Rather than treating retained search as an exclusive or high-end specialism, the discussion challenges the myths around it and makes the case that for the right recruiter, retained is simply a better, more professional way of working. The episode covers how to position it with clients, why contingency has a limited shelf life in an AI-driven market, and what recruiters should honestly ask themselves before making the move.

Key Takeaways

Retained is a mindset, not a pricing model.

The biggest barrier to retained recruitment is not the fee structure - it is how recruiters position themselves. Those who default to contingency often do so out of habit or assumption, not because retained would not work for their clients or market.

Contingency has a limited shelf life.

Recruiters who operate purely as fast-moving, CV-flicking salespeople are increasingly vulnerable. As AI tools allow clients to handle more of the transactional recruitment themselves, the value of a recruiter who cannot offer genuine insight or process depth will diminish.

Clients want guaranteed results - retained gives both sides certainty.

Clients want to know a role will be filled. Recruiters need guaranteed revenue to invest proper time and effort. Retained aligns those interests. An upfront payment - whatever the structure - signals a serious professional relationship on both sides.

Retained is not just exec search and it is not always third, third, third.

It can be a talent mapping project, a monthly retainer, a multi-hire campaign or a straightforward single assignment with an upfront component. The structure is flexible - what matters is that both parties are committed.

Build a reputation in your niche before pitching retained.

Having a voice in your market - through content, insight and genuine expertise - makes it significantly easier to win retained work. If clients already see you as an authority, the conversation about how you work becomes much more natural.

Key Moments

"I don't think most recruiters have a pricing problem with retained. I think they have a positioning problem."

"There is a difference between being a good biller and being a good recruiter. It took me a long time to understand that about myself."

"Ask yourself honestly - am I good at recruitment, or am I good at sales through the lens of recruitment?"

About Recruitment Founders Club

Recruitment Founders Club is your launchpad to owning a successful recruitment business. We provide comprehensive mentorship and cover your start-up costs for the first 12 months. Coupled with our robust network and ongoing support, we not only help you start your own business, we ensure you thrive.

Find out more: https://recruitmentfoundersclub.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Recruitment Founders Podcast, Lindsay Hartland and Greg Elton unpack the hard lessons they wish they’d understood earlier when starting and scaling their own recruitment businesses. Drawing on their own founder journeys, plus what they’ve seen through Recruitment Founders Club, they explore why good recruiters don’t usually fail because they lack ability, they fail because they don’t learn the right lessons quickly enough. From the loneliness of losing the office noise, to the danger of moving into unfamiliar markets, saying yes to the wrong work, underpricing too early and hiring before the business is truly ready, this is a candid episode about becoming a business owner, not just a biller with a company name.

Loneliness is one of the biggest shocks of starting up.

The LinkedIn launch buzz feels amazing for a week, but then the noise drops off and it can become just you and four walls. Founders need people around them who understand business ownership, not just well-meaning family or employed recruiter mates.

Your support network has to be relevant.

Family, friends and colleagues can be supportive, but they may not understand the pressure of running a service business where deals can collapse days before starting. Founders need sounding boards who have been there, can challenge them and genuinely care about their success.

Changing market is a major risk.

Greg reflects on starting in medtech, neuromodulation and the US without prior experience, describing how much he underestimated. Moving into a new market can work, but it adds time, pressure and uncertainty — especially if you’re already learning how to run a business.

Being a good recruiter is not the same as being a good business owner.

A high-performing biller may be brilliant within an existing brand, desk and infrastructure, but ownership adds finance, operations, marketing, positioning, pricing, networking and decision-making. It’s the same job plus a significant extra layer.

Decide what you want to be known for.

Founders need a clear niche, a sensible outer boundary and the discipline to say no to work that sits outside it. Taking on the wrong role, even on a retainer, can drain time, cash and focus.

Saying no can still build your brand.

If a candidate or client is outside your space, referring them to someone better placed creates a positive memory. That goodwill may not pay off immediately, but it helps build a network and reputation beyond short-term transactions.

Confidence in pricing comes from knowing your value.

If you’re only selling CVs, clients can push you down on price. If you’re selling insight, trust, market access and specialist delivery, you can negotiate from a stronger position, but you need to know where your walk-away point is.

Don’t grow too quickly.

Hiring because you’ve had a good first year or have cash in the bank can be dangerous. Before adding headcount, founders need to ask whether they have client infrastructure, leadership bandwidth and a genuine platform for someone else to succeed.

• “Most recruiters don’t fail because they’re not good enough. They just don’t learn the right lessons quick enough.”
• “The biggest thing for me that I underestimated was the loneliness element of being an entrepreneur and being a business owner.”
• “Being a business owner and being a high-performing biller are not the same thing.”
• “Know where to say no, but try and define those boundaries.”
• “If you can’t see a deal, you can’t see the deal.”
• “You could genuinely have £200k or £300k in the bank and still not be ready for growth.”

About Recruitment Founders Club

Recruitment Founders Club is your launchpad to owning a successful recruitment business. We provide comprehensive mentorship and cover your start-up costs for the first 12 months. Coupled with our robust network and ongoing support, we not only help you start your own business, we ensure you thrive.

Find out more: https://recruitmentfoundersclub.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Recruitment Founders Podcast, Lindsay Hartland and Greg Elton step back from the usual talk of fees, targets and growth to explore a deeper question: what keeps you motivated when money stops being enough? Through personal stories from recruitment, leadership, family life and business-building, they discuss how purpose evolves over time, why contribution often outlasts commission as a driver, and how a more meaningful definition of success can improve both performance and fulfilment.

Key Takeaways

Money is not always a lasting motivator. One of the central themes of the episode is that, for many experienced recruiters, there comes a point where earning more stops being enough on its own. Lindsay and Greg reflect on how purpose, contribution and impact can become much stronger drivers than targets or commission alone.

Purpose can be developed over time. The episode makes clear that purpose is not always something people start their careers with. It can emerge through experience, reflection, goal-setting and a better understanding of personal values.

Helping others can sharpen your own success. A powerful idea explored in the conversation is “self-transcending purpose” — focusing on improving outcomes for others rather than obsessing over your own results. The argument is that this shift can reduce unhealthy fixation on targets and, ironically, lead to stronger performance anyway.

Recruitment changes lives when done well. Greg talks about helping a candidate secure a salary increase of nearly £50,000, while Lindsay shares an example of placing an interim leader who helped save a factory and protect jobs. These stories reinforce the idea that recruitment can have a real, human impact far beyond filling vacancies.

Happiness first can be a better formula. Lindsay shares a mindset shift that challenged the old belief that money brings happiness. Instead, he describes learning to think of it the other way round: get the happiness piece right first, then success is more likely to follow.

Meaning can come from building something that helps others. Greg explains that a major source of fulfilment in RFC is giving people the opportunity to become entrepreneurs with support around them, especially those who might not otherwise have believed they could do it alone.

Purpose does not need to be purely professional. Lindsay also speaks about opening his home to a Ukrainian mother and daughter during the war, and donating part of the profits from his book to a Ukraine-linked charity. It adds another dimension to the episode: that purpose often becomes clearest when it connects work, family and service to others.

Best Moments

“Money equals success equals happiness. He said, you got it the wrong way around. Happiness equals success equals money.”

“Focus on having a clearly defined… self-transcending purpose. So you are doing it for others.”

“I got him a near 50 grand salary increase. It changed his life.”

“That is what motivates me about RFC… giving them the opportunity to become an entrepreneur.”

“Really that’s our number one measure of success as a business is how many lives we progress.”

“So they’re our family… I’ll donate 20% to a charity linked to the Ukraine war.”

About Recruitment Founders Club

Recruitment Founders Club is your launchpad to owning a successful recruitment business. We provide comprehensive mentorship and cover your start-up costs for the first 12 months. Coupled with our robust network and ongoing support, we not only help you start your own business, we ensure you thrive.

Find out more: https://recruitmentfoundersclub.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.