As we returned to the office after summer, I’ve been reflecting on the events I attended and the insights they offered the recruitment industry.
From events like RECLive25, the REC’s annual conference, to Vision33’s Fireside Chat at the REC with Neil Carberry, CEO at REC, and Caroline Xu, EVP of Commercial Finance at Sage, the conversations all pointed to a common theme: Despite the regulatory challenges, economic uncertainty, and a tough labour market, there are clear opportunities for recruitment businesses to prepare for the future.
The recruitment industry has always been about people: Building relationships, placing talent, and helping clients grow. But as we look to new markets and business models, the agencies that will thrive are those that get their back office right—particularly finance.
As Caroline Xu highlighted during the fireside chat, finance is fundamentally shifting. With automation and AI on the rise, the finance function is no longer just about recording history. Instead, finance leaders are forward-looking partners, using data to ask the ‘So what?’ questions:
Neil Carberry added that in today’s tougher market—where money costs money, margins are under pressure, and volatility is the norm—recruitment leaders need clear, reliable data to make confident decisions.
This echoed the theme at RECLive25: Be ready for when the market turns.
At RECLive25, one theme stood out: In uncertain times, many agencies fall back into comfort zones. They either stick with the status quo or copy others. But these aren’t strategies.
If you wait until the rebound before making changes, you’ll be reactive, not ready. And copying others risks eroding your unique strengths.
The agencies that succeed will be those that take a hard look inward—reviewing processes, challenging inefficiencies, and ensuring systems are set up to support growth.
Recruitment faces unique financial pressures:
In this environment, real-time visibility on cash flow, profitability per placement, and the true cost of growth is critical.
Too often, agencies focus on top-line revenue. But in today’s market, margins matter most. You need to know:
This isn’t just useful—it’s essential. It allows you to hold your value, set pricing strategically, and double down where your business performs best.
Many recruitment agencies invest heavily in front-office systems like CRM, candidate management, and time & billing platforms. But finance often lags behind, stuck in silos with manual Excel workarounds.
This is inefficient and hides the real picture of business performance. As my colleague Duncan Wyeth said during the fireside chat:
“The ability to integrate CRM, time & billing, and finance systems doesn’t just create efficiency—it allows recruitment leaders to analyse profitability down to the placement level. Did that temp placement actually make money?”
This is where platforms like Sage Intacct come in—providing automation, integration, live data, and scenario modelling. With the right system, finance teams can spend less time processing and more time advising.
Neil Carberry summed it up well: The real value in recruitment lies in our relationships with clients and candidates. Processes should enable, not distract from, that focus.
For recruitment businesses looking to expand into new markets or evolve their models, finance leaders can become the COOs of the future—guiding investments, ensuring compliance, and proving value to clients.
The lesson from both RECLive25 and the fireside chat is this: Waiting for the market to turn is not the answer. The businesses that will thrive are those acting now to streamline processes, focus on margins, and use financial insight to drive strategy.
As part of the REC’s New Markets, New Models initiative, my message is this: Don’t overlook the power of your finance function. With the right systems and processes, finance stops being a cost centre and becomes a growth engine—helping your agency seize new opportunities, navigate uncertainty, and build for the long term.
At Vision33, we’re proud to support recruitment businesses on this journey. We help them transform finance from “bean counting” into building the strategy for determining which beans make the best coffee.