Two markets, one neglected.
The firm was excellent at sourcing candidates and almost entirely reactive on client acquisition. New clients arrived through job-board responses and existing relationships, which left margin and volume decided by whoever happened to call.
Details anonymised at client request.
What changed
We built a client-side demand motion around the hiring signals that indicate real, funded urgency, and gave consultants a commercial structure for the first conversation.
- Targeted accounts using hiring-velocity and funding signals.
- Led with time-to-hire and vacancy cost rather than candidate volume.
- Gave consultants a scoping and terms conversation structure.
- Separated client development time from delivery time in the weekly rhythm.
The outcome
87 qualified meetings and $234K in pipeline, with the firm able to choose which mandates to take rather than accepting what arrived.
What we would do next
Retained search is the natural next step. A predictable client pipeline is the precondition for changing the commercial model.