The RAG Podcast - Recruitment Agency Growth Podcast

On this week's episode of The RAG Podcast, I was joined by Toni, the Managing Director of Digital Gurus, a specialist Tech & Digital recruiter with 66 staff across offices in Manchester, London, Bristol and Birmingham.Toni joined the business as a Senior Consultant 11 years ago. She’d had a successful career in recruitment in Leeds and fancied a change of company and city.Little did she know when she arrived in Manchester that she would end up managing the whole business!In this episode we discussed how she: Entered the industry because she knew that earning money was the top priority for her after university. Moved to ReThink Group (DG) and settled in ManchesterTook on a leadership role and realised that she loved the challenge more than being an individual billerNearly quit to go travelling but was offered the chance to take DG to Manchester and changed her mindHas grown into the MD and had 2 children in the same periodMaintains her family as her priority and is focused on finding a great balance between home and work lifeIs taking the whole of August off work to travel with her kids during the summer!An inspirational female business leader, we need more examples like Toni to make a positive change in our male dominated industry!Sponsor: Looking for a way to grow your recruitment business in 2022? Talent Ticker is here to help.More than 300 recruitment agencies are using Talent Ticker to automate their recruiters’ most monotonous tasks, help them predict who will be hiring 3 months in advance, and provide simple tools to identify ideal passive and active candidates to pitch for open roles.Learn more at get.talentticker.ai/hoxo and take advantage of their special offer for our listeners.

On this week’s episode, I was joined by Kyle Winterbottom, the Founder of Orbition Group, a specialist Data & Analytics recruitment agency with 10 staff based in Manchester.Kyle first came on The RAG Podcast in November 2020 when his agency was less than 3 months old. Kyle was a member of the Hoxo Academy back then and was beginning to win business using his daily Linkedin content in addition to his marketing events and podcast that he was already running.In 18 months, he has managed to grow the business to a team of 10 and can track 100% of the revenue back to his brand!In this episode, we discussed: The growth from recruiting in his mother-in-law’s back bedroom to a swanky city centre officeHow his brand has brought in global retainers and multi-hire projects Being the first recruiter to ever be selected in the ‘Data IQ 100 Most Influential People in Data 2022’The reality of personally earning less than during his agency career due to reinvestment and cash flow issuesSome super low moments he experienced over the past 6 months and is grateful for the support of his coach and his wife when times get toughKyle is a down-to-earth guy who is doing some amazing things with his brand right now. Plenty of established businesses should listen to this episode to learn how he leverages his brand to win bigger projects!VincereIf you're following Vincere’s LinkedIn page, you'll notice that they’ve been sharing stories from their customer community on a weekly basis.If you're shopping for a CRM or wondering if there's something better out there, check out Vincere. They have a library of customer stories from all sectors and recruitment types, be it perm, exec, contract and temp, available on Youtube: https://bit.ly/3uYdZM7

On this week's episode of The RAG Podcast, I was joined by Lawrence & Elliot, the founders of Arto Recruitment, a specialist life science recruitment agency. The business is headquartered in Canterbury, Kent and expanded to more than 23 staff in just over 2 years of existence during the pandemic!Lawrence and Elliot have been best mates since they were 3 years old! Their story is one of real trust, ambition and friendship.People say to never go into business with friends, but these guys are proving it can work.I met Lawrence at a property development course in 2017 and we have been friends ever since - I am so happy to bring him and Elliot onto the show!In this episode they discuss how they: - Grew up together and never spent any time apart - Started in recruitment and both flew up the ranks at Phaidon International- Decided to move back to Kent and commute 2 hours each way to London daily- Kicked off Arto a month before Covid-19 happened and what life was like for them- Had to work in UK perm when their whole experience was in EU contract recruitment- Hit £1m GP and bought sports cars to celebrate- Plan to grow in the UK and the USA to begin with!Don’t miss this conversation with two friends of mine who I am convinced are building a real powerhouse recruitment agency for the future. Enjoy!!

On this week’s episode, I was joined by Matthew Baird, the Founder of Baird & Co Recruitment, which is part of District4. Matt has been in recruitment since 2012 and has worked for a number of agencies recruiting into the social housing sector.During the pandemic, he became disillusioned with working for other people, and at a time of real uncertainty he made the bold and scary decision to start up alone…However, he didn’t have the finances or the knowledge to manage all areas of the start-up process, so he decided to partner with our sponsor District4. In this episode, we discussed the reality of his first 16 months as a business owner, which have included a number of highs and lows.Most notably, I found out that:His first deal happened within 3 weeks and was his largest EVER deal!He took his foot off the gas during the summer as things were going well, which began to bite him in Q3 when sales dried up and he made no deals for 2 months!He worked with his District4 coach to build a robust plan that works for him to drive successful outcomes dailyMatt is another great example of what it takes to thrive in today’s recruitment start-up community. If you would like to speak to Matt directly about his story or D4, then feel free to contact him directly via LinkedIn!VincereIf you're following Vincere’s LinkedIn page, you'll notice that they’ve been sharing stories from their customer community on a weekly basis.If you're shopping for a CRM or wondering if there's something better out there, check out Vincere. They have a library of customer stories from all sectors and recruitment types, be it perm, exec, contract and temp, available on Youtube.

On this week's episode of The RAG Podcast, I was joined by Jamie & Tony, the founders of The Just Group, a specialist group of construction recruitment brands headquartered in Bromley, Kent with 24 staff which launched in 2012.Jamie & Tony launched the business with a 3rd partner Alan, and up until the pandemic things were going great! However, Covid hit the business for six and they quickly dropped to 6 staff and had to re-evaluate everything. In this episode they discuss how they: Dealt with the pandemic and questioned their business directionParted ways with Alan, their business partner, due to a conflictTook out a huge loan to keep the business alive and support their peopleWent back into lockdown in Jan 2021, which brought huge fear and anxietyChanged the business completely and have grown to their biggest ever since this timeWant to enjoy the journey and enjoy life whilst building the business sustainably They’re great guys with a genuine story of ups and downs, I’m sure we can all relate to their journey!Sponsor: Looking for a way to grow your recruitment business in 2022? Talent Ticker is here to help.More than 300 recruitment agencies are using Talent Ticker to automate their recruiters’ most monotonous tasks, help them predict who will be hiring 3 months in advance, and provide simple tools to identify ideal passive and active candidates to pitch for open roles.Learn more at get.talentticker.ai/hoxo and take advantage of their special offer for our listeners.

On this week’s episode, I was joined by Anthony Webster, the MD of DVF recruitment and Board Member of Career Legal Group - which has several recruitment entities in London with a collective staff of 50 people. Anthony was my colleague for almost 5 years and is also a true friend.Anthony, alongside Amar and I, was originally going to be a founder of Hoxo - the recruitment agency - in 2017. However, in late 2016 he decided to pull out after lengthy discussions and realising he could not commit to this whilst he had other things to achieve.What I didn’t realise was that Ant was in fact ready to come out as gay to the world. This included his family, friends and colleaguesIn this episode, we discussed the reality of his journey both growing up and working in recruitment whilst hiding his true self.5 years on from coming out and he is a much happier person! Super successful as always, he is living a life that is 100% authentic and it is clear to see.June is Pride Month and both Ant and I wanted to share this story to raise awareness and help others!If you would like to speak to Ant directly about his story or D&I in the workplace then feel free to contact him directly via LinkedIn!VincereIf you're following Vincere on their LinkedIn page, you'll notice that they’ve been sharing stories from their customer community on a weekly basis.If you're shopping for a CRM or wondering if there's something better out there. Check out Vincere. They have a library of customer stories from all sectors and recruitment types, perm, exec, contract and temp, available on YoutubeDistrict4:Do you feel like you’re not surrounded by peers and you’ve stopped learning? Imagine only working alongside other experienced recruiters who you can really collaborate with, while having the freedom to do work your way. If you’re thinking of a change, check out District4, where you can launch your own business and not be alone!Visit www.district4.io/hoxo to see what they can do for you.

On this week's episode of The RAG Podcast, I was joined by Jez Heard, the founder of Scale-Genesis, a specialist Blockchain & Crypto recruitment agency launched in November 2021Jez is a 24 -year old lad from South Wales who is direct and honest! He only started in Recruitment in 2020 during the pandemic, and within less than 1 year decided to set up his own businessHe worked 14-hour days, 7 days a weekHe researched Blockchain and Crypto every single dayHe built his personal brand on LinkedIn In 6 months he has Billed £500k+Hired 6 recruiters Built a personal brand reaching over 250k views a month across the recruitment industry which has helped him hire ALL his consultants and brought in 5 deals worth £100kJez is young, ambitious and probably a bit crazy - but it’s working!An episode not to be missed,  if you would like to speak to Jez about his story then you can contact him directly on Linkedin!Sponsor: Looking for a way to grow your recruitment business in 2022? Talent Ticker is here to help.More than 300 recruitment agencies are using Talent Ticker to automate their recruiters’ most monotonous tasks, help them predict who will be hiring 3 months in advance, and provide simple tools to identify ideal passive and active candidates to pitch for open roles.Learn more at get.talentticker.ai/hoxo and take advantage of their special offer for our listeners.

On today’s episode I was joined by Nader Beshara, the CoFounder and Director of Ingham Jones a start up financial services, risk, technology and compliance global recruitment search firm with 10 people headquartered in Brighton UK.Nader has been an avid listener of The RAG and I was delighted to hear that listening to the show has helped him a lot since launching in November 2020.We discussed the reality of his journey since launching during the pandemic and here are a few highlights- Launching in covid was an amazing time to do it as he was literally missing out on NOTHING in life whilst working all hours he could- He and Jermaine his business partner hit their annual target inside 12 months- He has loved the entrepreneurial experience to date and would recommend it to any recruiter whos questioning their plan right now- He is growing but stressed that it will be at their own pace and they won’t try and follow the ‘growth crowd’ that we see in our sectorSuper honest and genuine, Nader is a recent and relevant example of what is possible with the right attitude as a start up recruitment founder!

On this week's episode of The RAG Podcast I was joined by Harry Bigwood and Rex Rusling.Along with Ben Leeson, these guys founded The Rec Hub at the end of 2018 originally as a contingent agency.Soon they decided to flip the model to become an “Embedded Talent Partner” to Tech start & scale ups and have since grown to 50 people!In this episode we break down their decision to change the model and how this has helped them grow (it hasn’t been easy, I can assure you).We also talk about the philosophy of growing the business as they all believe that focusing on your staff being HAPPY first leads to success. Not the other way around!Have you worked in an agency where people believe that once they hit targets they will be happy? I think we all have.. These guys are challenging that notion and I love it!Young, ambitious and innovative founders, these guys are a true reflection of all I love about this industry!If you would like to speak to Harry or Rex about their story then you can contact them directly on Linkedin! Sponsor: Looking for a way to grow your recruitment business in 2022? Talent Ticker is here to help.More than 300 recruitment agencies are using Talent Ticker to automate their recruiters’ most monotonous tasks, help them predict who will be hiring 3 months in advance, and provide simple tools to identify ideal passive and active candidates to pitch for open roles.Learn more at get.talentticker.ai/hoxo and take advantage of their special offer for our listeners.

On today’s episode I was joined by Matthew Eames, the Founder and CEO of Eames Group, a global insurance and financial services recruitment agency with circa 140 people across UK, EU, Asia and now the USAMatthew was a guest on The RAG in Feb 2019 and whilst the business was a similar size back then, things were very different. Most notably:- Matt was not the CEO at the time and spent 50% of his time externally facing in business development and exec search- The business operated 5 days a week in the office- Matthew personally had a 3-hour daily commute Now approaching the 20-year anniversary of the business, Matt is again the CEO and more excited about the growth journey than ever.Whilst grand exit plans seem to be on the agenda for most owners in our industry, Matthew proves that you may enjoy the role too much to want to step away any time soon!VincereIf you're following Vincere on their LinkedIn page, you'll notice that they’ve been sharing stories from their customer community on a weekly basis.If you're shopping for a CRM or wondering if there's something better out there. Check out Vincere. They have a library of customer stories from all sectors and recruitment types, perm, exec, contract and temp, available on Youtube: https://bit.ly/3wFYad3District4Do you feel like you’re not surrounded by peers and you’ve stopped learning? Imagine only working alongside other experienced recruiters who you can really collaborate with, while having the freedom to do work your way. If you’re thinking of a change, check out District4, where you can launch your own business and not be alone!Visit www.district4.io/hoxo to see what they can do for you.