Recruitment, Training, Bullhorn, Automation, AI, Analytics Tips

Vodcast: Is AI Recruitment's Superpower, Or Its Blind Spot?

Is Recruitment AI the Superpower Everyone's Raving About? Or Are You Missing Something Obvious?I recently caught up with George Whalley from Bullhorn for the latest in my recruitment leaders' vodcast series. AI, automation, cost reduction, compassionate recruitment, manual work, and dogs, were the topics.George's day job is bringing net new clients onto Bullhorn and then, unusually, staying on as their account manager afterwards. So unlike a lot of people selling you tech, he actually has to live with the consequences of what he sells you. That makes him worth listening to.We had 22 minutes to talk about the reality of AI in recruitment and what recruitment leaders need to factor into growing their businesses with this vital tech.💰 Your data is your superpower, so stop buying more of itHow is AI (and automation) actually impacting recruitment right now?George's answer was basically - not as much as it should be. Why? Because recruiters are only using it for the boring bit (generating text) and ignoring it to help them monetise the data goldmine already sat in their own Bullhorn.Anyone can scrape LinkedIn.Anyone can buy the same 100,000 candidates as their competitor.That's cold data.Anyone can use AI to find and clean data - but don't get blindsided. It's what you do with it that counts!What George calls your actual superpower is the stuff already living in your notes and conversations that never made it into a proper field, that you can use AI to "power up" your pipeline.Recruiters are "crawling over warm data on their Bullhorn to get to cold data outside of Bullhorn". Sounds mad when you say it like that, doesn't it? But that's most agencies right now.What's the fix? (Watch the video to find out!)👇🧠 What can humans actually do that AI can't?This was George's favourite question and I can see why.His answer was blunt - AI can do a LOT to save time and costs, and drive process, but AI can't put a suit on and sit in a room with a client.It can't understand the stuff that actually matters more than the business on paper. We chatted about why 40% of consultants have left the industry in the last 18 months.Not because they were bad at their jobs.Because recruitment stopped needing what they were good at, and started needing something they'd never had to be good at before. Then George said something that's been rattling round my head all week - is AI really dehumanising recruitment, or is it de-manualising it?Humans = manual. Really? Is that as good as it gets?Watch the video 👇for more insights on how to de-manualise your recruitment process and do what only humans can do!🐕 Are you using tech to do what your website says you do?(And what has that got to do with your dog's God complex?)We chatted about the open secret in recruitment: what recruiters say they do - and what they really do - often poles apart. Too much data, and too little process makes for a lack of productivity and ultimately profit.It also makes for a very expensive tech stack, which leaves the average recruitment leader wondering why they need to spend so much money on tech just to stand still.What did George suggest you need to do to manage the threat and opportunity? Watch the video to find out...👇My recruitment leaders' vodcast with George is a cute 22minutes long. Grab a coffee and get watching!Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI ROIWe are Bullhorn experts obsessed with how recruiters can increase sales, reduce costs, speed up sourcing, and improve productivity.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
The One Bullhorn Habit That's Silently Bleeding You of Fees and Sales

While you've moved on from that lost job, your competitor hasn't and it's costing you £$€thousands.Here's the Bullhorn follow-up process most recruitment leaders are missing...I've watched it happen at desk after desk, recruitment business after recruitment business.Lost a job, hung up the phone, and thought "right, next." Never gave it another thought. I see recruiters doing exactly the same thing today.Lost that job?Placed somewhere else?Move on.Exit stage right, never to speak to that client again. It's the most natural reaction in the world. Nobody wants to dwell on a loss. But if you're leading a recruitment business, this reflex is likely costing you money you don't even know you're missing.Are your recruiters tenacious enough to be in the wings for an inevitable rekindling of that sale? 🤔The recruitment stat that stopped me in my tracks One in five candidates are unhappy in their new role within a few months of starting. Think about your own rebate numbers. What's the average in your business?Now think about how many of those unhappy candidates you're still talking to when that unhappiness kicks in. For most recruitment businesses I work with, the answer is "not enough". Somewhere in your Bullhorn database right now, there are candidates who took a job through a competitor, or through the client going direct, and they're already regretting it.The consultant who lost that job has probably moved on too. There's a door sitting wide open. Nobody's walking through it. 🤨 Leaving the sales process to the candidate and client isn't a great strategy Here's the bit people miss. When you lose a job, it doesn't just go to another candidate. Sometimes the client hires through a competitor. Sometimes they go direct. Either way, that placement can go wrong too. So the follow-up process shouldn't stop at the candidate.Building in a reason to check back with the client as well could be a simple trick to re-engaging the lead!Did the hire work out?How's it going?Are they still happy they went that route?(So satisfying when you can think "I told you so!) You're not gloating.You're just staying visible, staying warm, and staying front of mind - that's sales!Because if it hasn't worked out, you want to be the first call they make, not the fifth. Be ready to let them fall straight back into your arms. 🫡This is a leadership problem, not a recruitment consultant problem Here's the bit that matters if you're the one running the business. You can't fix this by hoping your team remembers.You fix it by building a process, and making it part of how your business operates: Close jobs properly. Status set correctly, every time. It's one field, and it's the one that gets left by the wayside. Everything downstream depends on it. Set the cadence, both sides. Know when the successful candidate started, then touch base with the candidate *and* the client at one, three, six and twelve months. Assign ownership. Is this account management or BD? Decide, and make someone accountable. If it belongs to everyone, it belongs to no one. That's a strategy decision. It's not something you leave a busy consultant to remember off the back of a good night's sleep.Hope is not a strategy (or a process!) 💪Bullhorn already has what you need Bullhorn wasn't built to be an admin system. It was built to be a relationship management system, and this is a perfect example of it doing its job properly. Automation can nudge and notify your team the moment a lost job hits a follow-up milestone. Nobody has to remember anything. Analytics can report on lost jobs across the whole business. How many, which clients, whether contact was actually made. What do you have set up currently, and:Is it fit for purpose?Is it actually being used?Do you have full visibility over what it's reporting on and whether or not your team are actually adopting this process and delivering on it? Ask yourself: how watertight is this sales process for your business. Is it delivering results?😇 The relationship didn't end - the job did That's the mindset shift for anyone leading a recruitment team.Losing a job isn't the end of a relationship. It's a trigger telling you exactly when to check back in. Get this nailed at a leadership level, build it into the process rather than hoping it happens, and Bullhorn will quietly hand you rebates and repeat business you'd otherwise never see. --- More BD Tips?This was one of five tips from our Bullhorn Power Series webinar on using your ATS, automation and analytics to drive business development.Catch the other four, and watch the full sessionWATCH THE BULLHORN FOR BD TIPS WEBINARBullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI ROIWe are Bullhorn experts obsessed with how recruiters can increase sales, reduce costs, speed up sourcing, and improve productivity.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
How Can Recruiters Place More Candidates Quicker?

How Can Recruiters Place More Candidates Quicker?I've been in recruitment since 2000 and spent a good chunk of that time helping recruitment businesses do what we call "Bullhorn1st" - automating their sourcing, screening, sales, and placements.Along the way I've picked up a fair bit about data, automation, AI, and what actually makes a recruitment process profitable.Here's what still holds true, and what's changed.1. 📊 Too Much Recruitment Data, Not Enough PipelineMost recruiters have plenty of data. Often too much.They're sourcing it, buying it, scraping it, storing it - but not turning it into fees. A lot of it sits in systems outside the CRM, which just creates lag, cost, and risk.Data only has value if you actually do something with it. Candidate applications and client leads go cold fast if you don't get to them quickly.Most recruiters are trying to manage far more records than they can realistically keep on top of. There's a reason Dunbar's number keeps coming up in this conversation - people can only maintain so many real relationships at once.Get real about what you can actually manage, and focus there.2. 📱 All the Gear, No IdeaPlenty of recruiters still aren't showing up with any confidence in the channels where their candidates and clients actually spend time. Candidates expect more than phone and email now, and that gap has only got wider.The default response is usually "get on the phone more." That doesn't hold up when the average recruiter is sitting on thousands of records.Even where the tech is there to help, a lot of teams were never properly trained to use it. Distraction, FOMO, and a habit of leaning too hard on LinkedIn and job boards still cost recruiters time and money.3. 📉 Leads Generated, Sales SuppressedRecruiters are generally good at generating leads. They're much less consistent at converting them.Leads go cold within about 24 hours. It typically takes 8-15 touches to convert one - yet most recruiters give up after three.That gap between generating leads and actually closing them is where a lot of revenue quietly disappears.4. 🤖 AI Has Moved the GoalpostsThis is the bit that's changed most since I last wrote about this.Bullhorn's latest GRID research found that only 35% of candidates now go to a recruitment agency first when job hunting - down on the year before, with job boards picking up the difference. That's not great news on its own.But the same research found candidates respond well when agencies actually use AI properly:77% report a positive experience with AI in the process88% rate voice agents as good as, or better than, a human interviewAutomated onboarding pushes candidate loyalty up to 85%87% of contingent workers who get the hours they want stick with the firm that placed themNone of that means recruiters get replaced. It means AI and automation are now doing a decent job of clearing up the data and process problems from points 1 and 2.That frees recruiters up to spend their time on the bit candidates still can't get from a job board - a person who actually knows them.5. 🧭 It's All About the Journey (and Dunbar, Again)Most recruiters put too much effort into the start of a relationship - adverts, acknowledgements, screening. Not nearly enough goes into what happens after "hello."That's still the fix: less effort front-loaded, more consistent contact throughout.It usually comes down to three things: too much data, not enough process, and not really knowing what candidates and clients want. AI and automation can sort out the first two. The third is still down to you.✅ TakeawaysTreat your data like your most valuable asset - less hoarding, more placing.Get real about what a recruiter can actually manage in a day; less is more.Use automation and AI to keep your data warm and turn it into fees.Free up your recruiters to do the job they're actually paid for: building relationships and closing deals.Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI ROIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Vodcast: Recruitment AI ~ How to Use Tech Without Losing the Human Touch

Is Your Recruitment Tech Stack Keeping You Human, or Just Keeping You Busy? And Where Does AI Fit and Not Fit?I recently sat down with Raymond Pennie, the founder and CEO of Kyloe Partners, for as part of my recruitment leaders' vodcast series that went deep into the messy, exciting, and often confusing world of recruitment technology, and AI.If you’ve ever felt like your Bullhorn CRM/ATS is more of a "data graveyard" than a goldmine, or if the mere mention of AI makes you want to hide under your desk, this conversation was for you.Raymond and I didn't just talk about "plugging things in"; we talked about why so many recruitment leaders are currently suffocating under a mountain of manual admin, and tech and data, while trying to "stay human."Here’s a teaser of the big questions we tackled (and why you’ll want to catch the full recording):🤔The Recruitment AI Paradox: Why Leaders Overestimate Short-Term AI and Underestimate Long-Term ImpactAI is the smallest word having the biggest impact right now.Raymond dropped a truth bomb: most people are overestimating AI in the short term but massively underestimating it in the long run.Is AI going to be your best manager - keeping you on track and stripping away the boring bits - or your worst nightmare by micromanaging your every missed task?🤖We also discussed a terrifying new reality: AI vs. AI.When every candidate uses AI to craft a "perfect" resume/CV that matches your job description exactly, how do you actually screen for talent?Raymond shares a simple strategy to use recruitment technology to prioritise the right candidates and clients so you can get back to the human-to-human influence that AI simply can't touch.⛔Why Buying AI Recruitment Tools Isn't Enough (The 'Bandwagon' Problem)One of my favourite parts of our chat was about the "AI Bandwagon."Raymond’s advice?Buy the AI, but for heaven's sake, use it.Too many leaders buy recruitment tech as a defense mechanism or a "quota" to feel better about themselves or feel that they can at least say that they have what they need, only to end up trapped in long contracts with tools they don't understand.Ultimately the goal needs to be Bullhorn ROI, not simply lots of tech.We talked about the "Bruce Lee method" of recruitment leadership: why you might need to slow down in order to speed up.💸Data Enrichment in Recruitment: Working the Funnel from the Money EndWe moved on to the "V" word: Value. Not the fluffy kind, but the actual monetization of your data. Raymond explained why you should stop trying to "clean" a million records just for the sake of it. Instead, he shared a targeted approach—working from the "money end" of the funnel backwards.If you want to know how to stop "throwing crap at the wall" and start using data enrichment to find replacements before a candidate even leaves their role, you need to hear Raymond’s take on "Data Enrichment 101."The Bottom Line?Efficiency is one thing, but effectiveness is the next level. Don't let your recruitment technology prevent you or your recruiters from being human. Use it to ring-fence your candidate and client time so you can actually deliver a sustainable recruitment pipeline.Stay curious, stop panicking, and start picking the one or two things that actually resonate with your recruitment business goals.Ready to spend a speedy 19 minutes thinking about how to make your recruitment process more human with tech?Watch my 19 Minute Vodcast with RaymondBullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Bullhorn Power Series ~ Stop Missing Out on Sales: 5 Tips to Use Your ATS, Automation, and Analytics to Drive BD

For many of my clients, Recruitment is now officially in a BD-first market.For recruitment leaders, the challenge isn’t just finding new business; it’s finding the right business and winning it before the competition even wakes up. If your recruiters are still manually scouring the database or "spraying and praying" cold emails, and paying external systems like LinkedIn, Indeed, and job boards for leads, you are losing revenue to firms that have turned their Bullhorn stack into a high-precision sales machine.Scroll down to watch the webinar.👇🔢The Maths of Modern Business DevelopmentRecent data from Bullhorn Grid shows a staggering divide between "traditional" recruitment firms and "automated" ones:The Speed Gap: High-growth firms are 3.5x more likely to use automation to beat competitors to the first CV send.The Admin Tax: The average recruiter loses 12+ hours a week to manual data entry. That’s two full days of lost selling time.The Gold Mine: 76% of placements come from people already in your database, yet most BD teams ignore their own "warm" data in favour of cold outreach.⁉️Are You Paying for a Recruitment Database or a Graveyard?Most ATS/CRM platforms are graveyard-like: full of data, but nothing is moving - candidates, clients, sales - are stuck!But the true ROI from Bullhorn comes when you combine Bullhorn’s core power with Automation, AI, and Analytics. You empower your humans to turn that graveyard into a "Predictive Sales Engine."Instead of asking your team to "hit the phones harder," imagine a world where:Analytics tells you exactly which clients are worth your time (and which ones to fire).Automation nurtures prospects in the background while your recruiters are closing deals.The ATS surfaces the perfect candidate for a "spec call" before the client even posts the job.🚨Watch Our Bullhorn 4 BD WebinarI see too many recruitment leaders struggling with "activity for the sake of activity." It’s time to move from "busy" to "profitable."I audit too many recruitment workflows where BD has been made hard to manage and measure - mainly due to lack of structure and too many systems and too much dirty data.This webinar recording is specifically for recruitment leaders who want to power up their Bullhorn tech stack for new business sales. I’ll be diving into the stats above and sharing at least 5 actionable tips across your Bullhorn ATS/CRM, Analytics, and Automation systems which you can implement immediately to:Identify high-probability prospects.Automate your processes to land more deals.Reduce your team's "admin tax" to free up hours of crucial sales time per week.Plus, we'll share at least 12 brilliant Bullhorn tactics you can give to your recruiters to help them use Bullhorn for sales.Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI ROIWe are Bullhorn experts obsessed with how recruiters can increase sales, reduce costs, speed up sourcing, and improve productivity.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Vodcast: Death to Spreadsheets: Is Your Agency’s Future Hiding in a Tab?

In our latest vodcast, which could be renamed as "Keeping Up with the Joneses," I sat down with Carl Jones, founder of Konquest, to tackle a truth that many recruitment leaders are still trying to avoid: the era of "wit and whiteboard pens" is officially over.If you’re still running your recruitment agency’s most critical processes on disparate spreadsheets, you aren’t just being "old school" - you might be making your business completely uncompetitive in an AI-driven market. Here are the 3 big questions we posed that every leader needs to answer1️⃣Is Your Data "Siloed" or Scalable?Carl highlighted a terrifying reality: as you scale, spreadsheets become "damaging".They are slow, corruptible, and unauditable.But the real FOMO trigger?If your data isn't in a scalable, database format today, you will be "completely screwed" when trying to leverage the AI agents of tomorrow. ❓Ask yourself: Are you building a data asset you can interrogate, or are you just "hoping" your team knows what’s going on? 2️⃣Are You Leading by "Facts" or "Feelings"?We’ve all been there. We've made decisions based on gut instinct or ego. But in a shifting market with new legislative changes and complex compensation needs, "facts not feelings" is the only way to retain your best staff. ❓The Question: Can you answer why you’re making a strategic change with "unequivocal data," or is it just subjective guesswork? 3️⃣What Are the Most Profitable Agencies Doing Differently?💡This was the "money shot" of our conversation.Carl revealed that Konquest has identified a dozen different "signals" that separate the fastest-growing agencies from the rest. These are signals from how they incentivise managers to the specific nature of their commission thresholds. Most recruitment leaders are getting commission wrong simply because the data hasn't been available.❓Are you overpaying or underpaying your recruiters? Or is your management setup simply years behind the industry standard? 🚨Stop Scrambling and Start SystematisingThe goal isn't just to have "shiny buttons" on a CRM/ATS.It’s about creating an "objective reality" for your business. As Carl put it, we are entering a period where leaders will soon be "scrambling" to get their data out of spreadsheets. Don't be the recruitment leader left behind while your competitors (which includes your own clients) are already using their data as a high-value weapon. Want to see how you benchmark against the rest of the industry? Carl and the team at Konquest have launched a live, free Recruiter Commission Census. It provides a personalised report on those 12 secret signals so you can finally see if your agency is at risk or ahead of the curve. Ready to spend a speedy 17 minutes thinking about your recruitment data and how to get it powering your recruitment business?Watch the full 17 minute vodcast with Konquest now. Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Before You Jump on the AI Bandwagon: How Recruitment Leaders Get Tech Right

Buying Recruitment AI might not fix a broken recruitment process — it may just help you break it faster.I recently had an inspiring chat with a recruitment leader, and it struck me how many recruitment businesses are currently throwing themselves into tech pilots - especially AI - just because they don't want to get left behind.The pressure is real, but if you aren't careful, you’ll end up with a business full of "shiny new things" that don't actually fix your biggest recruitment problems.Here are 5 ways I believe recruitment leaders can cut through the noise and ensure they are getting the right tech for their recruitment businesses.1️⃣You Aren't Testing Tech; You’re Fixing a Business IssueThe biggest mistake I see is recruitment businesses testing a system rather than the thing they are trying to fix. Before you even look at a new tool, ask yourself:What is the actual problem? Is it data health? Recruiter productivity? Speed to market? Sales? Stronger client and candidate relationships?Does this process even need to exist? Sometimes we buy tech to "fix" a process that we should have just deleted in the first place.2️⃣Beware of "Frankenstein" Processes and DataOver the years, many recruitment firms have built what I call "Frankenstein tech" - those extra bits and pieces plugged in that create more complexity than they solve. (Expensive luxuries...)Frankenstein Data: Are you spending money to enrich data that you then do nothing with? Frankenstein Processes: Are your recruiters multitasking to the point of exhaustion because the tech doesn't serve a clear purpose? AI / Automation / Analytics should be the surgeon that cuts away the "Frankenstein" parts, not another bolt-on limb.3️⃣Tackle the "Admin Tax" and "Integration Debt" (and Myths)Every time a recruiter has to manually format a CV or move between non-integrated systems, they are paying a "tax" with their time.The Win: One leader I spoke with successfully rolled out a CV formatter that turned a half-day wait into a minutes-long task. This solved a genuine business problem: time to submit.The Debt: If your tech doesn't talk to each other, your recruiter becomes the "integrator," stuck in the middle of chaos. Be sure of what that means and how you manage that.The "Fully Integrated" Myth? I'm often told by leaders that they want a fully integrated tech stack. They want everything joined up... But, you may still need humans to be part of the integration. I'm ok with that - just be sure which parts of the recruitment lifecycle you genuinely need them to do and when... But please, please aim for as much integration as you can.4️⃣Solve the "What’s In It For Me?" (WIIFM)Your recruiters might be scared of AI, Automation, and Analytics. They think it’s coming for their jobs.To get buy-in, you have to move past "this will make the company more money". Would you believe that there is an ever increasing strata in recruitment that are not motivated by earning more?Find their motivation: Is it a shorter lunch break? More time at the gym? Getting home to their kids? The Enabler: Position tech as the tool that lets them go faster and stay human.5️⃣Remember the "DAD" ModelWhen analysing your current processes, run them through this filter that I often use with my clients when conducting a Bullhorn RoI Vision program:Delete: Do you really need this process? Automate/AI/Analytics: Can these tool do this better and faster? Delegate: If you can’t automate / Ai / analyse it, can you give it to someone else? (in-source / outsource?Final Thought: Slow Down to Go FasterDo what Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee advocate: Slow down to go faster. (Thanks for the insight, Jo!)Don't be afraid to take stock, briefly pause your pilots, and ensure your tech is truly moving the needle on your bottom line - not just adding to the noise and cost.Are you ready to audit your "Frankenstein" processes? Let’s chat about how we can get your humans and tech working in harmony. BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATIONBullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
How to Get ROI from Your Colouring-In Department (Recruitment Marketing)

If recruitment is ultimately a sales job, then modern recruitment marketing is a technology job.Yet, many recruitment businesses still inadvertently sideline their marketing teams, dismissing them as the 'colouring-in department' tasked only with making things look pretty.It’s time to change the narrative.When aligned with your CRM, data, and overall business strategy, marketing transforms from a luxury overhead into a powerhouse for generating clients, candidates, and consultants. Here is how to unlock the true ROI of your marketing function.Recruitment Marketing and Recruitment Sales are DisconnectedI recently had dinner with a recruitment leader (anonymous) and we were talking about her goals for the year…Profit, Bullhorn ROI, more sales…Then she said:I want to get more ROI from my colouring-in department!In our Bullhorn RoI and Bullhorn Automation Buddy programs we often come across Recruitment Marketing departments who are disconnected from Sales – disconnected enough to warrant a (healthy) scepticism. This is often demonstrated by graphs showing community sizes rather than fees generated from marketing activities. Plus, they sometimes are not Bullhorn or Bullhorn Automation / Bullhorn Analytics super-users (sometimes they barely even login).Why? We often find that this is due to a complete lack of understanding (by Sales) of what Marketing is there for. Marketing are often not equipped to generate leads, and if they do, Sales sometimes don’t stop cold calling or working bad pipelines long enough to convert them.Perhaps the data is bad, or candidate/client personas are not mapped, or too much time is being spent on content?Who Cares About Your LinkedIn Followers and Website Clicks? Recruiters Want Candidates to Apply for Jobs, and Clients to Give Them JobsMarketing often struggles from a lack of perceived ROI. This can be down to vanity stats - web clicks, job application #s, blogs posted, LinkedIn follower #s - as opposed to sanity stats - viable leads, calls booked, jobs logged, placements etc...Sanity stats are generated by marketing tasks delivered by a robust, targeted, connected blend of sales and marketing functions.Marketers should actively drive lead generation – not simply be focused on brand and blogs - AKA "colouring in".Plus, systems' knowledge and adoption is crucial. Connecting your website to Bullhorn (and not simply to post jobs), and using Automation to drive viable business opportunities and is a must.5 Things You Can Do to Get Your Marketing Department to Put Their Crayons Down (and Generate ROI)1️⃣Target your market. "Ready, aim, fire", is better than "Ready, fire, aim". Who do your recruiters need to speak to? What are their personas? Is your content strategy about them, or about you?2️⃣Data needs to be owned by sales and marketing and seen as an asset rather than a hobby (something to keep in case it's needed). It needs to flow, not stall.3️⃣Websites and content need to be setup for sales as well as candidate attraction. Optimise, manage, measure.4️⃣Automation needs to clean cold data, wake up dormant data, warm up and drive heat into monetisable data.5️⃣And, crucially... ...all 4 points above need to be connected so you can place and retain the candidates and clients you already have in your CRM (Bullhorn). (Spending crazy amounts of time and money on LinkedIn and PPC may not be necessary if you monetise what you already have!)📍Final Thought: Create A Connected and Tech-First Sales and Marketing Recruitment Strategy to Get Warm Leads and Real OpportunitiesWant help building an automation and outreach strategy to wake up your community of candidates and clients and keep them warm? Let’s talk.I offer free consultations to help leaders / recruiters / automators unlock the power of their Bullhorn database and website and create opportunities .BOOK YOUR FREE CONSULTATION
Vodcast: Rehumanising Recruitment ~ Recruiters Versus Tech

Your Bullhorn already holds 95% of the answer, but most agencies just keep buying tools to avoid looking at it.I recently had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with a true recruitment "myth and legend," Keith Southern.For those who don't know Keith, he was the seventh person to join Progressive - the company that eventually became the global powerhouse S3.With a career spanning back to the early 90s, he has seen it all: the highs, the recessions, and the technological revolutions.Today, Keith leads The Power Hive, a community of over 170 recruitment leaders dedicated to helping agency owners move from just working in their business to working on it.Over a speedy 19minutes, we dove deep into why the "old school" ways, coupled with data, automation, and AI, might actually be the key to every recruitment leaders' future.💪Beyond ROI: The Power of "Return on Effort"We started by discussing a concept close to both of our hearts: Return on Effort (ROE). In an industry obsessed with the next shiny recruitment tech tool, many recruitment leaders are accidentally building what we called "Frankenstein tech stacks" - collections of expensive tools and data that don't talk to each other and often create "integration debt" and more admin than they solve. (I call this "Admin Tax".)We talked about how many sales floors today are eerily quiet because recruiters are hiding behind CRMs and marketing tech instead of picking up the phone, and Keith's ideas for:Using recruitment tech to free your consultants up to have more human conversations (and removing the "admin tax").Auditing your tech stack to see if you’re actually using what you’re paying for, or whether you're actually in "integration debt".🪙Turning Old Data into GoldOne of the most striking parts of our conversation was about the "gold nuggets" sitting right under our noses. Your "old to gold" could be data, processes, tech, people...Keith argues that most agencies already have 95% of the data they need in their own CRM, yet they continue to spend a fortune on expensive external job boards and LinkedIn licenses.We discussed "rehumanising" the process by using technology to lift the heavy weights so that recruiters can focus on building resilience and genuine relationships.We chatted about how to:Preventing your recruiters heading straight to LinkedIn / Job Boards to resource instead of looking "back home" at your own database.Training your recruiters to master the fundamental tasks, like a perfect candidate interview prep, before moving to the next part of the process.🤔Are You the Recruiter Your Website Says You Are?We ended with a challenge for the industry. Many agencies claim to be "at the heart of their sector" on their websites, but the reality is often a messy database and a reliance on reactive advertising. Keith’s advice for this year is simple: stop the abdication to technology and start driving your business with strategy again.This vodcast was a masterclass in recruitment leadership. Watch it to hear more about Keith's "war stories" from the S3 days and how to weaponise the data, systems, and people you already have.Ready to spend a speedy 19 minutes thinking about your recruitment process and how to keep it human with tech?Watch the full 19minute vodcast with The Power Hive now.Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Are Hairdressers Putting Your Recruitment Business at Risk?

Many recruitment leaders I work with want their recruitment CRM to generate fees, but often recruiters are all too happy to jump back into spreadsheets, LinkedIn, notebooks and “going by memory” rather than use their CRM system properly. This blog is a quick 3-minute read to create some perspective and give you some ideas for a “CRMFirst” strategy.The above results in a nightmare for recruitment leaders who are looking to grow their business, become “GDPR-proof”, use AI, Analytics, and Automation to be more efficient and productive, and of course become more profitable.It above also results in a problem I call “Hairdresser Syndrome” – a term I’ve used for many years to describe a recruitment business that needs to get a grip on its processes and data to see real growth and ROI.(Note: I originally wrote this blog in 2018. Many years have passed and so much has happened to recruitment, but I've barely needed to update this content...)Do You Have a Recruitment Firm, or an Office Full of Desks For Rent?I have been with my hairdresser for 8 years. He knows my taste in magazines, some of my secrets and all of my roots. A few years ago he was based in a large salon in the city, where he rented a chair.The rest of the salon staff barely knew I was there, and I didn’t really notice them either – zero interaction. Perhaps if I was lucky my hair would be washed by one of the juniors. I’d pay the girl at the till on the way out, but my hairdresser was my only real contact at the salon.One day he very quietly commented that he was opening his own salon, and would I like to move with him? I bit his hand off – why wouldn’t I? I had no relationship with the salon. They kept no details on me, perhaps they didn’t even know I existed. Would they miss my business?For me, he was the salon.Are Your Recruiters Hairdressers?Can you see any similarities between your recruitment consultants and my hair dresser?They have exclusive relationships with the clients. Are you simply the “girl” taking my money at the till?Do they use stuff in your business, such as hair washers, tea makers, reception (IT, HR, Finance, Admin) that their fees contribute to, but that I am totally oblivious to?Are your consultants simply logging data at the point of sale to get the cash in but the juicy stuff which is about me, what I like, how I buy is in his/her head?If they left and took “clients” with them, would you know? And don’t forget you’ll only know what data they’ve taken and who’s migrated with them if they told you about these relationships in the first place.Even if you had the data on the client, would it be enough for you to continue the relationship going forward?Are your clients engaging with your business or the consultant? Are their loyalties to the brand or their perceived face of the brand, the consultant (the hairdresser)?I’m still seeing “30-second recruiters” who enter a candidate in the CRM just to place them and board the invoice. That may work for them in the short term, but they’re missing out on opportunities to be more effective and profitable whilst putting the business at risk.CRMFirst (Bullhorn1st): Hairdresser Prevention for Recruitment LeadersThis year needs to be about CRMFirst ~ Bullhorn1st ~ getting your candidates, clients and consultants addicted to your systems.It needs to be about data hygiene, recruiters building effective, retained relationships and recruitment firms focusing on effectiveness and growth.A CRMFirst (BullhornFirst) culture can create a valuable pool of great data that will put you ahead of your competition and create a hidden asset that your clients (and prospective clients!) want access to.Your recruitment CRM should be a USP – a unique selling point. Your recruitment software can be an addiction for your recruiters, your clients, candidates, and investors. All of which does the one job you bought it for – to make your life easier and make you more money.Swap the Salon Culture for CRMFirst Culture…Instilling a culture of data quality is challenging, but highly rewarding. Define the strategy, instil this into your culture and reduce the risk of bad data impacting the recruitment business.Get your recruitment consultants engaged with your system and train them on best practice so they understand why great recruitment process is profitable for them, as well as your business.📌Stop them from simply renting a desk.Once they can see and feel the benefits of following your processes (improving performance, profit, and ROI for themselves as well as the business) then your CRM can become a business growth tool, rather than an expensive data dump.Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Vodcast: Stop "Lifting and Shifting" ~ How to Weaponize Your Recruitment Tech

If you feel like your recruitment team is "paralysed" by too many tools or you're just moving old, broken processes into a shiny new Bullhorn environment, this one is for you. Here’s a teaser of what we covered in a meeting with Zack from Bullhorn to help you turn your CRM into a high-performance engine. Are You Actually Making Money From Your Tech Stack?It was a blast sitting down with Zack from Bullhorn for the his very first "Tech Stack with Zach" to dive into how recruitment agencies can stop wasting their tech and time and start making more money. Most ambitious recruitment businesses have the tools, but very few have the adoption required to see a real return on investment.During our session, we challenged the status quo of "lifting and shifting" data and processes and looked at how to actually "weaponize" your consultants - after all - aren't they your "coolest tool"?🧠The "Why" Behind Your Recruitment Tech Move We see it all the time: agencies trying to repeat past mistakes in a new system.We discussed: Secret Weapon: Why your middle managers are the secret weapon (or the hidden anchor) for software adoption.Over-engineered: The danger of "over-engineering" your system before you even go live.Expectations: Why we believe the project truly begins on the day you go live, not the day you sign the contract.🪄The Bullhorn Features You’re Probably IgnoringAre your recruiters using Bullhorn to manage their time, or just to "dump data" to hit a KPI?We took a deep dive into:Game Changers: A specific "list view" that most recruiters still don't understand, despite it being a total game-changer for organisation.Productivity: How to transition from "back to basics" to "brilliant basics" to make every consultant more productive.Time Machines: Why "time" is the most underrated currency in your business, and how to manage it.🤖Building a "Time Machine" with Bullhorn AutomationTime is the only non-recyclable resource your recruiters have.We shared a real-world example of how automation acts as a "time machine" for our clients.Speed Up Your Fill Rate: Do you know which two linked automations can slash your time-to-fill by 20 days?The LinkedIn "Tax": Why looking external (to LinkedIn or job boards) first is costing you a fortune in "procrastination."Ambition-Led Tech: How to use the "art of the possible" to expect more from your tech and more from your humans.💪The "Take No Prisoners" Approach to SuccessFinally, we wrapped up with our non-negotiables for a successful CRM / Tech rollout. If you want to know the one-line secret to making a Bullhorn rollout work, you’ll need to catch the full episode.Ready to stop buying tech and hoping?Watch the full interview with Zack, Wayne and myself to get the practical, actionable advice you need to future-proof your business.WATCH TECH STACK WITH ZACKBullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI RoIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you weaponise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION
Stop Sourcing, Start Selling: Is Your Data Working or Just Sitting There?

Recruiters, let’s be honest: 80% of your day is likely spent on the wrong tasks. Even more staggering? 72% of the candidates you place were already on your system before you spent hours sourcing them elsewhere.You are sitting on a goldmine (eg. Bullhorn), but you're still digging in the woods and mining data from countless other sources like LinkedIn, Job Boards etc...How do you stop the procrastination loop and start weaponising your data to drive ROI?Here are the three most common questions I get from recruitment leaders on using data to dominate the market.1️⃣How can recruiters use data to drive the sales process?📌Clean data = Data Health = Data Wealth.This is the backbone of a successful desk. The best recruiters don't just "find people"; they provide a service that sets them apart through market intelligence.Market Intelligence builds credibility. Sharing real-time trends like salary shifts, candidate flow, or niche skills gaps positions you as a trusted partner rather than just another CV flinger.Master the "Trigger Event". Don’t call cold; call when it’s hot. Use data to track funding rounds, senior leadership changes, or office expansions.Example: If a startup hits Series B funding, they aren't just "busy"—they are scaling. If your tech alerts you the moment that deal closes, you can be the first to engage and have candidates ready to spec in.2️⃣Business Development vs. Account Management: Where is the leak?📌Reconverting existing clients is critical.It is significantly cheaper than winning new ones, yet many recruiters let these relationships go cold.Spot the weak links. Use analytics to identify accounts with declining activity. If your star client hasn't logged a job in 60 days, you shouldn't find out by accident.Map the client. Use automation to map out your clients’ entire org charts. Ensure you are seeing all of their jobs so you aren’t losing deals to competitors simply because you were only talking to one person in the department.3️⃣How do we kill procrastination and find focus in recruitment?📌Recruitment is one of the most complex roles out there.We ask consultants to be researchers, data entry clerks, negotiators, and marketers all at once. It is no wonder procrastination is rife.Automate the busy work. Automate data health checks, initial searching, and basic BD outreach.Cure message paralysis. Use AI to draft the first version of your outreach. Don’t stare at a blank screen; let the tech give you the bulk of the work, then you add the human flair.Analyse the data, tasks, and time: Use Analytics to drive meaningful and mindful activities.The phone is king. By automating the data drudgery, you clear the headspace to do what you do best: get on the phone and build relationships.💪Conclusion: Data is Your Competitive EdgeThe "post and pray" era of recruitment is over.In a crowded market, the recruiters who win are those who treat their database as a living, breathing sales tool rather than a digital filing cabinet. By embracing AI, Analytics, and Automation, you aren't replacing the human element. You are freeing your team up to finally be more human.📌Stop searching for what you already have. Start using your data to win.Bullhorn ATS / Analytics / Automation / AI ROIWe are Bullhorn experts set on helping ambitious recruitment businesses to increase speed and sales.We help you optimise your people, data, time, and tech, so you can recruit and sell!Our Bullhorn Vision and Buddy service helps generate best-in-class processes, adoption, head space, and ROI.BOOK A FREE BULLHORN ROI CONSULTATION

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