From guesswork to growth: future-proofing through customer insight

Most recruitment businesses are so busy chasing numbers, they're missing something crucial: what their customers are actually saying. While leaders pour over quarterly metrics and market reports, the real answers are often hiding in plain sight. 

Listening to your customers, really listening, isn’t just a nice idea. It’s what separates the businesses that grow from the ones that stall.

The feedback blind spot

For most recruitment companies, collecting feedback is just a box ticking exercise. An annual survey here, a post-placement call there, maybe some basic NPS scores if they're feeling fancy. This compliance-flavoured approach misses the point - and the real opportunity.

I've watched too many recruitment businesses make strategic decisions based on what they think their clients want, not what they actually need. This results in service offerings nobody asked for and commercial strategies built on assumptions, not insights.

We recently worked with a scale-up that had invested heavily in a new, app based platform. They were convinced it would revolutionise their candidate experience and impress their client base. The feedback told a different story. Candidates loved it, but clients didn’t care. What they really wanted was simple: faster hires and better-quality candidates.

Your customers have the answers

Recruitment has changed. Clients have more choices, higher expectations, and frankly, less patience for businesses that don't listen. In this environment, customer feedback becomes your competitive intelligence.

When you systematically capture and act on what clients are really saying, patterns emerge. You start seeing the gaps between what you're selling and what they're buying. You spot opportunities before competitors do. Most importantly, you stop building your strategies on boardroom theory. 

The numbers back it up. Businesses that put feedback at the heart of their planning see up to 20% better client retention and grow revenue 25% faster. Why? Because they're solving real problems,  not imaginary ones. They’re building services their customers truly value.

Make feedback part of the culture

Forget the occasional survey. Systematic feedback collection means building it into your commercial DNA. Start by mapping the full customer journey. Identify the moments that matter most, from initial engagement to contract renewal. Build structured feedback into those touchpoints and go further than “How did we do?” 

Ask them:

• “What would make this better?”

• “What’s changed for you recently?”

• “Where do you see your biggest challenges emerging?”

That’s how you find gaps in your offering - and your opportunities for growth. 

But here's where most businesses stumble: they collect feedback and then file it away. You must use these insights to shape your strategic decisions. Your commercial strategy should be a living document that evolves in response to what your customers are telling you, not just what your reports say. 

Making it work in practice

The most successful recruitment businesses treat feedback as a strategic asset. They assign ownership, create regular review cycles, value curiosity and most importantly, they do something with it. 

This isn't about bombarding customers with surveys. It's about building regular, meaningful conversations into the relationship with regular business reviews, informal check-ins and structured feedback sessions.

The key is consistency. One conversation is a snapshot. Ten conversations show you the full picture.

Convert customer data into concrete change

I've seen recruitment businesses completely transform their approach based on systematic feedback. 

One of our clients discovered that two of their key, strategic corporate accounts were crying out for diversity-focused recruitment strategies. Instead of waiting for the market to catch up, they built the capability themselves and became the go-to partner in their sector.

Another realised their SME clients needed more flexible payment terms during economic uncertainty. A simple change, but one that secured millions in retained business while competitors lost accounts.

This is what listening does.

Always stay curious

Feedback isn’t about ticking boxes or boosting NPS. It’s about building strategies that actually work. Understanding what your clients really value is the only sustainable edge. And that understanding isn’t static. As the team at See Research recently put it, “Value is no longer a metric. It is a nuanced concept.”  

And a moving target! 

The recruitment businesses that will thrive are those that genuinely ask, listen, learn and adapt. So next time you're in a strategy session, start with the most important question: 

What are our customers really telling us?