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Recruitment CRM should be the FIRST system used to drive sales, source candidates, convert leads... but often, it's a dumb system, a data dump, "just another bit of recruitment kit" preventing phone and face time. Our clients agree with our mantra "CRMFirst" and want to ensure that their recruitment software is implemented to deliver the 4Cs - candidates, client, colleagues, and cash.
Recruitment CRM - AKA the Sales-Prevention Software
Maybe you’ve had your Recruitment CRM for longer than you’ve had most of your employees and you’re hearing lots of the same moans and groans:
it’s not working
it’s always crashing
I can’t find any candidates in it
my 1980’s Atari felt more up to date
there is no management info because no one’s using it!
The decision has been made to replace your recruitment CRM. You’ve spent 6 months sourcing a new one, another 6 months implementing it and would you believe it, 6 months later and you’re still hearing the same old moans and groans.
How can you give BAU (business as usual) the best chance of success?
Business as Usual Starts Before BAU
It may sound obvious, but many Recruitment CRM projects struggle at the embedding phase due to inadequate post go live planning. It’s not surprising. There is a HUGE amount to do during implementation and the project team are normally spread thin focusing on getting the new system in a fit state for go live.
There are many strategies to planning and managing BAU (business as usual). My favourite is having a BAU project team involved mid-way through implementation. Their responsibility is to plan, support and manage the embedding of the CRM into business over the next 12 months. Their job is to make sure that your investment returns! (ROI)
“That’s a big investment“, I hear you say. However, what is the cost of a disgruntled workforce being negative or the disruption of losing many people or the lost opportunities of your current and future clients? And with 2/3 of job leavers quitting due to lack of training, and the average 10 person recruiters wasting £100,000 per year on replacing leavers, something has to change.
Investing in the BAU is almost more important that the implementation process itself; underestimate the BAU support requirements at your peril.
Management are THE Key to Success CRM Change
Management don’t need to know how to use the CRM, right? WRONG!
Management / Directors / Team Leaders all need to know exactly how everyone should be using the system so they can support and train their teams at go live and beyond.
All too often, “Super Users” are trained to deliver this message but they tend to be sales administrators, busy consultants or new recruits. They don’t have the status within the business to try to invoke change or persuade the biggest billers why they should change their habits and behaviours!
The adage of “Coming from the Top” really is true when you’re managing CRM Implementation Projects. These are not technology projects, they are Change Management Projects and the only people who can change the business are the leaders and managers of that business.
It’s All About Communicating Expectations
When a recruiter hears the following “We are going to change the CRM”, what they really hear is “Yippee, a new CRM. It’s just like upgrading my car; it will be shiny and faster and way better than what I had, oh and I know how to drive so it will be easy to adapt!”
This can lead to my personal favourite user statement “The previous system was so much better/easier!”. No, the previous system which was built on highly suspect 1980’s technology that continuously failed and you always complained about, was more FAMILIAR. As a project team, you have to prepare users for change and this starts not at Go Live, but much earlier during the implementation phase.
Key Rules when Implementing a New Recruitment CRM
Ensure you tell everyone that CHANGE is coming and everyone needs to get on-board!
The system will not be perfect from day 1, everyone needs to prepare to communicate issues and be ready for CHANGE!
There will be BUGS (potentially a lot and for a lot longer that you’d like!) Live with them whilst the project team sorts them out!
Get SLAs (service level agreements) in place – ensure you respond to EVERY issue and communicate an update or fix to the business (if it warrants it) or the individual on a pre-agreed timeframe.
We work with Recruitment and IT leaders to deliver an ROI and sales-led recruitment technology strategy. Our mantra is “CRMFirst”!
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Lisa Jones
Blog
How to Maximise the Productivity of Your Remote Recruiters
The recruitment world has changed—and whether your team is hybrid, remote-first, or fully virtual, one thing hasn’t: performance still matters. But without the buzz of an office, the whiteboards, and the shoulder taps, the Mars Bar incentives, how do you keep productivity high without becoming a recruitment micromanager?With so much tech and data, it's easy for procrastination and "admin-first" mentality to sneak in - and phone and face time with candidates and client suffers - and pipelines are not robust enough.But as a leader of a recruitment team or firm, I bet you're still waiting for the memo on how to manage your teams to max productivity...Here’s are some thoughts on recruitment leaders can set up their remote / hybrid teams for success—with clarity, connection, and commercial focus.1. Shift the Focus to Outcomes, Not HoursThe most productive recruiters aren’t always the ones who log on early or appear busy all day—they’re the ones who deliver results. Set expectations around outcomes: interviews booked, candidates submitted, jobs filled. Productivity isn’t about presenteeism; it’s about performance.You can call these KPIs, or simply "brilliant basics" - call them what you need to but, be clear on your goals and expectations. 2. Run Daily Huddles to Set the PaceA short 10–15 minute morning huddle can align the team around daily goals, hot jobs, and potential roadblocks. It keeps activity visible and creates a sense of shared momentum, even across screens. Don't scrimp on these kick offs / cool downs - they are vital to help your team (and you) stay connected.3. Use Dashboards to Drive ConversationsLive dashboards in your CRM (like Bullhorn) are powerful tools—but only if used constructively. Track key KPIs / Analytics / deliverables like CVs sent, interviews scheduled, and pipeline activity. Ensure that your tech can easily track these goals to ensure that your CRM/ATS is a single source of truth.4. Coach in the MomentFeedback shouldn't wait for end-of-week reviews. If a recruiter is struggling with outreach, sourcing, or conversion—jump on a quick call or screen-share. Remote doesn’t have to mean distant.5. Over-Communicate (Yes, Really)In an office, information travels quickly. Remotely, you need to be intentional. Encourage regular Slack / MS Teams / Zoom etc... updates, team chats, even voice notes. It’s not about overloading people—it’s about keeping everyone in the loop and engaged.6. Structure the Day for SuccessHelp recruiters design their day with clear time blocks: sourcing, BD, admin, follow-up. Get these diarised and transparent. Without the natural rhythm of an office, distractions creep in. Time-blocking restores focus.7. Celebrate the Small WinsThat candidate who finally returned the call? The new job lead from an old client? Shout it out! Wins matter more than ever when working remotely—recognition drives motivation and retention.We recommend, for example, an MS Teams channel devoted to team / people successes. And ensure that the team feel empowered to shout out each other's successes.8. Check In (Not Just Check On)Don’t just ask for numbers. It's too easy, when managing people remotely, to focus on the work outputs - as a leader you need to be better / different. Ask how they’re doing. Engage in what makes them tick. Remote work can feel isolating, for both you an them, especially in high-pressure sales environments. Regular check-ins help uncover hidden blockers—and show that you care.9. Give Them the Right Tools (and Training)Make sure your recruiters and resourcers have access to the tools they need—video calling platforms, up-to-date CRM access, and workflow automation. Then layer in continuous training so they can use the tools confidently and commercially. This is especially important if you have AI / Autoamtion tools. Training on the why, as well as the how, can be empowering and drive change quicker. Simply turning them on with minimal training risks "buy-out".10. Keep the Culture AliveFrom monthly leaderboards to virtual quizzes and Friday wrap-ups, make space for team bonding. How about a weekly quiz, using Kahoot or MS Teams, and each week a different team member runs it? High-performing teams thrive on connection—don’t let geography erode your culture.Final Thought: Set the Standard, Then Drive ItRemote recruitment teams thrive when there’s clarity and consistency.Create a simple “how we work” playbook—when check-ins happen, how KPIs are tracked, what good looks like.Then empower your recruiters to own their day, backed by your coaching and tools.The market won’t wait—and neither should your recruitment team. Productivity is a habit, and with the right leadership, remote recruiters can be a super-powerful asset.Want help building a remote recruitment process or smarter Bullhorn workflows? Let’s talk. I offer free consultations to help leaders like you unlock better performance—wherever your team logs in from.BOOK YOUR FREE CONSULTATION
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Wayne Barclay
Blog
Why Recruitment Data Health is Critical, 3 Ways to Long-Term Data Wealth
Recruitment and it's tech is moving faster than ever. But if your ATS/CRM is full of duplicates, outdated records, or incomplete contact details, you’re not just losing time—you’re losing revenue.Plus, Lisa recently attended Bullhorn's Automation and AI summit and the key "disabler" for engaging effectively with automation and AI was data health (or lack of!)Data Stealth or Data Wealth?As a recruitment leader, you rely on your CRM to power your recruiters' productivity, candidate/client experience, and bottom-line performance. But how confident are you in the health / quality of your data?Why does data health matter?💩 30% of CRM data becomes outdated each year🐌 Recruiters lose 4.3 hours/week to manual data issues📉 Dirty data can slash revenue by 12%😱 51% of UK firms say their CRM data isn't accurate enough to use🤒 Only 30% of CRM records are fully up to date🥳 Clean data boosts productivity by 14.6%(Sources: IBM / Experian / Bullhorn)In short: Bad data = missed placements, wasted time, lost revenue.If your Recruitment CRM has incomplete profiles, inconsistent job titles, or duplicate records, it’s not just frustrating—it’s slowing your team down.And if your candidate and client pools aren’t engaged, you're working blindfolded, hands tied behind your back, in a storm. (Metaphors galore!)1 Word to Describe Your DataWe asked recruiters to give us one word to describe their Bullhorn data and they said... Oh dear...Pointless Strategies to Clean Your Recruitment DataSome "popular" (but pointless) strategies include:Handing it to a temp / admin with zero sector knowledgeAsking recruiters to do it in their "free time"Ignoring it and piling in more dataThese are great strategies if you have money and time to burn, and data accuracy is not a goal.Our Winning 3-Step TLC Strategy for Data Health and WealthCleaning up your recruitment data involves more than simply giving it a spring clean every now and again. Your data needs to feed today's, tomorrow's, and next year's pipeline.We help recruitment businesses turn messy Bullhorn CRMs into clean, revenue-generating machines with a simple framework:Train recruiters on the “What’s in it for me?” angle so they take ownership of their data.Legacy cleanse: deduplicate, delete, or reactivate cold records.Campaign: engage and enrich new data automatically.No expensive tools. No time-zapping system overhauls. Just smart fixes that work with what you already have.📍 Book a Free Recruitment Data Health ConsultationI’d love to hear how you’re tackling data challenges—and pay it forward with a free 30-minute call to share ideas and insights from the 1000s of recruiters we've work with.Identify quick-win cleanup opportunitiesShare smart tools and automation optionsWhether your recruiters and resourcers struggle with poor candidate matches, too many duplicate records, or “ghost” contacts no one has touched in over a year, we can help you build a practical, recruiter-friendly fix.Ready to clean up your data, reduce costs, and speed up your placements?BOOK YOUR FREE DATA HEALTH CONSULTATION🚀 Why Now?Because recruitment is too competitive to be slowed down by bad data. The difference between making a placement and missing out is often just how quickly and accurately you can find and reach the right person.If your consultants / resourcers are wasting time cleaning up data manually—or worse, avoiding your Bullhorn CRM altogether—this is your chance to fix it for good.Clean recruitment data isn’t a “nice to have”—it’s a competitive advantage. Let’s get yours working the way it should.
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Your Recruitment Training Playbook
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Lisa Jones
Webinar
Recruiter Productivity Series: Optimise Bullhorn Part 4 ~ Place Faster with Less Effort
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Wayne Barclay
Webinar
Automation RoI Webinar Series: Unlock Bullhorn Part 4 ~ Place Faster and Easier
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Wayne Barclay
Webinar
Automation RoI Webinar Series: Unlock Bullhorn Part 3 ~ Sell Faster and Easier
