What if the biggest problems holding recruitment agencies back right now aren’t bad markets, lack of candidates or not enough tools… but the simple truth that most agencies are running on broken processes?

In this episode, I’m joined by Saeed Bor, Founder of Embedded Ops, and one of the most respected operators in the industry. After a career that spans enterprise tech recruitment, agency leadership, COO roles and now consulting across dozens of recruitment businesses, Saeed has developed a reputation for fixing what founders overlook — the processes, ratios, habits and workflows that directly drive profitability.

We dive into the realities of recruitment operations today, why process beats tech every time, the truth behind skill vs will performance issues, how to diagnose broken delivery, and why ops and L&D now sit at the centre of every modern agency. This conversation is honest, practical and packed with insights that most recruiters never hear, but desperately need to understand if they want to scale sustainably.

If you’re a recruiter, leader or founder who wants to improve performance, build consistency, increase profitability, and future-proof your agency, this episode is essential listening.

We explore

✅ Why process beats tech, and how most agencies get this backwards
✅ Skill vs will — and how to diagnose recruiter performance issues instantly
✅ The ratios every recruiter and founder should track
✅ Why process mapping often fails and how to fix it
✅ How L and D, ops and delivery now overlap
✅ Why consultants avoid structure — and how to build habits that stick
✅ The hidden bottlenecks costing agencies time, money and clients
✅ How personal branding creates warm BD at scale
✅ The realities of solo consulting, burnout and boundaries
✅ Parenting, balance and building a business without losing yourself
✅ How AI and GPT tools are reshaping operational work
✅ The difference between process-led delivery and chaos-led delivery
✅ Saeed’s 1 Percent Better tip for recruiters and founders

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – Intro and welcome
01:00 – Who is Saeed Bor
04:00 – Processes over tech: the truth about agency performance
08:00 – Diagnosing skill vs will
12:00 – Ratios, data and recruiter output
17:00 – Why process mapping normally fails
22:00 – L and D, ops and continuous improvement
28:00 – Skill, will and recruiter development
33:00 – ROI, implementation and operational impact
38:00 – The reality of being a solo operator
45:00 – RecExperts and building new ventures
50:00 – Burnout, life balance and parenthood
58:00 – Personal branding and awareness
01:05:00 – AI, GPTs and the future of recruitment ops
01:12:00 – Saeed’s 1 Percent Better tip

🔗 Connect with Saeed

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saeedbor/

🔗 Connect with Charles Kyriakou

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskyriakou1/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@charles.kyriakou
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@charleskyriakou
LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7244346543967731712

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Mention 1 Percent Better Recruitment Podcast or my name, Charles Kyriakou, when you sign up by clicking the link, or head to https://sourcewhale.com/demo to get started.