EP315: Building A-Player Recruitment Teams, Culture & Innovation — Leo Harrison, Founder of Chapter 2

In this episode of The Recruiter’s Recruitment Podcast, host Lysha Holmes sits down with Leo Harrison, founder and CEO of Chapter 2, to explore what it really takes to build high-performing recruitment teams and scalable talent solutions.

Leo shares the journey behind Chapter 2 — launched just weeks before COVID — and how his experience scaling global teams (including growing Oliver from four people to 3,000 employees across 40 countries) shaped his approach to modern talent acquisition.

The conversation dives into the evolution of recruitment models, from traditional agency approaches to embedded talent solutions, AI-powered recruitment tools, and employer brand strategies that help companies attract top talent at scale.

Leo also reveals the leadership principles that drive his business: radical transparency with teams, the importance of innovation, and why founders must stay “positively paranoid” about change to avoid being left behind.

Lysha and Leo discuss how to define and retain “A-players”, including the key traits Leo looks for when hiring: resilience, curiosity, customer obsession, and strong communication. They also tackle burnout in recruitment and how great leaders support high performers when they’re struggling.

Finally, Leo opens up about balancing founder life with family, sharing the mindset practices, personal values, and marathon running that help him stay grounded while scaling a global business.

🔗 Connect with the guest

Leo Harrison: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leoharrison1/

Chapter 2: https://www.chapter2.group/

🔗 Connect with the host

Lysha Holmes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyshaholmesr2r/

Qui Recruitment: https://www.quirecruitment.co.uk/

Follow the podcast on another platform:

https://www.youtube.com/@therecruitersrecruitmentpod

https://the-recruiters-recruitment-podcast.captivate.fm/

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The Recruiter's Recruitment Podcast is proudly sponsored by Paiger, and partnered with Needi, Keybridge IT Solutions, Bristow & Hardy and Diversity in Recruitment.

Our sponsor:

Paiger - Making Recruiters Smarter and Faster. Paiger helps recruiters build personal brands, identify new business opportunities, attract candidates, and have better conversations.

Find out more about Paiger: https://paiger.co/

Our partners:

Needi is a concierge gift-matching service using psychology and AI, to pinpoint the perfect gifts and experiences for your recipient, from the best local independent businesses. Their team of expert gift finders save companies time and money with their complimentary corporate gifting service.

https://needi.co.uk/

Bristow & Hardy partners with SME recruitment agencies to accelerate growth through sales enablement and recruitment marketing. With over 7 years’ experience, we specialise exclusively in the recruitment sector, delivering strategy, branding, websites, marketing campaigns, and sales support. Our proven growth suite of products helps agencies attract more clients, win more business, and scale efficiently.

https://www.bristowandhardy.co.uk/

Diversity in Recruitment helps recruitment businesses understand diversity, equity, and inclusion in a way that makes sense. Our training and advisory work is designed to attract diverse talent, recruit inclusively, improve your candidate journey and confidently partner with their clients. DE&I doesn’t have to be complicated and scary - it’s simply about fair, ethical and high-quality recruitment.

https://diversityinrecruitment.com/

Keybridge IT Solutions is a London-based Fully Managed IT Support and solutions Provider - Providing 24×7 Support to all Customers. Specialities include Microsoft Cloud, including Office 365, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure, Security, Internet Connectivity, VoIP, and much more.

https://www.keybridgeit.com/

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