Recruitment Agencies Are Wasting 75% of Their Effort | Steve Carter (EP 87)

What’s the real reason most recruitment agencies struggle to perform… lack of activity, or a broken process?

In this episode, I’m joined by Steve Carter for a raw and insightful conversation about recruitment performance, efficiency, and why so many agencies are built backwards.

With over 40 years in recruitment, from the desk to leading global businesses, Steve brings a no-BS perspective on what actually drives results, and where most agencies are going wrong.

We break down the reality behind activity vs outcomes, why more calls isn’t the answer, and how poor structure, bad data, and legacy thinking are holding recruiters back.

Topics Discussed:
✅ Why most recruitment agencies are built backwards
✅ The hidden inefficiency problem (and where profit is lost)
✅ Why more activity won’t fix a broken recruitment process
✅ Data vs KPIs, and what actually drives results
✅ The difference between top billers and average performers
✅ The bell curve problem and where leaders should focus
✅ Why 2022 created bad habits in recruitment
✅ Process vs personality in recruitment success
✅ AI in recruitment, hype vs real application
✅ Why relationships still outperform everything else
✅ Face-to-face vs remote, and what’s being lost
✅ Agile recruitment and thinking differently about structure
✅ Why most agencies don’t understand their own data
✅ Steve’s 1 Percent Better advice for recruiters

⏱ Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro and episode context
00:55 – Steve’s background and 40 years in recruitment
02:30 – The inefficiency problem in recruitment
06:00 – Why agencies are built backwards
10:00 – Activity vs outcomes
13:30 – Data, ratios, and performance drivers
17:00 – The bell curve and leadership focus
21:00 – Recruitment as an opportunity vs a job
25:00 – Culture, leadership, and performance
30:00 – The impact of 2022
34:00 – Process vs personality
38:00 – AI and the future of recruitment
43:00 – Service, value, and client alignment
48:00 – Face-to-face vs remote working
52:00 – Building real relationships
56:00 – Final thoughts and 1% better advice

🐋 Podcast Sponsor – SourceWhale
This episode is sponsored by SourceWhale, the multi-channel outreach platform I personally use and recommend to recruiters and founders.
SourceWhale helps you combine email, LinkedIn, calls, and tasks into one structured, consistent BD workflow, without relying on spray-and-pray automation.

👉 Book a demo here:
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Mention The 1 Percent Better Recruitment Podcast or my name, Charles Kyriakou, when you book.

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