The RAG Podcast - Recruitment Agency Growth Podcast

Season 9 | Ep10 Helen Buchan-Connor on why she's building offshore teams and hitting $600K revenue

Helen Buchan-Connor on why she's building offshore teams and hitting $600K revenue "All I wanted to do was make £100,000. That's it" Helen Buchan Connor started her recruitment business in September 2020. Her husband had just been diagnosed with lymphoma. COVID had locked down Singapore a week earlier. She was working from her lift lobby because there was no space for an office. Most people would've waited for a "better time." Helen didn't have that luxury. First year: $350K revenue, $50K profit. But then 2023 hit. The market turned. She lost $200K. She'd taken investment. Signed a JV with a well-known player in the industry. The advice she got? "Work harder. Do more calls." But you can't bring UK-style metrics into Southeast Asia and expect them to land. "In Southeast Asia, trust is built off relationships. In the West, it's built off performance." So Helen stripped it back. Looked at what the big tech companies were actually doing. Amazon. Google. The major media agencies. They were all offshoring. Quietly. She decided to do it loudly. Today: - Three-person team - $600K revenue - Phone off at 7 pm - Present mother and wife - Building offshore hubs for ad tech clients across Southeast Asia This week on The RAG Podcast, Helen breaks down exactly how she built it. We cover: - Why she started in the middle of a pandemic with a seriously ill husband - How she turned $350K Year 1 into a $200K loss in Year 3 - Why the JV investment model failed her (and what she learned) - The Southeast Asia + Philippines combination that changed everything - How she's consulting clients OUT of hiring decisions (and still growing revenue) - Why "surviving is thriving" when you're a working parent building a business This isn't about grinding harder or scaling to 50 headcount. This is about building a recruitment business that fits your life. Not the other way around. "Surviving is thriving. If you've got it together at the end of the week, you're good. If your kids like you, you're good. If you've got a couple of clients and you can invoice them, you're good." If you want to understand how to build profitably without sacrificing everything else, this episode is essential. __________________________________________ 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 consistent inbound demand - The 3X Revenue System we use to turn LinkedIn into a predictable cash-generating channel So fill in the form today to see how this system could transform LinkedIn into your agency’s most profitable channel: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0

Season 9 | Ep9 Emily Van Eyssen on why she's firing staff and replacing them with AI

Emily Van Eyssen on why she's firing staff and replacing them with AI "I automated someone's entire job out of my business." "They're gone. That role doesn't exist anymore." Emily Van Eyssen isn't talking about the future. She's talking about last month. She had no recruitment experience when she started. Zero training. Never worked for an agency. Stumbled into it during the pandemic through a government contract she still doesn't understand why she won. Most people would have crashed and burned. Emily placed 200 young people into employment, made a lot of money, and accidentally built a completely virtual recruitment business. When the pandemic ended and the scheme shut down, she had a choice. Go back to managing Airbnbs (which she hated), or figure out how to make recruitment work. Three years later: * 30-35 placements per month * Team of just 8 people * 300+ people placed globally * Jobs being automated out of existence in real-time But here's what makes Emily's story urgent. She's not planning for an AI future. She's living it right now. South African talent + AI super users = roles disappearing overnight. She fired someone last week for refusing to use AI. That job is now gone forever. One of her team automated their own role out. They're still there. The role isn't. She's training 5,000 people per month in South Africa on AI (and employing none of them). She's targeting 100 placements per month by Easter. Same 8-person team. This week on The RAG Podcast, Emily tells you exactly what's coming. We cover: * Why she fired someone for refusing to adopt AI (and automated their job immediately) * How one team member automated an entire salary out of the business * The South Africa + AI combination making UK roles obsolete * Why she's training thousands in AI but employing none of them * What happens to recruitment when one person can do the work of five * Her plan to 3x placements without hiring a single person This isn't a prediction about 2030. This is happening right now. In Emily's business. Today. And if you're not preparing for it, you're already behind. If you want to understand what the next 12 months actually look like for recruitment, this episode is essential. __________________________________________ 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/ [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 consistent inbound demand - The 3X Revenue System we use to turn LinkedIn into a predictable cash-generating channel So fill in the form today to see how this system could transform LinkedIn into your agency’s most profitable channel: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0 [https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0]

Season 9 | Ep8 Mark Thomas walked away from a six-figure salary without a concrete plan.

Mark Thomas walked away from a six-figure salary without a concrete plan. Three co-founders. One investment. Strict 9-month covenants. Then came March: dozens of pitches, everyone loved the vision, but almost no one was buying.  The retained leadership search model wasn't landing. They started questioning everything. One week later, four retained searches landed. Revenue hasn't stopped climbing since. 12 months in: £1M+ revenue, 75% retained work, and a business model nobody else in insurance recruitment is executing at this level. In this episode: * Why he nearly pivoted to golf (and why recruitment pays better) * The £150k-£350k leadership gap nobody was serving properly * Turning down every role under £120k to protect the brand * Building the "Real Madrid of recruiters" with 10-15 elite billers * How retained search gives you three-month revenue visibility * The profit share model that creates a partnership without equity This isn't a scale-to-50-people story. This is about building a boutique firm where being the worst recruiter in the room means you've hired brilliantly. For recruitment founders who want quality over quantity and believe 10 great people beats 50 average ones. __________________________________________ 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/ [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 consistent inbound demand - The 3X Revenue System we use to turn LinkedIn into a predictable cash-generating channel So fill in the form today to see how this system could transform LinkedIn into your agency’s most profitable channel: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0 [https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0]

Season 9 | Ep7 Chris & Gemma built a 7-figure agency by saying NO to 90% of clients

Chris & Gemma built a 7-figure agency by saying NO to 90% of clients Chris walked into a client meeting. Got the job brief. Then said "No way." The client looked at him like he was insane. "You haven't shown me the office. I don't know your team. I can't work on this job." She'd just told him they were more expensive than every other agency. He didn't care. This is how Chris and Gemma built Mixos - a husband-and-wife recruitment agency that operates completely backwards. They REFUSE to take briefs over email. They WON'T work with clients who rush them. They'd literally rather go bankrupt than cut their fees. And somehow? Rookies from retail are billing £50k+ quarters. They've grown to 15 people in 18 months. Their LinkedIn DMs are full of warm leads. In this episode: * Why they lost one job last month and Chris "felt like someone stuck a knife in him" * The cocktails-in-Mallorca conversation that merged two agencies during a pandemic * How they got a psychology graduate with zero experience to £53k in 90 days * Building a 400-person local community that makes cold calling irrelevant * Why they walked away from their biggest client (and replaced it with 5 better ones) * The "blueprint everything first" strategy that stops quality diluting as you scale * What happens when you tell a client, "I can't help you" in the first meeting This isn't about growth hacks or AI tools or scaling fast. This is about two people who set impossible standards, refuse to compromise, and somehow built an agency where saying NO is their superpower. For every recruiter who's tired of competing on price and wondering if there's another way. __________________________________________ 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/ [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 consistent inbound demand - The 3X Revenue System we use to turn LinkedIn into a predictable cash-generating channel So fill in the form today to see how this system could transform LinkedIn into your agency’s most profitable channel: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0 [https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0]

Season 9 | Ep6 Mick Donaghy: How he built $1.4M from $7K (after his partnership collapsed)

Mick Donaghy: How he built $1.4M from $7K (after his partnership collapsed) Mick Donaghy's mother died when he was in his twenties. Life's too short became his operating system. He left Ireland. Moved to New Zealand. Became a top-billing recruiter!  A few years later, he got his shot at ownership. A partnership to launch an Australian business for the agency he worked.  For many reasons, this partnership didn’t work, so Mick paid back his business partner and walked away with $7,000 in his bank account. No business. No plan B. This time, he was doing it alone. GEDON was born - named after his Mum. Ultra-niche: quantity surveying and cost management. One discipline. Total focus. * 12 months later: $1.4M AUD in billings. * 65 placements. One person every three days. But here's what makes Mick different. He's not building an empire.- he’s building freedom! Currently has 9 people, 5 offshore making 40%+ profit margins. Last week, he won 3 new clients from his personal brand. Zero cold calls. He just bought a 100-year-old house in Belfast. Cash. He drives an old Toyota Corolla, does 30 minutes in the sauna daily and is two and a half years into rebuilding his relationship with alcohol. He’s now set a new and incredible target: 20-hour work week. $300-400K profit annually. This week on The RAG Podcast, Mick tells the full story. We cover: * The partnership in Australia that COVID nearly destroyed * How he started Gedon with $7K and built it to $1.4M in year one * Why ultra-niche made his business borderless * The personal brand strategy that replaced cold calling * Why he refuses to scale headcount * His sobriety journey and the 20-hour work week plan This isn't about scaling fast. It's about a man who lost his mom young, tried a partnership that collapsed, and rebuilt everything from $7,000 into a million-dollar business that gives him his life back. No investor decks. No growth-at-all-costs. Just freedom over headcount. If you've ever wondered whether there's another way to build a business—one that doesn't trap you -this episode has the blueprint. __________________________________________ 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/ [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 consistent inbound demand - The 3X Revenue System we use to turn LinkedIn into a predictable cash-generating channel So fill in the form today to see how this system could transform LinkedIn into your agency's most profitable channel: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0 [https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0]