Alexandra Bamban

What are some of the challenges UK agency recruiters face when moving into US market? 1. Broad approach and not a true specialist. Must be ultra niche, focus on growth areas and build pools of specialist talent. Get your GTM right. 2. Avoiding IR: Most US companies have an established internal rec team so need to partner with IR rather than going around them - agencies can help fill the 2-10% of roles prospects may be struggling with 3. Undervaluing your service: Based on above the perceived value is higher leading to Perm fees of around 25% and contract margin over 35%. Often increased appetite for retainers and projects. 4. Treating the US like it is one location: America is actually 50 states and compares more to Europe in size. Have an area of focus. 5. Underestimating the importance of compliance: US can be a legal minefield so clients want to be sure you are 100% compliant - prove it. There are so many more so what have you experienced?

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When experiencing rapid growth, the business case for RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) is almost a dumb-not-to proposition: on-demand recruiters joining as an extension of your team on short notice, flexibility to scale up/down and turn on/off as hiring fluctuates, that's cost-effective compared to agencies, access to technology, etc, to name a few. During periods of uncertainty, like we have today, the use cases for RPO tend to revolve more around flexibility. Many Talent Acquisition Departments had to go through layoffs over the past 2 years and are running very lean. Here are some scenarios that we've been supporting customers with during this time period: - Adding temporary support during Q1 hiring budgets being set and an initial hiring frenzy - Adding fractional support (20hrs/week) for a handful of extra roles - Recruiting team is strong in one area but the team needs support in another area. (IE strong operations recruiters but influx of technical hiring needs) - Unplanned Recruiter turnover: Recruiter quits, fired, etc - Planned Maternity/Paternity Leave - Not wanting to add fixed overhead/full-time recruiters due to build-up/layoff cycles of the past 4 years and find a partner to keep things augmented - Larger organizations needing an external 'floater' team to be allocated as back-up to various departments, worksite locations, or even countries. These are some of the ways dynamic TA/HR Leaders are getting work done including leveraging a unique partner. 2025 is looking brighter, no doubt, but there are many risks to our market that are leaving business leaders in a position that prioritizes flexibility and needing to look at unique ways to operate their TA function. #rpo #chiefpeopleofficer #talentacquisition #chro

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And for some good news... According to a report by APSCo in association with Bullhorn, contract hiring numbers across the UK have been showing promising signs of improvement, up 4% month on month and 11% year on year in May. Permanent job postings remain down 32% on 2024 levels but are stabilising and were actually up 1% from April to May. Permanent placements across professional services were up 3% month on month in May and contract placements up 1% in the same timeframe. Samantha Hurley, MD at APSCo commented that 'the latest data shows signs of optimism'. These might only be green shoots, but I'll take that. Always good to share something positive at the beginning of the week, right? _________________________ If you enjoyed this post, please share it with your network and follow me, Simon Gee for my insights and daily content about the staffing sector.

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AI in Recruitment and will it replace Recruitment Consultants in the Next 3–5 Years? I had the privilege of speaking on this topic at TALENT X last week, hosted by Synaptico, where I helped put some of the industry’s fears around AI to rest. Now, let me start by saying this, I am a fan of AI. It’s a powerful tool that, when used wisely, can streamline tasks like admin, compliance, and sourcing. It can make recruitment more efficient and free up time for what really matters. But let’s be clear, recruitment is, and always will be, a people-first profession. What AI can’t replicate is the human touch points that recruitment consultants can: ✔️AI doesn’t understand the deeper motivations behind a career move. ✔️AI can’t build trust, read between the lines, or pick up on non-verbal cues. ✔️AI lacks empathy, lived experience, and emotional intelligence. Don’t forget recruitment is about relationships, it’s about guiding people through some of the biggest decisions of their lives. That requires intuition, trust, and genuine human connection, things no algorithm or chatbot can truly replicate. AI absolutely has a place in recruitment and recruiters need to embrace it because like it or not it’s here to stay, but also to be reminded that it should only be used to play a supporting role, not the lead role, You, the recruiter are still the star of the show ⭐️ If you’re exploring AI for your agency or processes, here’s some advice: ✔️Do your research. There are thousands of AI tools out there, but not all are good or compatible with your existing systems ✔️Identify your gaps. Where are you losing the most time? Is it admin, is it compliance? Use AI to solve those specific issues ✔️Always trial and demo before locking into long-term (12–36 month) contracts only then to regret it 3 months later ✔️Set clear expectations. AI isn’t meant to run your whole recruitment process, it’s there to support it As recruiters, our value lies in the conversations we have, the trust we build, and the difference we make in people’s lives every day. Remember, people buy from people, especially in recruitment 😎 So, my opinion is that the role of recruitment consultants will not be entirely replaced by AI or a Bot. #Recruitment #AI #Technology #Healthiipeople #HumanTouch #Recruiters

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