DOMINIC WATERS ON REC TALKING RECRUITMENT
Featured twice on Talking Recruitment
The Recruitment & Employment Confederation has invited Dominic Waters onto two Talking Recruitment episodes: one examining the human advantage in an AI-shaped industry, and one focused directly on avoiding costly recruitment mis-hires.
LATEST EPISODE · AI AND HUMAN JUDGEMENT
The Human Advantage: What Recruiters Need in an AI World
Dominic joined REC Chief Executive Neil Carberry and Laura Tressler to discuss how AI is changing recruitment, how consultants can help clients apply it intelligently and why judgement, challenge, empathy and real two-way conversation are becoming more valuable—not less.
The discussion also considers what separates a genuinely effective recruiter from someone who can simply present well in an AI-assisted hiring process.
Three moments from the AI discussion
EARLIER EPISODE · RECRUITER HIRING
Hiring for Growth: How to Avoid Costly Mis-hires in Recruitment
In this earlier Talking Recruitment conversation with Maxine Bligh, Dominic focused on the commercial damage caused by poor recruiter hires—and why experience, confidence and a polished interview do not necessarily prove that someone has the resilience, motivation and appetite for the sales activity the role requires.
The episode explores how recruitment businesses can test the evidence more effectively before hiring, ask sharper interview questions and use objective assessment to reduce avoidable risk.
WHY IT MATTERS
- A bad hire costs far more than salary.
- Interview polish can conceal low sales comfort.
- Resilience and prospecting motivation need evidence.
- Better assessment produces better questions and onboarding.
TWO CONVERSATIONS · ONE CONSISTENT THEME
Convincing is not the same as capable
AI may make applications and interviews more polished, but recruitment firms still need credible evidence that a candidate will prospect, challenge, persevere and build the relationships on which performance depends.
Look beyond presentation
CVs, experience and confident answers are useful evidence—but none proves consistent sales behaviour.
Test the real demands
Assess comfort with prospecting, challenge, rejection and the daily activities the role actually requires.
Use the findings
Turn the evidence into sharper interviews, realistic onboarding and earlier management action.
HIRING A RECRUITER?
Try one SPQ*GOLD assessment free.
See what changes when the interview is supported by sales-specific evidence, targeted questions and practical onboarding guidance.
