EP 49 – You Can’t Automate Your Way to a Million-Pound Desk w/ Marc Burgess
In this episode of The 1% Better Recruitment Podcast, I’m joined by Marc Burgess — technology contract recruiter, sales director at 4mation Partners, and unapologetic advocate for bringing the human touch back to recruitment. We dive deep into what recruitment really looks like when you strip away the AI tools, the ChatGPT posts, and the cookie-cutter cold call scripts — and focus on what actually works: real conversations, proven processes, and building trust through consistency. This is a raw and unfiltered conversation packed with lessons for rookies and seasoned recruiters alike. We cover: ✅ Why “relationship-building” needs to be more than just buzzwords ✅ The 30/30/30 rule for recruiters who want structure and results ✅ Marc’s take on AI, automation, and what won’t be replaceable ✅ How to build a high-performing contract desk from scratch ✅ Sales call openers that actually work (and which ones don’t) ✅ Mistakes that cost £100K+ — and what to learn from them ✅ Why skipping steps in your process is costing you revenue ✅ How to turn conversations into information, and information into deals ✅ Scaling trust in a world full of noise, spam, and shortcuts Whether you're building your first desk or running a 50-person agency, this episode is full of practical wisdom on how to actually win in recruitment today — and still be proud of how you do it. Timestamps: 00:00 – Marc’s intro and contract market background 02:00 – The human factor in recruitment vs. AI hype 06:00 – ChatGPT content, automation & real client value 09:20 – Sales calls, openers, and what makes people believe in you 14:00 – Should cold calls still be part of your BD? 18:30 – Information is currency: how to gather what others miss 24:00 – Face-to-face meetings, cheating in tech tests & the truth about trust 28:00 – Can you scale through “relationships”? (Yes, if you do this) 33:00 – Ranking your network & building a sustainable funnel 38:00 – Using information as your BD lever 43:00 – Marc’s 30/30/30 methodology explained 47:00 – Process vs. personality: how to avoid painful dropouts 52:00 – Marc’s biggest mistake (and what it cost him) 58:00 – The value of best practice, structure & brutal honesty 01:03:00 – Marc’s 1% Better tip: “You only get something if you give something first” Connect with Marc Burgess 📧 Email: See LinkedIn profile 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/burgessmarc/ Connect with Charles Kyriakou LinkedIn: / charleskyriakou1 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@charles.kyriakou Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/46LjJfw... LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/... 👇 Enjoyed this? Like, comment & subscribe — and share it with someone who needs to hear it.
