RecTalk Podcast - Explore Recruitment Insights

Welcome to the very first episode of Founder Diaries, a brand-new RecTalk podcast hosted by Nitin Sharma. In this launch episode, Nitin sits down with Karl Ward, Managing Director of Office Recycling Solutions, to explore a remarkable entrepreneurial journey that spans from organising corporate sporting dinners with legends like George Best and Jack Charlton, to building one of the UK’s most respected office furniture recycling businesses.

Karl shares how rugby shaped his values, why people buy from people they like, and how spotting an opportunity in the waiting list for a local sporting club led him to create a thriving events business. After selling that company, he took a leap into the world of sustainable office furniture—buying a struggling business in 2009 and transforming it into a multi-million-pound operation with a strong focus on quality, customer trust, and environmental responsibility.

We dive into:

• How rugby instilled leadership, respect, and teamwork that shaped Karl’s business style
• Building a corporate events empire from scratch and rubbing shoulders with sporting heroes
• The decision to sell and the challenges of “what next?” as a young entrepreneur
• Buying a failing office furniture company and scaling it into a profitable £6M+ business
• The balance between traditional sales, showrooms, and cutting-edge digital marketing (SEO, PPC, Meta campaigns)
• The role of resilience through the pandemic and the importance of empowering a younger, digital-savvy workforce
• Why sustainability and re-use in office furniture is smarter for businesses, budgets, and the planet

Karl’s philosophy is simple: do what you love, surround yourself with great people, treat everyone with respect, and success will follow.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment and business leaders looking for inspiration on resilience and growth
• Entrepreneurs navigating career pivots or exploring new industries
• Founders wanting to balance tradition with digital-first strategies
• Anyone curious about how sustainability and business can thrive together

🔗 Connect with Karl Ward

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

Office Recycling Solutions: https://ors-recycle.co.uk/

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

RecTalk will return soon! New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Founder Diaries is planned to be a weekly series, with new episodes every Monday.

#FounderDiaries #RecTalk #Entrepreneurship #Sustainability #BusinessGrowth #Leadership #OfficeRecycling #StartupJourney

In this episode of RecTalk, Nitin Sharma sits down with Marc Turner, founder of JobHack and long-time call centre leader, to explore how recruitment for entry-level roles is changing — and why the CV might finally be on its way out.

Marc shares his personal journey from redundancy during lockdown to creating JobHack, a platform designed to give candidates without polished CVs a fair shot by showcasing their skills, personality, and potential through video profiles and creative content. Inspired by social media and even dating apps, JobHack helps employers see the person behind the application while empowering candidates to present themselves authentically.

The conversation covers:

• 🚀 How Gen Z approach job hunting differently (and why the CV feels outdated).
• 🎥 Why video profiles and social media-style applications make hiring fairer.
• ❤️ Lessons JobHack borrowed from dating apps to improve recruitment.
• 📊 How companies can use JobHack to build better employer branding and boost diversity & inclusion.
• 💡 Marc’s candid insights on entrepreneurship, bootstrapping, and the lessons he learned while building JobHack from scratch.
• 🔮 The future of LinkedIn, personal branding, and whether Gen Z will need a new “career-first” social media platform.

This is a must-listen for anyone in HR, talent acquisition, recruitment, or employer branding who wants to future-proof their hiring process and connect with candidates in more authentic ways.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment business owners exploring innovative hiring tools.
• HR & TA leaders frustrated by traditional CV-led processes.
• Employers looking to engage Gen Z talent more effectively.
• Founders interested in the gritty reality of bootstrapping a tech startup.

🔗 Connect with Marc Turner

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

JobHack: https://jobhack.co.uk/

Rectools listing: https://www.rectools.io/product/jobhack/

Check out Marc’s intro to JobHack in the first of a short series:

https://youtu.be/pFSViCHrAKU

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Discover recruitment tools and services at Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#Recruitment #RecTalk #JobHack #GenZHiring #FutureOfWork #RecruitmentInnovation #HiringWithoutCVs #EmployerBranding #HRTech

In this episode of RecTalk, Nitin Sharma sits down with Matt Fox, founder of Exitus Advisory and Polaris Growth, to unpack the highs, lows, and ultimate exit of his recruitment business.

Matt shares his raw and honest journey — from launching a recruitment firm in 2011 with limited resources, scaling to award-winning success, battling toxic hires and burnout, navigating COVID, and eventually selling to the right buyer (not just the highest bidder).

Now, through Exitus Advisory, Matt helps recruitment business owners discreetly plan and execute their exits, while Polaris Growth supports ambitious firms looking to scale sustainably. Whether it’s preparing for a sale, improving financial strategy, or redefining what success really means, Matt’s insights hit home for founders at every stage.

What we cover in this episode:

• The reality of growing and selling a recruitment business (and the personal cost).
• Why choosing the right buyer matters more than the highest offer.
• How recruitment leaders can avoid burnout and toxic culture.
• Polaris Growth’s approach to scaling SMEs — from startup to 30+ headcount.
• Why traditional KPIs are outdated and how to measure what really matters.
• The loneliness of recruitment leadership — and why talking to peers changes everything.
• Redefining success: personal happiness vs. relentless growth.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment founders considering their exit strategy.
• Owners of startups to mid-sized recruitment firms looking to scale sustainably.
• Leaders who feel isolated or overwhelmed by the demands of running a recruitment business.
• Anyone who wants an honest perspective on what it takes to build, grow, and sell in the recruitment industry.

🔗 Connect with Matt Fox

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-fox-50b10311/

Exitus Advisory & Polaris Growth: https://www.linkedin.com/company/exitus-advisory/

Rectools listing: https://www.rectools.io/product/exitus-advisory/

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Discover recruitment tools and services at Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecruitmentPodcast #RecruitmentBusiness #ExitStrategy #RecruitmentGrowth #RecruitmentLeadership #RecruitmentScaling #RecruitmentFounder

Straight from RecFest 2025, this special live episode of RecTalk takes an unexpected and energetic turn! Nitin Sharma is joined by co-host Sean Kennedy and two surprise guests: Ross Wiltshire, Senior Recruiter for Technology at The Walt Disney Company, and Holly Hobbs, Co-Founder & Chief Growth Officer at urfuture — and TikTok creator with 50,000+ young followers.

This conversation blends humour with hard-hitting insights into the future of recruitment and talent:

• 🚀 Breaking into careers without connections – Holly’s path from Microsoft apprentice to launching urfuture, a Gen Z job-matching app ranked Top 100 within 12 hours of launch.
• 🏰 Disney recruitment insights – Ross reveals what it’s like hiring for technical roles across Disney+ and theme parks, plus how apprenticeships and internships help shape the next generation of Disney talent.
• 🎓 Apprenticeships vs. internships – what makes a great program for young people, and why rotation schemes matter for discovering skills.
• 🌍 Workforce values in 2025 – why Gen Z prioritises ethics, culture, and job security, and how employers can adapt.
• 🤖 AI in recruitment and entertainment – from copyright lawsuits to AI in hiring processes, and what young people really think about AI in jobs.
• 🎥 Employer branding that works – why day-in-the-life content, storytelling, and authentic employee voices attract the right talent.

It’s a mix of Disney magic, Gen Z reality, and future-of-work strategy — recorded live at the world’s biggest recruitment festival.

Who this episode is for:

• 🎓 Students, apprentices, and graduates exploring career options.
• 🏢 Recruiters, HR leaders, and TA professionals designing internship and apprenticeship schemes.
• 🎬 Employer branding specialists building content strategies for Gen Z talent.
• 🤖 Talent leaders interested in the impact of AI on recruitment and entertainment.
• 🌐 Anyone curious about Disney careers, Gen Z recruitment apps, and the future of work in 2025.

🔗 Connect with the guests

Ross Wiltshire: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ross-wiltshire-838941109/

Holly Hobbs: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollyhobbss/

🔗 Connect with the hosts

Sean Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanthetaguy/

Nitin Sharma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Discover recruitment vendors at Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecTalk #RecruitmentPodcast #RecFest2025 #DisneyRecruitment #GenZCareers #FutureOfWork #Apprenticeships #EmployerBranding #RecruitmentTechnology #AIinRecruitment #JobApps

RecTalk is live once again from RecFest 2025! Nitin Sharma and co-host Sean Kennedy are joined by two brilliant guests: Chris Woods (Recruitment Marketing Lead at Mars) and Alexandra Hunt (Senior Recruiter at Highspot).

Chris and Alexandra bring refreshing honesty about what really matters in talent acquisition, employer branding, and company culture. From the challenge of cutting through today’s shrinking attention spans to making sure the “holiday matches the brochure” when selling your company, this episode digs deep into why authenticity and transparency are non-negotiables in recruitment marketing.

The discussion also shines a spotlight on life as working parents in recruitment, exploring how flexible work, psychological safety, and supportive leadership aren’t “perks” anymore—they’re essentials. Alexandra shares candid experiences about returning to work after maternity leave, while Chris reflects on designing his career around family priorities. Together, they unpack how generational shifts, AI, and evolving expectations are changing the way companies must show up for their people.

Expect a mix of humour, honesty, and hard truths—from skateboarding down office corridors to redefining what “culture” actually means beyond buzzwords.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment and talent acquisition professionals
• Employer brand and recruitment marketing specialists
• Leaders navigating hybrid work, flexibility, and culture
• Working parents balancing career and family
• Anyone curious about the future of talent attraction in an AI-driven world

🔗 Connect with the guests

Chris Woods: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marschris/

Alexandra Hunt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandrahuntrecruiter/

🔗 Connect with the hosts

Sean Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanthetaguy/

Nitin Sharma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Discover tools and services at Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecFest2025 #RecTalkPodcast #RecruitmentMarketing #EmployerBranding #WorkingParents #TalentAcquisition #CompanyCulture #FutureOfWork

In this RecFest 2025 special, Nitin Sharma and co-host Sean Kennedy sit down with Rebecca Collis, founder of GearUp Talent, to explore how recruitment is shifting in a world obsessed with efficiency, AI, and quick fixes.

Becca shares her personal journey — from redundancy to launching her own fractional TA consultancy — and explains why scale-ups (300–500 employees) and HR tech vendors desperately need a rethink. She dives into:

• Why senior TA leaders are struggling to find perm roles and why fractional work is on the rise.
• The vendor blind spot: how RecTech providers keep solving problems recruiters don’t actually have.
• Efficiency vs. productivity in recruitment — and why chasing the wrong one dehumanises the hiring process.
• The outdated CV, AI in candidate selection, and what better “Tinder-style” shortlisting tools could look like.
• Salary mismatches, return-to-office battles, and how companies undervalue talent until it’s too late.
• Why the future belongs to flexible, freelance, and fractional experts, not unicorn hires.

Recorded live at RecFest 2025, this is a candid and unfiltered conversation about the broken parts of recruitment — and how bold leaders like Becca are building new solutions.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment & TA leaders navigating today’s volatile job market.
• Founders of scale-ups hitting the “300 employee wall.”
• HR Tech / RecTech vendors who want to build tools TA actually needs.
• Recruiters curious about fractional work as a career path.
• Anyone sick of bandwagon RTO policies and broken hiring processes.

🔗 Connect with Rebecca Collis

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

GearUp Talent: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gearup-talent/

🔗 Connect with the hosts

Nitin Sharma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Sean Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanthetaguy/

Discover tech vendors on Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecTalk #RecFest2025 #RecruitmentPodcast #TalentAcquisition #FractionalWork #HRTech #RecTech #FutureOfWork #RecruitmentInnovation

Live from RecFest 2025, Nitin Sharma and co-host Sean Kennedy sit down with Dominic Joyce of Maverick Otter and Tim Browning of Supermassive Games for a lively discussion about the real state of AI in recruitment.

In this episode, we dive into:

• The AI gold rush in recruitment tech – why vendors are pushing efficiency over genuine productivity.
• “Harassment as a Service” – the dark side of automated outreach and spammy job applications.
• AI-written CVs vs AI-written job descriptions – and the messy mismatch that follows.
• Candidate experience – why over-automation risks alienating talent and damaging employer brands.
• Humanising recruitment – how slowing down the process can lead to better outcomes.
• The future of recruitment tech – Microsoft Copilot, AI note-taking, productivity tools, and why many SaaS vendors might not survive the coming wave.
• AI vs SEO – why businesses should shift towards AI optimisation to remain visible in search.
• Recruiting as a professional service – moving beyond transactional hiring into relationship-building and true talent advisory.

Expect candid takes, laughs, and sharp insights into where hiring and technology are really headed.

Who this episode is for:

• Talent acquisition leaders frustrated by over-automation.
• Recruiters curious about how AI will really impact their jobs.
• HR and TA professionals looking to balance efficiency with humanity.
• Recruitment tech vendors who need to hear some home truths.
• Anyone at RecFest—or wishing they were!

🔗 Connect with the guests

Dominic Joyce: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dominic-joyce/ 

Tim Browning: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-browning101/

🔗 Connect with the hosts

Nitin Sharma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Sean Kennedy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanthetaguy/

Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecTalk #RecFest2025 #Recruitment #AIinRecruitment #TalentAcquisition #FutureOfWork #RecruitmentTech #EmployerBranding #Hiring

RecTalk is back, and this time, we’re live from the heart of RecFest 2025 – the biggest festival in recruitment! In this special introduction episode, host Nitin Sharma teams up with guest co-host Sean Kennedy to set the stage for an exciting series of conversations recorded at the event. As the Official Podcast Partner of RecFest 2025, RecTalk is bringing you the unfiltered energy, ideas, and industry insights straight from the field.

Nitin and Sean dive into the realities of today’s talent acquisition market – from overcomplicated hiring processes and mismatched job expectations to the power of building a strong personal brand. They share honest advice for job seekers, explore why employer branding and recruitment marketing are often overlooked, and explain how networking and relationships trump cold outreach in recruitment success.

Expect candid stories, a few laughs, and practical takeaways that will resonate whether you’re deep in TA, working agency side, or navigating your next career move. This episode sets the tone for the RecFest 2025 series – packed with interviews, fresh perspectives, and plenty of festival atmosphere.

Who this episode is for:

• Talent acquisition professionals wanting a pulse check on the 2025 job market
• Recruiters looking to sharpen their employer branding and networking game
• Job seekers aiming to stand out in a crowded market
• Anyone curious about the inside conversations happening at RecFest

🔗 Connect with Sean Kennedy

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

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecTalk #RecFest2025 #RecruitmentPodcast #TalentAcquisition #RecruitmentMarketing #EmployerBranding #JobSearchTips #Networking #TACommunity #RecruiterLife

In this essential RecTalk episode, host Nitin Sharma sits down with Adrian Marlowe — founder of Lawspeed and one of the UK’s most trusted legal experts for the recruitment sector.

Adrian shares the hard-earned lessons from decades of protecting recruitment businesses, covering:

• Why having watertight terms of business is non-negotiable
• How outdated contracts can cost you six figures (real case study inside!)
• The growing compliance risks with umbrella companies — and what joint and several liability could mean for your agency
• Negotiating client terms without losing the deal
• Proterms, a platform built by Lawspeed to keep your contracts updated, secure, and trackable in real time
• Why prevention always beats cure in recruitment law

This conversation is packed with real-world examples, insider legal tips, and clear actions recruitment owners can take today to safeguard their revenue, reputation, and resilience — whether you’re running a start-up desk or a multi-branch agency.

Who this episode is for:

• Recruitment agency owners and directors
• Talent acquisition leaders
• Contractor & temp desk managers
• Start-up founders entering the recruitment market
• Anyone using or considering umbrella companies

🔗 Connect with Adrian Marlowe

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

Lawspeed: https://www.lawspeed.com/

Proterms: https://proterms.co.uk/

Contact the Lawspeed team for expert advice and support: https://www.lawspeed.com/contact-us/

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#Recruitment #RecruitmentLaw #Lawspeed #RecTalk #RecruitmentContracts #UmbrellaCompanies #RecruitmentCompliance #JointLiability #AgencyLife #RecruitmentPodcast #Rectools

Welcome to the final instalment of a no-holds-barred 3-part solo series with your host, Nitin Sharma, Founder and CEO of Rectools.io – the only whole-of-market directory of recruitment suppliers.

In this episode of RecTalk, Nitin steps out of his comfort zone to break down a real-world strategy that’s helping recruitment consultancies diversify revenue – without picking up the phone for more BD calls or flooding inboxes with cold emails.

With hiring volumes down, payroll spending shrinking, and a saturated recruitment market, Nitin challenges recruiters to rethink their model. He reveals how referring AI and transformation consultancies to your clients can open new revenue streams – including retainer and referral income – just for making introductions. No selling. No delivery. Just connections.

🔍 Topics covered include:

• Why recruitment firms must shift from "agency" to true consultancy mindset
• Understanding how AI, automation, and transformation services are replacing headcount
• How to position yourself as the connector between clients and AI consultancies
• Real-life example of a single email intro that turned into a 6-figure deal
• The future of AI, talent, and how recruiters can stay ahead by productising relationships

This isn’t theoretical—it’s tactical. It's what’s working now in a slow market.

👥 Who this episode is for:

• Independent recruiters and boutique agencies looking to grow revenue creatively
• Recruitment consultants exploring advisory and transformation models
• Business owners ready to embrace AI-driven hiring trends
• Anyone tired of hearing “back to basics” as the only strategy

📣 Want to connect or challenge Nitin on his ideas?

He’s game. Catch him live at events such as IHR Live London, Recruitment Agency Expo, or at your local Recruitment Curry Club.

🔗 Connect with Nitin Sharma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-rectools/

Rectools.io: https://www.rectools.io/

Find out more about the Recruitment Curry Club:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-recruitment-curry-club/

New episodes drop every Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned as we launch Founder Diaries, where real entrepreneurs share raw stories of building businesses in recruitment and tech.

Listen to RecTalk on another platform: https://rectalk.co.uk/

#RecTalk #RecruitmentPodcast #AIinRecruitment #RevenueDiversification #NitinSharma #Rectools #RecruitmentInnovation #AutomationInHiring #ConsultancyNotAgency #RecruitmentStrategy