Most recruitment advice
comes from people who’ve
never built a recruitment business.
I’ve started, scaled, and exited eight of them — through the GFC, COVID, market cycles, and the operational realities most advisors only theorise about. If you’re building a recruitment agency, I help you make the calls that matter — with the perspective of someone who’s been there at every stage.
I’ve spent twenty-five years in recruitment. Multiple ventures founded, scaled, and exited across the United Kingdom and Australia. The lessons I share are not borrowed.
I started my first agency in 2003 and doubled revenue every year through the GFC before selling to a VC. Since then I've built and exited multiple businesses across mining, construction, infrastructure, healthcare, agedcare, government, and finance - operating nationally and internationally. Multiple ventures founded, scaled, and exited across the United Kingdom and Australia.
The wins teach you what works. The harder periods teach you what actually matters. I've experienced both - and I work with founders who want the truth, not the playbook. If you're building a recruitment agency - pre-launch, scaling, or scrambling - I'll show you the road, the cliffs, and how to drive faster without going over..
A career built on what works.
A twenty-five year operating record across the UK and Australia. Ventures founded, scaled, exited. Industries opened, contracts won, teams built. The kind of record that earns the right to advise.
- Twenty-five years in recruitment
- United Kingdom & Australia
- Multi-venture founder & operator
- Multiple successful exits
- Permanent, temporary & contract
- Industry-recognised across awards bodies
- Mining
- Engineering
- Healthcare
- Infrastructure
- Government
- Aged Care
- Construction
- Education
- Finance
- Property
- Startup Executive of the Year 2022The CEO Magazine
- CEO of the Year 2023, Highly Commended ($20M–$100M)The CEO Magazine
- Extraordinary Leader in Recruitment 2023CIO VIEWS
- 10 Most Influential Business Leaders 2023CIO Views
“Revolutionising the recruitment industry with passion and innovation.”
Forbes
“The ability to successfully tread such a fine line is a gift.”
The CEO Magazine
“An extraordinary leader in recruitment and staffing solutions.”
CIO Views
You don’t need more theory.
You need the right call, made well.
Most founders I work with arrive at one of these moments. If any of them sound familiar, we should talk.
You’re a top-billing recruiter ready to launch.
You don’t want to figure it out by trial and error. You want the structure right from day one.
You’re scaling and the systems aren’t keeping up.
Revenue is growing but margins are leaking. Compliance, cashflow, and reporting are starting to break.
You’re winning work but losing margin.
Pricing, payment terms, deal structure, and contractor management need a strategic rethink.
You’re considering investors, M&A, or exit.
You want to maximise valuation, position cleanly, and avoid the structural surprises that kill deals.
You’re navigating a hard moment.
Cashflow pressure, restructure, key departures, or a major client loss. Honest, calm, experienced support.
You’re expanding — interstate or international.
Multi-office, multi-sector, or cross-border. Frameworks for running it well, not just bigger.
What we’ll actually work on.
Every engagement is shaped by your business and your stage. These are the four areas we draw from. Most founders touch all of them.
Start & Structure
The foundations you set today define the business you’ll run tomorrow. Get the structure right before you scale.
- Business model & niche positioning
- Legal structure (company, partnership, trust)
- Equity models & founder agreements
- Compliance & insurances
- Operating frameworks & org design
- Financial modelling & forecasting
- Goal setting & performance mapping
- 90-day execution plan
Brand & Positioning
In a crowded industry, your brand is your leverage. Build something that commands attention, stands for something, and drives growth.
- Brand strategy & positioning
- Naming, tagline, value proposition
- Tone of voice & visual identity
- Competitor analysis & differentiation
- Website structure & copy direction
- Founder visibility & reputation
- Marketing automation & lead gen
- Employer brand for talent attraction
Tech Stack & Operations
Your tech stack shouldn’t slow you down. It should automate the admin so your team can focus on what actually matters: recruiting.
- ATS & CRM selection
- Tech stack review & optimisation
- Onboarding & mobilisation automation
- Compliance & reporting workflows
- AI integration for recruitment
- Custom ATS/CRM builds
- Digital footprint audit
- Reputation management & analytics
Scale & Growth
You’ve got the foundation. Now multiply results without multiplying chaos. Structured, profitable, and built to last.
- Strategic growth & commercial modelling
- Internal org structure & headcount
- Recruiter onboarding & retention
- Leadership & culture development
- Tender writing & bid preparation
- Expansion & market entry plans
- Investor readiness & capital raise
- Risk & cashflow management at scale
Most advisors will tell you about the wins. I’ll show you both sides.
I’ve launched eight recruitment businesses. I’ve doubled revenue through the GFC. I’ve built national operators across mining, healthcare, government, aged care, education, and infrastructure. I’ve also navigated the harder operational moments most founders fear — cashflow squeezes, restructures, and the times when the right call wasn’t the easy one.
If you only learn from people who’ve never been tested, you’ll repeat their hidden mistakes. I’ll show you the road, the cliffs, and how to drive faster without going over.
This isn’t coaching from theory. It’s advisory from lived experience — including the moments that don’t make the LinkedIn post.
Honesty over comfort
You won’t get sugar-coated advice. You’ll hear what you need to hear — not what sounds nice. That’s where the real growth happens.
Structure wins
We don’t guess, wing it, or ‘see how it goes’. Pricing, team, tenders — clarity and systems always come first.
Speed without chaos
Fast doesn’t mean messy. Move quickly, but with intent — avoiding the reactive cycles that kill most scale-ups.
I’ve been there
Every recommendation is grounded in experience. I know what works, what doesn’t, and how to avoid the expensive mistakes.
Three months. Total clarity.
A structured 3-month minimum engagement designed to take you from where you are to where you need to be. Most clients continue beyond.
Foundations & Clarity
We get under the hood of the business, validate the niche, and lock in the structural decisions that compound.
- Deep-dive diagnostic
- Niche & positioning lock-in
- Pricing & offer review
- 90-day execution plan
Revenue Momentum
We focus on getting the right deals in the door at the right margin, with discipline and cadence.
- Founder-led sales strategy
- Client acquisition systems
- Pipeline & forecast discipline
- Retained & exclusive pathways
Scale & Leverage
We build the systems and structure that let you grow without the wheels falling off — or stepping back without it falling apart.
- Systems & tech architecture
- Hiring roadmap & team design
- Founder leverage strategy
- 6–12 month growth plan
Three tiers. Same operator.
Same direct access to me. The difference is depth and intensity. Most clients start with a discovery call and we recommend the right fit together.
For recruiters launching their first agency or in their first year of operation.
+ GST · 3-month minimum
- Fortnightly 60-minute 1:1 sessions
- Async support — email & voice note (48hr)
- Monthly progress review
- Niche validation & positioning
- Offer design & pricing strategy
- Business structure & compliance setup
- 90-day execution plan
- Frameworks & templates library
For founders with traction (~$500K–$3M) ready to systematise and accelerate.
+ GST · 3-month minimum
- Weekly 60-minute 1:1 sessions
- Ad-hoc support for time-sensitive calls
- Session summaries & action tracking
- Monthly recalibration
- Founder-led sales & BD strategy
- Client acquisition systems
- Retained & exclusive pathways
- Pipeline & forecasting discipline
- Commercial & pricing modelling
- Tech stack review & optimisation
For operators at $3M+ navigating scale, expansion, restructure, or exit prep.
+ GST · 3-month minimum
- Weekly sessions + monthly deep-dive
- Priority same-day ad-hoc support
- Quarterly business health check
- Direct phone access
- Full operations & financial review
- Hiring roadmap & org design
- Founder-to-operator transition
- Tender writing & bid support
- Investor readiness & exit planning
- Crisis & restructure navigation
Strategic Intensive
A focused single engagement — one full day on-site, or two 4-hour remote sessions — to solve a specific strategic problem. Diagnostic, recommendations, and a written action plan delivered within 7 days.
Strategic Partnership
For select operators where deeper alignment makes sense, equity-based or hybrid arrangements are available by mutual agreement. Limited to 2–3 partnerships at any time.
30-day mutual fit window.
Every engagement starts with a free discovery call. If at any point in the first 30 days either of us decides we’re not the right fit, we end the engagement and refund the unused portion of the period. Clean, fair, no awkwardness. Premium advisory should be premium for both sides.
What founders usually ask.
Because the recruitment industry is specific — tender cycles, contractor cashflow, ATS/CRM architecture, RCSA compliance, perm vs. temp economics, weekly payroll, embedded vs. retained vs. contingent — and depth beats breadth every time. I’ve spent 25 years exclusively in this industry. The advisors who try to help ‘any business’ can’t go deep on what makes recruitment different. I can.
Yes. The frameworks transfer. I’ve operated in Australia and the UK and worked across multiple international jurisdictions. Most engagements are remote regardless of location. Time zones are negotiated up front.
No. Some of my best work happens in the hard moments. I’ve experienced the operational and emotional reality of running businesses through difficult periods. If you’re in the middle of one now, I’d rather have the conversation than not.
Probably not. The best time to put structure around a business is before you need it. Most founders I work with arrive successful and leave more durable. Discovery calls are free — let’s have a conversation and see.
Always. NDAs are signed at engagement start and apply to all current, past and future clients. I never share names or details across clients without explicit permission.
Yes — this often makes the work better. We’ll establish at engagement start who’s in the conversations and what stays one-to-one with the founder.
Most clients continue on a rolling monthly basis. Some move to lighter-touch quarterly check-ins. Some take what they’ve built and run with it. There’s no obligation to continue and no contract beyond the initial three months.
Because outcome guarantees in advisory are usually marketing dressed as risk reversal — they sound good and they’re unenforceable. What I offer instead is a 30-day mutual fit window with a refund of the unused portion if either of us decides we’re not the right match. That’s a real protection for both sides.
Let’s have a real conversation.
A 30-minute call. We’ll talk about where you are, where you want to go, and whether this is the right fit. No pressure. No pitch. If it’s a no, you’ll still leave with a clearer view of the next step.
Get your FREE growth assessment
Scale your recruitment business on structure. Not hustle.
From $0 to $90M in 36 months. From launch to exit. We provide the commercial blueprints and strategic advisory used to build Australia's fastest growing agencies.
Strategic advisory for recruitment founders, built on real-world experience, from launching and scaling multiple recruitment businesses to navigating restructures, exits, and high-pressure growth.
We work alongside founders through the decisions that shape the future of their business, providing the clarity and structure most never get early enough.
Strategic support for recruitment founders navigating growth, pressure, and critical decisions, grounded in lived experience, not theory.
Built on experience from founding, scaling and exiting recruitment businesses under real commercial pressure.
We help founders make the decisions that growth eventually demands.
Experience matters when the pressure is real.
Most recruitment founders don’t struggle because they lack ambition. They struggle because growth introduces complexity faster than structure can keep up.
Cashflow tightens. Decisions compound. Teams grow. Risk increases. And advice usually arrives too late, or from people who haven’t carried the responsibility themselves.
This is where experience changes the outcome.
We advise from experience, not theory.
Every framework, tool and recommendation we offer has been used inside real recruitment businesses, under pressure, at scale, and in moments that matter.
We don’t sit on the sidelines or recycle templates. We work alongside founders to get to the root of what’s holding the business back and provide strategic guidance you can actually use, when it counts.
Building recruitment businesses that last.
Our mission is simple: to help recruitment founders build real, resilient businesses, structured, scalable, and built to withstand the reality of growth.
million+
over 300 years
of experience
Start & structure
The foundations you set early determine how hard everything becomes later.
Most recruitment businesses don’t struggle because of effort, they struggle because the business was never structured to scale. We help founders move beyond the idea of “starting an agency” and build something intentional, commercial, and built to last.
what this includes
Commercial foundations
- Business model and niche positioning
- Client offer design and payment terms
- Financial modelling, forecasting, and cashflow planning
- Equity structures (solo, partnership, seed-funded)
Structure & governance
- Legal structure (company, partnership, trust)
- Compliance, insurances, and risk management
- Operating frameworks and org chart design
- Goal setting and performance mapping
Execution readiness
- Go-to-market planning and early-stage setup
- Tools, platforms, and tech stack selection
start strong. build right
Brand & positioning
In a crowded industry, clarity is leverage.
Most recruitment brands fail to stand out not because they lack capability, but because they haven’t defined what they stand for, or who they’re really for.
We help founders build brands that are commercially clear, strategically differentiated, and strong enough to support growth.
what this includes
Positioning & strategy
- Brand strategy and market positioning
- Naming, tagline, and value proposition development
- Competitor analysis and differentiation mapping
Identity & authority
- Tone of voice and visual identity
- Founder brand development
- LinkedIn and social positioning strategy
Growth enablement
- Website structure, copy direction, and asset planning
- Marketing strategy and lead generation systems
- Marketing automation and funnel design
Employer brand
- Building a brand people want to work for
make your brand impossible to ignore
Scale & growth
Growth multiplies everything, including mistakes.
Once the foundations are in place, the challenge isn’t growing faster. It’s scaling without losing control.
We work with founders to expand headcount, operations, and market reach in ways that are structured, profitable, and resilient under pressure.
what this includes
Growth strategy & commercial control
- Strategic growth planning and commercial modelling
- Managing risk and cashflow through scale
- Investor readiness and capital raise preparation
People, leadership & operations
- Internal org design and headcount strategy
- Recruiter onboarding, training, and retention systems
- Leadership development and culture design
- Process documentation and operational planning
Expansion & complexity
- Expansion roadmaps and market entry plans
- Workforce management across perm, temp, and contractor models
- Tender writing and bid preparation
- Awards submission strategy and execution
grow with confidence
Recognition
Recognised for building real businesses, not just fast ones.
“Revolutionising the recruitment industry with passion and innovation.” | FORBES
“The ability to successfully tread such a fine line is a gift.” | THE CEO MAGAZINE
“An extraordinary leader in recruitment and staffing solutions.” | CIO VIEWS
The only recruitment agency in Australia to receive Gold accreditation for
‘We Invest in People’ and ‘We Invest in Wellbeing’. | INVESTORS IN PEOPLE
Named Australia’s fastest growing recruitment agency three years running. | LINKEDIN
$2 billion
won in tenders
$65 million
GTO contract won
31 day
average
debt term
®
secured trade marks in
australia, uk & canada
600
5 star google
reviews
we're built through experience and refined by reality. these are the kinds of insights you only gain by being in it. the highs and the lows. we created this for founders who understand the passion, the risk and the drive it takes to keep going.
— Ephram Stephenson
case study
- started during COVID a volatile labour market, made us niche down
- cashflow strain from weekly payroll cycles vs slow client payment terms
- operational complexity across multiple states, award rates, & compliance regimes
- maintaining communication, leadership culture and values across national offices
- built an internal team of national recruiters, back office, and compliance
staff within the first 12 months - secured major tenders and PSAs across
multiple sectors, driving consistent contract flow - invested in brand and marketing early,
winning multiple awards and achieving strong online and community presence
overview: founded by ephram stephenson in 2021, collar talent group was launched with a bold vision: to create a high-performance recruitment agency that could compete nationally, scale fast, and disrupt industry expectations. within 36 months, the business had grown into a national operator processing over 1,400 contractor timesheets weekly, with 140+ internal staff and $90M+ annual turnover.
collar gained recognition for its progressive culture, aggressive expansion strategy, and tech-driven operations, delivering labour solutions across mining, resources, aged care, healthcare, government, and infrastructure sectors.
annual revenue in 3rd year
awards won in 3 years
weekly timesheets
online follwers
case study
- started during COVID a volatile labour market, made us niche down
- cashflow strain from weekly payroll cycles vs slow client payment terms
- operational complexity across multiple states, award rates, & compliance regimes
- maintaining communication, leadership culture and values across national offices
- built an internal team of national recruiters, back office, and compliance
staff within the first 12 months - secured major tenders and PSAs across
multiple sectors, driving consistent contract flow - invested in brand and marketing early,
winning multiple awards and achieving strong online and community presence
overview: launched: 2003 and exited: 2018 (equity sale & transition) founder & CEO, ephram built design & construct from scratch, doubling revenue annually through the GFC and ultimately expanding into five cities including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth & London. the brand was restructured and rebranded after a VC-backed equity sale to building careers australia.
annual gross
profit at peak
reached $50M revenue in 18 months post-restructure
employed 50 consultants
RIA
won best training program
online followers
shareholder
book your discovery call
whether you’re just getting started, scaling, or navigating pressure, let’s talk about what’s next.
