In this episode of Recruiting Trailblazers, host Marcus Edwardes interviews Stacey Stratton, the president and CEO of True Talent Group. The conversation delves into Stacey's journey of founding her niche staffing agency in her basement in 2008, her passion for matching top marketing, creative, and digital talent with opportunities, and her approach to building meaningful relationships with clients and candidates. They discuss the importance of candidate experience, the challenges of scaling a boutique agency while maintaining quality, and the evolving dynamics of recruitment in a post-COVID world. Stacey shares anecdotes on overcoming initial hurdles, the value of meeting candidates and clients face-to-face, and offers insights on building a candidate-centric recruitment process. The episode underscores the significant impact of relationship-building in the recruitment industry.

00:00 Introduction to Recruiting Trailblazers
00:25 Meet Stacey Stratton: CEO of True Talent Group
02:11 Stacey's Journey: From Basement Startup to Success
07:19 Navigating Challenges and Growth
10:27 The Importance of Face-to-Face Interaction in Recruitment
15:41 Building and Nurturing Relationships in Recruitment
24:19 The Changing Landscape of Recruitment
24:47 Building Long-Term Relationships with Candidates
25:26 Challenges in Winning New Clients
27:59 The Importance of Industry Expertise
30:44 Understanding Client and Candidate Needs
33:25 Scaling a Boutique Agency
36:01 Enhancing Candidate Experience
35:02 The Role of Candidate Experience
38:57 Nurturing Your Candidate Community
46:37 The Hard Truths of Recruitment
48:39 Balancing Personal Strategy with Scale
49:07 Final Thoughts and Farewell

The episode of "Recruiting Trailblazers" features host Marcus Edwardes in conversation with Natalie Sarmiento, founder of Engage Engineer Search, a niche headhunting firm specializing in the forensic engineering industry. Natalie shares her journey from an HR professional to starting her own agency, which was motivated by the recognition of a gap in the market for dedicated and knowledgeable recruiters in forensic engineering.

Natalie discusses the challenges she faced in HR, particularly how generalist recruiters often failed to present qualified candidates. This realization drove her to establish a more specialized recruiting firm, which earned her a place on Forbes America's Best Professional Recruiting Firms list in 2023.

The conversation covers Natalie's strategies for connecting with top talent in a highly specialized and confidential field, emphasizing the importance of building quality relationships and trust. She talks about her recruitment approach, which includes understanding both the client's needs and the candidate's career aspirations, ensuring that placements are not just transactional but transformative for both parties.

Throughout the podcast, Natalie shares insights into the intricacies of forensic engineering, the importance of industry-specific knowledge, and the ethical considerations in recruiting for such a niche market. Marcus and Natalie also reflect on the mutual benefits of developing genuine, long-term relationships with clients and candidates, highlighting the satisfaction that comes from positively impacting people's careers and businesses.

Natalie closes with advice for other recruiters, stressing the importance of integrity, professionalism, and genuine relationship-building in achieving success in recruitment.

In today's episode, our host Marcus Edwardes sits down with Jeremy Jensen, founder and CEO of Encore Search Partners, a 40-person direct-hire recruitment agency. With a focus on headhunting revenue producers and tech professionals, Jeremy shares his expertise on navigating the evolving hiring landscape and the keys to success in the recruitment business.

Overview:
- The conversation dives into the functional verticals served by Encore Search Partners, including wealth management, law firms, and technical product companies.
- Discussion on the hiring market, especially post-pandemic trends and current conditions.
- Jeremy explains the technical competency required by clients and the nuances of different job roles.
- Commentary on the difference between contingency and retained recruitment models.

Strategies:
- The strategies used by Encore Search Partners for headhunting, including outbound headhunting and leveraging cold outreach.
- The importance of deep technical understanding in recruitment.
- Building trust and credibility quickly with clients.
- The significance of understanding clients’ real needs and potentially redefining job roles to meet business challenges.
- Establishing long-term relationships and becoming a trusted advisor to clients.

Market Challenges and Opportunities:
- Discussion on modern challenges in the recruiting market, including remote work impacts and the current state of agency recruiting.
- Opportunities presented by companies lacking internal recruiting sophistication due to sudden growth from new funding.

Company Culture and Growth:
- Insights on Encore's aggressive recruiting culture and outbound headhunting approach.
- Strategies for growing and maintaining a successful recruiting business.
- The importance of continuous improvement, accountability, and maintaining high standards.

Closing Thoughts:
- Jeremy’s views on the key to success in the recruitment business—emphasizing continual improvement and gratitude.
- Concluding remarks and appreciation for Jeremy’s insights shared during the podcast.

Biggest Takeaways:

1. Technical Competency and Market Understanding:
Jeremy highlights the increasing importance of recruiters possessing a deep understanding of the technical aspects of the roles they are filling. This not only helps in finding the right candidates but also in establishing credibility with clients.

2. Value Proposition and Differentiation:
The aggressive headhunting approach and the ability to poach top talent from competitors set Jeremy's firm apart. This strategy is particularly effective in industries where specialized knowledge and technical skills are paramount.

3. Continuous Improvement and Accountability: Jeremy underscores the importance of continuous learning and improvement for recruitment success. Holding the team accountable to KPIs and instilling core values like excellence and resilience are crucial for maintaining high performance and growing the business.