The RAG Podcast - Recruitment Agency Growth Podcast

Sean Anderson
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We’re having real and raw conversations with successful recruitment entrepreneurs about what is happening in their businesses right now and their plans to navigate market changes.

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  1. EPISODE 1

    Season 9 | Ep1 Samm Green on rebuilding Few & Far towards £1m EBITDA in 2025, despite serious burnout and two years of losses

    This week, on episode 1 of season 9 of The RAG Podcast, I’m joined by Samm Green, co-founder of Few & Far, a UK-based product management recruitment business with 22 people and a powerful story of resilience. Samm was the very first guest I ever recorded on The RAG back in 2019, and at that time, he had big plans to scale to 40 staff and eventually exit. While some of that came true, the road since has been far from smooth. In this episode, Samm opens up about: - The financial and emotional toll of losing over £350,000 during the market downturn. - How burnout and stress led to physical illness and a trip to A&E. - The decision to rebuild and focus on profit, not just growth. - Why transparency and community have been key to recovery. - How he’s turned the business around to be on track for £1m EBITDA in 2025. This is one of the most honest conversations I’ve ever had on The RAG. It’s a story about resilience, leadership and learning what success really means when the pressure hits hardest. Chapters 00:00 Sam Green's Journey 02:53 The Growth and Challenges of Few&Far 05:55 Navigating the Post-COVID Landscape 09:00 The Impact of Financial Loss on Mental Health 11:27 Lessons Learned from Redundancies and Business Cuts 14:36 Rebuilding and Regaining Profitability 17:20 The Importance of Mental Health in Business 20:17 Strategies for Business Development and Community Building 23:16 The Future of Recruitment in a Changing Market 26:00 Personal Reflections and Future Aspirations 28:48 Conclusion and Final Thoughts __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Atlas Admin is a massive waste of time. That’s why there’s Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies. It doesn’t only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it’s entering a whole new era. With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords. Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow. Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that’s not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform. No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue. Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting. Don’t miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/ __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Hoxo Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn. Spending thousands on Recruiter licences. Building connections. Posting content. Growing networks. But here’s the question almost no one can answer: How much revenue is LinkedIn actually bringing into your business? Most founders have thousands of connections but no clear process to turn that attention into cash. That’s the problem we solve. At Hoxo, we help recruitment founders build predictable revenue systems on LinkedIn, not just noise or vanity metrics. Our clients are turning LinkedIn into £100K–£300K in new billings within months, using their existing networks and a simple...

    1 t. 14 min.

  2. EPISODE 2

    Season 9 | Ep2 Nick Hoadley on scaling Insurance Search to 7-figures at 50% plus profit

    This week on The RAG Podcast, I’m joined by Nick Hoadley, founder of Insurance Search, a specialist executive search practice in the global insurance market. Nick quit a successful broking career nine years ago and launched a recruitment business with zero agency experience. Since then, he has shifted from 100% contingent to 100% retained, built a lean team, and maxed out a seven-figure practice while holding 50 to 60% profit margins. He is now expanding in the US with a partner model designed to scale without fixed overheads. We talk about: - How he went from insurance broker to founder with no prior agency experience - The playbook for moving from 100% contingent to 100% retained - Why a podcast and thought leadership now drive executive mandates worldwide - Building a lean delivery engine, research and board search that sustains 50% plus margins - The US partner model that scales without headcount or fixed overhead - What to productise next, from human capital research to peer forums - Practical advice on letting go of delivery to win bigger work If you are aiming to grow an executive search practice while protecting profit, this is the episode to watch. Chapters 00:00:30 Nick Hoadley's Journey 00:01:00 From Contingent to Retained 00:01:28 Impact of Podcasting 00:01:57 Aligning Personal and Professional Goals 00:02:27 AI and the Future of Recruitment 00:02:57 Building Client Trust 00:03:27 Scaling with a Partner Model 00:03:59 The US Market Expansion 00:04:28 Conclusion and Future Outlook __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Atlas Admin is a massive waste of time. That’s why there’s Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies. It doesn’t only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it’s entering a whole new era. With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords. Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow. Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that’s not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform. No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue. Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting. Don’t miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/ __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Hoxo Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn. Spending thousands on Recruiter licences. Building connections. Posting content. Growing networks. But here’s the question almost no one can answer: How much revenue is LinkedIn actually bringing into your business? Most founders have thousands of connections but no clear process to turn that attention into cash. That’s the problem we solve. At Hoxo, we help recruitment founders build predictable revenue systems on LinkedIn, not just noise or vanity metrics. Our clients are turning LinkedIn into £100K–£300K in new billings within months, using their existing networks and a simple repeatable...

    1 t. 17 min.

  3. EPISODE 3

    Season 9 | Ep3 Matt Fox achieved a life-changing exit and walked away in 90 days!

    Matt Fox achieved a life-changing exit and walked away in 90 days! Matt Fox was 72 hours from a multi-seven-figure exit when COVID killed the deal. What followed: a complete breakdown, 2 years of therapy, and a total rebuild. But he did it differently the second time. Cut from 30 stressed employees to 10 people he loved. Stripped costs. Turned it into a cash machine. By 40, he'd cleared his mortgage and bought Spanish properties with cash. Then, in November 2024, he sold the business and walked away in 3 months. In this episode: Why scaling to 30 people nearly destroyed himThe "cash cow" strategy that made him wealthy before the exitHow to build a team that doesn't need youWhat selling a business actually feels like (the bit nobody warns you about)Why 80% of recruitment founders get exits wrong This isn't your typical scale-and-sell story. This is what it really takes to lose everything, rebuild on your terms, and exit with your sanity intact. For recruitment founders running 5-30 person agencies, wondering what happens next. Chapters 00:03:00 Building Dynamite Recruitment00:09:00 Challenges and Resilience00:15:00 Restructuring for Profitability00:21:00 The Sale Process00:27:00 Lessons Learned and Future Plans __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Atlas Admin is a massive waste of time. That’s why there’s Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies. It doesn’t only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it’s entering a whole new era. With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords. Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow. Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that’s not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform. No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue. Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting. Don’t miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/ __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Hoxo Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn. Spending thousands on Recruiter licences. Building connections. Posting content. Growing networks. But here’s the question almost no one can answer: How much revenue is LinkedIn actually bringing into your business? Most founders have thousands of connections but no clear process to turn that attention into cash. That’s the problem we solve. At Hoxo, we help recruitment founders build predictable revenue systems on LinkedIn, not just noise or vanity metrics. Our clients are turning LinkedIn into £100K–£300K in new billings within months, using their existing networks and a simple repeatable process. To show you how it works, we’ve created a short training video exclusively for RAG listeners. In less than 10 minutes, you’ll learn: - Why most recruiters are getting zero measurable ROI from LinkedIn - How small, niche teams are generating...

    1 t. 38 min.

  4. EPISODE 4

    Season 9 | Ep 4 Ricky Burns: How to build £1.1M profit in year one (after losing it all at 32)

    Ricky Burns: How to build £1.1M profit in year one (after losing it all at 32) Ricky Burns made incredible money at 28 Then he drank it all away. Partied it into oblivion and got hit with a massive VAT bill he couldn't pay. Most people never recover from that kind of failure, but at 32, he decided to shut the business down and start again. He went back into employment for 11 years. Ran European divisions. Watched. Learned. Took notes on what actually works. Then in September 2024 he launched Pulse Group with his co-founder Tony. 12 months later: £1.4M in fees£1.1M in EBITDA (profit) I don't know anyone who's achieved these numbers in year one. This week on The RAG Podcast, Ricky breaks it all down. We cover: How they hit £1.1M profit in 12 months (it's simpler than you think)What killed his first business (beyond the partying)The 10 years of lessons that made the comeback inevitableWhy he paired recruitment with SOW consultancyThe systems and client focus driving 83% marginsHow AI is making them more efficient without adding headcountWhy work-life balance is now non-negotiable This isn't your typical "I scaled fast" story. This is brutal honesty about failure, sobriety, and building something sustainable the second time around. __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Atlas Admin is a massive waste of time. That’s why there’s Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies. It doesn’t only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it’s entering a whole new era. With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords. Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow. Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that’s not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform. No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue. Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting. Don’t miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/ __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Hoxo Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn. Spending thousands on Recruiter licences. Building connections. Posting content. Growing networks. But here’s the question almost no one can answer: How much revenue is LinkedIn actually bringing into your business? Most founders have thousands of connections but no clear process to turn that attention into cash. That’s the problem we solve. At Hoxo, we help recruitment founders build predictable revenue systems on LinkedIn, not just noise or vanity metrics. Our clients are turning LinkedIn into...

    1 t. 11 min.

  5. EPISODE 5

    Season 9 | Ep 5 Jordan Shlosberg: Why agency recruiters will win (and internal TA won't)

    Jordan Shlosberg: Why agency recruiters will win (and internal TA won't) Jordan Shlosberg runs Atlas CRM—the fastest-growing, AI-native recruitment platform in the world. Thousands of recruiters use his technology every day. Real-time data. Real billings. Real problems being solved. If anyone knows what's actually working with AI in recruitment, it's him. "Internal talent teams have a lot to worry about. Agency recruiters? There's a renaissance coming." Here's why: Agency recruiters have years of candidate conversations. Reference calls. Market knowledge built through relationships. The ability to cut through 1,500 AI-generated applications with actual insight. Internal TA has a resume. Sometimes a screening call. That's it. But here's the problem: agency recruitment only represents 7-8% of all hires in Europe. We could grow our share massively. Or we could shrink into irrelevance. The difference? How quickly we become AI-literate. This week on The RAG Podcast, Jordan and I go deep on what's actually happening in recruitment AI. We cover: Why Atlas crossed $1M ARR in 10 months while the market contractedHow clients are growing from 4 to 15 seats in under a yearThe fatal flaw in "agentic job boards" like Jack & JillWhy sourcing platforms only show you 50% of LinkedIn's dataThe partnership we're launching to make recruiters top 5% AI users This isn't another "AI is coming for your job" panic post. This is strategic intelligence from someone watching what actually works across thousands of recruiters every day. __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Atlas Admin is a massive waste of time. That's why there's Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies. It doesn't only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it's entering a whole new era. With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords. Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow. Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that's not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform. No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue. Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting. Don't miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/ __________________________________________ Episode Sponsor: Hoxo Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn. Spending thousands on Recruiter licences. Building connections. Posting content. Growing networks. But here's the question almost no one can answer: How much revenue is LinkedIn actually bringing into your business? Most founders have thousands of connections but no clear process to turn that attention into cash. That's the problem we solve. At Hoxo, we help recruitment founders build predictable revenue systems on LinkedIn, not just noise or vanity metrics. Our clients are turning LinkedIn into £100K–£300K in new billings within months, using their existing...

    1 t. 3 min.
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We’re having real and raw conversations with successful recruitment entrepreneurs about what is happening in their businesses right now and their plans to navigate market changes.

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