In this article, industry experts share what it truly means to adopt the mindset of doing more with less, providing practical and actionable strategies to help recruitment agencies maximise their resources while minimising unnecessary costs.
We’ve cherry-picked 7 of the best expert-led recruitment strategies that are guaranteed to help you achieve more with less in 2025:
1. Leverage the power of recruitment automation
Recruitment automation should empower your team, not replace them.
Greg Savage, Founder of Savage Recruitment Academy highlights:
Work out which part of the jobs to automate and make sure that it then frees up your recruiters to spend time on the job that human beings should do. That will give you a double win because the part of the job that’s suited for tech will be handled more efficiently and accurately, freeing up recruiters to focus on engaging and influencing more effectively.
The right recruitment technology handles repetitive tasks, freeing your recruiters to focus on building relationships with clients and candidates, that’s real revenue-driving work.
Consider where it can drive the most impact:
- Candidate and client outreach: Benefit from LinkedIn automation and automated chatbots to keep candidates and clients engaged.
- CV formatting and parsing: Automate CV formatting and parsing for faster data entry into your recruitment CRM.
- Job board posting: Post job ads across multiple boards and platforms in a single click with a powerful CRM/ATS.
- Candidate screening and onboarding: Speed up the shortlisting process with automated screening and onboarding for faster placements and quicker wins.
- So, seamlessly embedding recruitment automation into your daily operations drives results by focusing on meaningful outcomes, not just efficiency.
As Mehdi Este, General Manager at Access Recruitment says:
Integrating recruitment automation early ensures it becomes a core part of your growth strategy.
2. Turn your recruitment teams into unstoppable revenue drivers
Your recruiters are your biggest growth asset, when equipped with the right skills and tools, they can deliver game-changing results.
Greg Savage emphasises:
Your recruiters are your biggest expense in the business. $0.60 of every dollar spent on recruitment goes towards staff salaries. That’s the leverage point, yet as an industry we’re not good at training people. I mean training them on the processes and skills, but also on the client and customer service and how to create exceptional outcomes.
Here are a few strategic power moves to turn your team into revenue machines:
Use recruitment analytics to track performance trends, identify skill gaps, and always coach on data, never guesswork.
Tailor learning paths for different roles, whether it’s client management, candidate sourcing, or business development.
Stop measuring busy work. Track metrics that matter - placements made, client retention, and candidate experience scores.
Give your team control over their schedules while keeping performances sharp with clear goals and accountability.
Remember, your recruitment tech—like your CRM—should be the ultimate productivity booster, freeing your consultants from the busywork so they can focus on what they do best: building relationships and closing deals. With powerful analytics, you can not only ensure accountability but also fine-tune your strategy to drive peak performance.
3. Streamline recruitment processes with the right tech stack
Driving greater efficiency starts with reviewing your current tech stack and day-to-day processes.
Martin Bramall, CGO of IDIBU adds:
You might have subscriptions, you might have software, you might have processes, you might be doing things that are not necessarily essential to what you're doing now, that which you can maybe cut down on. Start by identifying which channels and processes are genuinely driving results.
These days, agencies can’t afford to waste time on clunky processes and overlapping tools. By refining your tech stack and focusing on the solutions that truly drive results, you can reduce costs, empower your teams, and accelerate growth.
Barry Cullen, Partner at RECLAW LLP advises:
Saving costs and being more efficient in how you work is key. So, you can know, effectively try to make sure that you're empowering your team to have access to whatever products and services they need to better focus on the bits of their work that they really need to do.
Here’s how to streamline your recruitment operations for maximum impact:
- Eliminate overlapping tools and reduce subscription costs by continuously auditing your recruitment software.
- Replace disconnected tools with an all-in-one recruitment platform that combines all your recruitment tools into one solution.
- Choose platforms that seamlessly integrate with your existing recruitment CRM.
- Offer ongoing training to ensure your team fully leverages your recruitment technology.
By eliminating inefficiencies, empowering your team with the right tools, and leveraging recruitment automation, you can build a lean, high-performing recruitment engine.
Why not see what’s possible with our RecOS in action?
4. Personalise at scale with recruitment technology
Personalisation in recruitment isn’t just a nice touch; it’s a powerful differentiator in a highly competitive environment for clients and candidates. Both candidates and clients are bombarded with generic outreach, while a personalised approach shows you’re invested in their success, not just filling roles.
Darren Westall, CEO of Pager explains:
Recruitment is a human-to-human industry. Never automate the human part.
Think of recruitment as a symphony, technology sets the rhythm, but human connections create the melody.
Mehdi Este adds:
Personalised interactions show candidates and clients that they’re valued, not just another number.
By blending recruitment technology with a human-first approach, you can build meaningful connections that go beyond transactions.
Here's how to leverage recruitment technology while keeping personalisation at the core of your recruitment strategy:
- Use AI-driven insights identify patterns in candidate behaviour, helping you tailor communication strategies based on their preferences and activity.
- Create personalised talent pipelines by building nurture campaigns within your recruitment CRM to engage passive candidates with content relevant to their own careers.
- Balance recruitment automation with human touchpoints, for initial contact and routine updates but ensure key stages like interviews and offer discussions remain personal.
5. Invest in recruitment technology that drives results and ROI
With endless recruitment technology available, it’s easy to lose focus.
Nick Beecroft, Head of New Business of Access Recruitment advises:
Salespeople, as sales leaders, and as business owners who are very sales-focused, are by nature easily sold to. We very easily get caught up chasing butterflies and forget the main motive. If we can keep sight of that and not get dragged down the route of, ‘it's the most expensive, so it must be the best’ and actually dig deep into the technology, how it's built, how it operates, how it's supported, I think we can do a lot more with a lot less.
Deciding what you want to improve before diving into new solutions can be what defines its future success or failure. Clear goals prevent wasted resources and ensure your efforts drive measurable results.
Here’s how to stay laser-focused on your recruitment business needs:
- Audit your current tech stack and processes to identify gaps or inefficiencies.
- Create a recruitment tech ‘shopping list’ with all the essential features and functions you need before exploring new tools.
- Evaluate ROI, not just price and remember the most expensive solution isn’t always the best. Assess tools based on impact, usability, and long-term value.
- Avoid ‘shiny object syndrome’. Don’t get distracted by trendy tools or features that don’t serve your core objectives.
Useful resources:
· Take the 2-minute quiz to uncover the true cost of your recruitment software tech stack with Vincere’s Tech Stack Calculator.
· Use Vincere’s Recruitment ROI Calculator and see how much money you could be missing out on.
Darren Westall offers a practical analogy on planning your recruitment tech strategy:
You wouldn't walk into a supermarket without being hungry or knowing what you need. So, start by figuring out what you're craving, or if you're not ready yet, take stock of your business needs and create a clear shopping list.
6. Unlock hidden skills within your recruitment teams
Your recruiters may have untapped skills beyond sourcing and placements.
Louise Triance, Director of Job Boards Connect highlights:
Doing more with less means making the most out of the resources you have. Think about the people in your business and how to best utilise their skills, as well as reviewing your current processes to identify areas for improvement that will benefit the business and ensure resources are used as productively as possible.
Your team's hidden talents, whether it's social media savvy, creative content, or data analysis could be the key to unlocking new growth opportunities.
Jo Major, Founder, Diversity in Recruitment adds:
Many recruiters have skills outside of work that can be leveraged for business development.
That next brand storyteller or tech expert might already be sitting within your team. Encouraging people to bring their unique skills to the table not only fuels innovation but also boosts engagement and expands your brand’s influence in unexpected ways.
7. Meet evolving client and candidate needs
Clients’ needs are always shifting—your recruitment strategy, tech and operations should ensure you stay ahead of them.
Neil Carberry, CEO of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation adds:
Understanding your clients pain points and where they are now, not where they were is really important.
Tailor your tools and services to their current needs, not outdated assumptions.
Trust is also key to lasting recruitment partnerships.
Ann Swain, CEO of APSCo, highlights:
The relationship between consultants and candidates must not be compromised.
Winning strategies to stay in sync with your clients and candidates:
- Implement candidate and client feedback loops with surveys and performance check-ins to adjust your recruitment strategies as expectations shift.
- ·Set clear expectations, keep clients and candidates informed at every stage, and follow through on promises.
- Identify emerging trends early, whether it’s skills shortages, new hiring preferences, or industry shifts—so you can lead the conversation, not chase it.
Staying ahead of these changes ensures you remain not just a service provider but a strategic partner in their growth.
Final thoughts
Insights from industry leaders make one thing clear: the future of recruitment is about working smarter, not harder, without compromising quality or human connection. Access Recruitment empowers agencies to strike that balance by blending recruitment technology with a people-first approach. By combining innovation with empathy, human-touch with data, and strategy with seamless execution, agencies can drive sustainable growth in 2025 and beyond.
Explore more about Access Recruitment: Request a demo