Why Volume Recruitment is Dead: Human Connection, Expertise & Grit Are the Future of Hiring

The recruitment industry is changing faster than a Qantas flight out of Melbourne. And like that airport terminal, a lot of agencies haven’t updated in decades.

The truth is this: volume recruitment is dead. The future belongs to those who bring the human touch, specialisation, and grit back into hiring.

Recently, I sat down with my good friends Josh and Luca from Northstar Partners and we discussed how recruitment is changing, growing and evolving and how agencies that don’t adapt to these changes are about to get left behind. We all agreed on one thing: recruitment is no longer about transactions. It’s about transformation.

Don’t Fight It, Sail With It

Let’s face it, AI and automation aren’t going anywhere. They’re changing how recruiters work and what clients expect. Josh and Luca specialise in high demand areas like cybersecurity, data, and executive search. They see the same thing I do: if your business model relies on high turnover and fast placements, your days are numbered. AI can do the admin. It can match keywords, screen CVs, and send automated emails. But it can’t build trust, read people, or connect culture to capability.
As Luca says, “You can’t fight the wind, you’ve got to sail with it.”

The same goes for recruitment. You can’t fight technology, but you can use it to amplify human connection. At TRS Resourcing, we use tech to streamline processes, but the core of what we do will always be human-centred recruitment. The recruiters who survive the next three years will be those who bring empathy, expertise, and authenticity to every placement.

The Rise of Specialist Recruitment Agencies

The barrier to entry for recruiters is lower than ever; anyone with a laptop and a LinkedIn profile can call themselves a recruiter. But not everyone can deliver real value. The future of the industry is specialist recruitment. Businesses don’t want a database; they want a partner who knows their industry inside out, whether that’s energy transition, power generation, manufacturing, or logistics.

Specialisation gives recruiters credibility, consistency, and long-term relationships. At TRS, we’ve built our brand on niche expertise and real relationships, not cold calls and inflated job ads. If you’re in recruitment and you’re not building depth in a specific market, you’ll find yourself replaced not by AI, but by recruiters who know their craft.

Personal Brand: The New Social Proof in Recruitment

When I started out, recruitment was about phone calls, faxes, and yellow pages. Now, it’s about visibility, reputation, and personal brand. I say this to my own recruiters all the time: if you’re not posting, podcasting, or engaging, you don’t exist. Liking other people’s content isn’t enough; you need to add value. A recruiter’s personal brand is their social proof. It shows clients and candidates that you know your space, that you care about outcomes, and that you show up consistently. Josh and Luca have built their firm around shared values: authenticity, trust, and hard work. That’s what clients buy into. Not job ads, but people.

At TRS Resourcing, we’ve built our brand around the same idea: honesty, integrity, and expertise. If your personal brand doesn’t reflect that, no one’s going to trust you with their next hire.

What Makes a Super Recruiter?

To thrive in 2025 and beyond, recruiters need to evolve into what I call The Robocop of recruiters, “Super Recruiters, part strategist, part salesperson, part human connector.

Here’s what defines a true professional in this game:

Resilience & Empathy: Without resilience, you burn out. Without empathy, you can’t connect. Listen first, then act.
Curiosity: Don’t just take job orders. Ask questions others won’t: Why are you hiring for this role? What’s the bigger business challenge?
Killer Instinct: You’ve got to see opportunity and move fast. As Josh puts it, “Be the shark, not the seal.”
Commercial Mindset: Recruitment is business. You need to understand budgets, revenue, and how your work drives growth.

Josh and Luca look for recruiters with team sport backgrounds, people who understand teamwork, discipline, and accountability. Their philosophy is simple: they’re not a “family” business; they’re a high-performance team. I agree. You can’t as a recruiter cruise along, I believe in showing up, taking responsibility, and delivering results. That’s what separates good recruiters from great ones.

Grit, Partnership, and Purpose: The Future of Recruitment

Building a recruitment business takes more than skill; it takes grit and trust. We’ve learned that the relationship between partners matters more than the sector you recruit in. If the partnership’s off, the business doesn’t work.

For us, it’s about mutual respect and alignment. Our clients trust us because we show up, communicate honestly, and deliver what we promise. The big end of town often gets lazy. That’s where smaller, specialist recruitment firms like TRS and Northstar are thriving. We don’t sell volume, we sell outcomes. We work closely with directors, hiring managers, and site supervisors to make sure placements have good retention.

Our focus is on long term recruitment partnerships, not one off transactions. More face time. More genuine conversations. More accountability. That’s how recruitment should be.

TRS and Tav’s Takeaway

Recruitment isn’t about filling jobs anymore; it’s about building relationships and solving problems. The future belongs to those who understand that technology supports recruitment but doesn’t replace the recruiter.