How Recruitment Competition Evolved - And Why Collaboration Now Wins

When I first entered recruitment, there was an unwritten rule: every other agency was the enemy

We battled hard for every role, every candidate, every contact.

We were creative - sometimes too creative - in how we competed.

Back then, collaboration with “competitors” was almost considered treachery. It was a classic dog-eat-dog industry mentality. But I’m grateful to say - the industry has changed, and thankfully for the better.

From Rivalry to Respect
Even early in my career, not in the first 18–24 months, admittedly - I made it a priority to maintain good rapport with rival agencies. I respected the consultants I worked alongside on other contracts. I saw them not as enemies, but as professionals doing an incredibly tough job, just like me.

That mindset didn’t always come naturally - especially coming from those early, high-pressure temp environments, but it has become one of the strongest foundations of my career.

Because what I learned was simple:
✔️ Relationships matter
✔️ Trust matters
✔️ And how you engage with others ultimately shapes your reputation

A Shift Toward Community: TRN World
More recently, I’ve embraced a very different type of engagement.

I joined (TRN) The Recruitment Network - a global platform where recruitment professionals share ideas, insights and resources rather than guard them.  This community isn’t about swapping candidates behind closed doors - it’s about exchanging learning, strategy, tools and best practice so we all become better:
✅ Peer-to-peer learning and support.
✅ Access to toolkits, templates and training.
✅ Industry events and strategy sessions.
✅ Shared insight into performance and growth areas.

It’s collaboration in its most useful form, and it’s the opposite of the “every other agency is the enemy” mentality I learned at the start.

And more importantly - it delivers real outcomes.

Recently, I was speaking with a long-standing tech client who was scaling their development team in South Africa, but struggling to gain traction. Through TRN, James Osborne connected me with a reputable specialist agency based locally. After sharing some background on the business and what success would look like, I made the introduction.

The result? My client released 20 roles to that agency.
Because our role isn’t always to deliver - sometimes it’s to direct.

Real consultancy isn’t about owning every vacancy. It’s about ensuring your client gets the best possible outcome, even if that means stepping aside and connecting them with someone better positioned to help.

Collaboration like this simply wasn’t how recruitment operated when I started. But today, it’s one of the clearest ways we can add value.

Relationships open doors. Trust keeps them open.

Being part of this kind of network has strengthened my relationships with other agency leaders, widened my thinking, and importantly, made me a better consultant and business owner.

Why This Matters for Clients & Hiring Managers:

So what does this actually mean for clients and hiring leaders?

Here’s the real impact:
🔹 Better market insight – through shared intelligence, not siloed information. 
🔹 Faster solutions – stronger networks help reduce friction in hard-to-fill roles.
🔹 Wider reach – collaboration often leads to creative sourcing approaches.
🔹 More strategic hiring advice – informed by diverse experience, not one-way thinking.

Because in today’s hiring market, access often beats ownership.  Ultimately, this matters because clients and candidates don’t want the old school territorial game.

They want speed, clarity, insight and service that delivers results, and that’s exactly what relationships built on trust enable.

Relationships & Trust - Still the Fundamentals
Through every shift in technology and hiring practices, two things haven’t changed:
💡 Relationships still win. 
🤝 Trust still matters.

Competition had its place in building resilience early in my career. But collaboration?

Collaboration builds strength, sustainability and better outcomes - for agencies, for clients, and for candidates.

That’s been one of the biggest lessons in my recruitment journey.

What This Means for Our Clients:
For us as an agency, this shift toward collaboration isn’t just philosophical - it directly shapes how we support our clients. It means broader networks. Better insight. Faster access to specialist expertise when needed.

And ultimately - better hiring outcomes. Because great recruitment was never meant to be territorial.  It’s about building trusted relationships and doing what’s right to help our clients succeed.

The industry may have evolved, but our focus remains simple: deliver the best solution, not just the closest one.

And that’s exactly the kind of agency we’re committed to being.

In today’s market, the strongest agencies aren’t defined by who they compete against, but by who they’re trusted to work alongside.

Article by Peter Hunt
Recruitment Director at WRUK Ltd t/a Workshop Recruitment