Years ago, I was already against the old playbook in recruitment, which is why I founded iTrust.

❌ Cold calling hundreds of people a day
❌ Pushing candidates for intel
❌ Forcing deals through the back door

I always said it couldn’t be the only way of working because it frustrated clients and it frustrated candidates.

One moment that confirmed this for me happened about 12 years ago.
I was with a senior decision maker at a big pharma client, standing in the queue to grab a coffee. In just a few minutes, his phone rang three or four times. Each time, he brushed it off with a frustrated look, “another recruiter pestering me.”

That stuck with me. It wasn’t partnership. It was noise.

Now, to be clear, I know many people in recruitment who do work in a partnership-led way, and I have huge respect for them. But the challenge is where KPI targets dominate, recruiters are often thrown in at the deep end with little chance to build partnerships.

Of course, benchmarks are important, but where are the benchmarks for trust and relationships? Hats off to the firms that balance both. That’s where we should be heading.

The future belongs to those who can adap,t who can build trust, create partnerships, and work with intelligence and strategy.

And here’s one of my biggest learnings:
You can’t always coach everyone into a partnership mindset that enjoys being in a performance culture or other way round.

When you’re building a partnership culture, it’s crucial to hire the right DNA, people who can spot opportunities that will add value to clients and candidates, and do it with trust and collaboration at the core.

👉 The industry is changing fast — how are you making sure your approach stands out for the right reasons?