EP 52 – Rebuilding Sales Culture in Recruitment w/Terry Payne
In this episode of The 1% Better Recruitment Podcast, I’m joined by Terry Payne — Global MD at Aspire, with nearly three decades in staffing, leading recruitment teams across the UK, Singapore, Dubai, and New York. We dig into the changing landscape of recruitment sales culture, the balance between automation and human touch, and how to build high-performance teams in a post-COVID, hybrid-working world. Terry also shares his personal journey from leaving school at 16 to running a global recruitment business — and why he’s passionate about creating opportunities for underprivileged talent. If you want real talk on building sales culture, leading with purpose, and keeping your “tap” running in recruitment, this episode is packed with actionable insights. We cover: ✅ Why sales culture has declined in recruitment (and how to fix it) ✅ The danger of going “all-in” on automation or cold calling ✅ How to create non-negotiable sales sprints that actually work ✅ Balancing BD with service delivery (and avoiding feast-or-famine) ✅ The “warm bath” analogy for keeping pipelines healthy ✅ How working from home has impacted sales skills & culture ✅ The case for hiring on behaviours over qualifications ✅ Terry’s journey from council estate to global MD ✅ Why underprivileged talent can outperform “perfect CVs” ✅ The importance of resilience, EQ, and constant learning Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro & welcome to the episode 01:56 – Terry’s background & Aspire’s global reach 03:44 – How sales culture in recruitment has diminished 05:34 – Balancing automation and human connection 07:53 – The power of LinkedIn & WhatsApp voice notes 09:41 – How to rebuild sales culture in your team 12:05 – Why weekly sales training is non-negotiable 14:20 – Sharpening the saw: why top billers still train 16:09 – The “warm bath” analogy for consistent BD 18:08 – Avoiding feast-or-famine in recruitment 20:08 – Ranking jobs A, B, C to prioritise effort 21:05 – Planning & protecting sales sprint time 22:52 – Key BD activities during sales sprints 25:12 – How WFH has impacted sales culture 27:30 – Why face-to-face meetings still matter 29:40 – Why trainees should start in-office 31:41 – How office culture builds EQ & resilience 33:47 – The value of diverse perspectives & debate 35:42 – Terry’s school experience & early career 38:02 – Hiring for behaviours over qualifications 40:28 – Education vs. opportunity in recruitment 42:39 – Charles’ similar school & career journey 43:35 – Why sales celebrates underdog stories 45:51 – Lessons from combat sports & top athletes 47:46 – Why nobody owes you anything in business 49:01 – Terry’s 1% Better tip: push through fear & keep learning Connect with Terry Payne 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terry-payne-09722856/ Connect with Charles Kyriakou LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskyriakou1 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@charles.kyriakou Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-1-better-recruitment-podcast/id1673161288 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/46LjJfwc3WcKfvcIKLRF9L LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-1-better-recruitment-podcast-7027606689657085952
