within healthcare research and the broader professional community.
• Human Resources Management Certificate
• AIRS Certified Diversity and Inclusion Recruiter
• AIRS Certified Internet Recruiter
• AIRS Professional Recruiter Certification
• University of Mississippi- Bachelor's
• Belhaven University- M.B.A.
• Society of Collegiate Leadership and Achievement
• Vice Chair of Women and Allies Resource Group called Empower at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• LeapFrog
• M Partner Community Day
• Big Event
What do you attribute your success to?
My success stems from my relationship with God. I'm a religious person, so that's foundational for me. I also give a lot of credit to my team, which is my village and my supporters, and my leadership team. They're very supportive in my day-to-day work, so I really attribute my success to my relationship with God, my team, and the leadership team.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received has been very simple: your attitude determines your altitude. That advice goes to my attitude towards how I approach my work, how I approach candidates, hiring leaders, staff, and prospect networking. It determines how successful the outcome will be, whether it's hiring someone, getting someone connected to the right person, or just getting things done in an efficient and productive manner. I think approaching a lot of my work starts with a positive attitude. It starts with warmness and welcoming when it comes to people, so that's the best advice and what I take along every day.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say approach this field with curiosity and confidence. It's ever-changing and ever-evolving, just like any industry or role. I will always say approach, especially HR, when you're dealing with people, because people is one of the most challenging tasks at hand. So I would definitely say be curious, be confident, be willing to change and adapt, and continue to pour into your toolbox and your knowledge. Be willing to grow. That's some of my top advice. I have so much more that I can give, but those are the things that come off the top of my head.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I would say change management is the biggest challenge in recruiting. That consists of a lot of things. For example, with the Trump administration, we have to change and pivot how we recruit and source talent from different countries, because we can't pay $100,000 for a visa to hire a scientist. So we have to change how we recruit, what we recruit, and look at other positions we can recruit them into. AI is on the rise, so we're changing how we interview, how we screen, how we interact with candidates, and how we utilize AI. And then there's continuous improvement, looking at ways to be more efficient and productive. Recruiting is an ABC123 job, it's very easy, but when you have to stay afloat and stay up to date on the latest technology and things like that, it could help or hurt.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
First, honesty is huge for me. Honesty is about establishing trust amongst your internal and external stakeholders. I also value integrity highly. I approach everyone and everything with love, because it goes into the fruits of the Spirit, and it goes into how I interact, behave, and act. I hold that as a high standard, treating everyone how I want to be treated. Fairness is also important to me. Honesty, love, and fairness are all intertwined with each other. I also value discipline and structure. I believe those go hand-in-hand. I value structure, not things that are chaotic and all over the place. We've got to have some type of organization, and not just go with the flow. And I love excellence too. I love doing things with excellence. If I can't do it with 100%, it's going to be close to 100%. I value giving or approaching things with excellence, and I guess it speaks to my performance and how I've been promoted in short periods of time.