{"id":21738,"date":"2025-06-30T11:59:36","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T11:59:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/recruiterflow.com\/blog\/?p=21738"},"modified":"2025-07-04T06:27:42","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T06:27:42","slug":"guy-last","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/recruiterflow.com\/blog\/guy-last\/","title":{"rendered":"You Can\u2019t Automate Trust, and Recruitment Runs on Trust \u2013 Guy Last"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the 11th episode of the Humans of Recruiterflow series, we bring you the story of Guy Last <\/a>\u2014 founder of Guy Last Recruitment<\/a><\/em> \u2014 a man who didn\u2019t step into recruitment with a plan.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It began without a playbook, without a team, and far from anything resembling a safety net \u2014 just a quiet urgency and the grit to build the plane in midair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guy wasn\u2019t looking for a new career. He was coming off a decade in Dubai\u2019s real estate trenches, leading large teams and watching the same problem play out over and over: companies were desperate for international talent, but no one was connecting the dots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cI didn\u2019t know recruitment, but I knew what it felt like to move your life across the world for a job. I knew how high the stakes were.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

That knowing became his compass. He didn\u2019t have a business model \u2014 just belief. So, from a spare room in the UK, with no office, no hires, and zero recruitment experience, Guy started matching professionals with life-changing roles in Dubai. One placement at a time. One relationship at a time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the years, he placed more than a thousand people, not through scale, but through care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then the world shut down.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

COVID hit hard. Hiring froze. Budgets disappeared. Guy had a choice: pause and protect what he had, or risk changing everything. He chose to rebuild.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThat moment forced me to let go of what had worked. I had to listen harder, think faster, and trust that doing the right thing\u2014even if it was new\u2014would keep us going.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

He introduced a retained model. Clients paid a flat monthly fee, not per hire. It gave them predictability, and it gave his team the space to focus on quality. That pivot didn\u2019t just save the business \u2014 it reshaped it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2024, he knew it was time to be closer to the work again. Guy moved back to Dubai \u2014 not to start over, but to scale what he\u2019d built from afar. He launched an embedded RPO model<\/a>, placing full-time recruiters inside client teams, supported by data, systems, and a culture rooted in trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now leading a team of over 40 people across multiple countries, Guy isn\u2019t chasing growth for growth\u2019s sake. His definition of success is quieter, more deliberate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Success Means to Guy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSuccess isn\u2019t hitting a number. If I can go home happy, knowing my team is proud, my clients are supported, and I can sit with my kids without my head still at work \u2014 that\u2019s success. That\u2019s what I\u2019m building.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guy Last has built a recruitment agency that spans continents and serves dozens of clients, but for him, success has never been about size. It\u2019s about creating a business that works in real life \u2014 one where people feel proud of what they do, and they can end each day with a clear head and time for what matters most. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

His path has included reinvention, remote teams, and hard-earned lessons, but the goal has remained simple: to do good work, take care of people, and ensure the business feels as good as it looks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hardest Part of Running a Recruitment Agency<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cThe hardest part of this job is managing expectations. Especially in recruitment, because so much is outside of your control.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Guy has seen it all: clients thrilled one month and frustrated the next, candidates dropping out, offers rejected, ghosted interviews. It all falls back on the agency \u2014 and on him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe could place five people for a client in one month, and they\u2019ll still ask for more. You smile, take a breath, and ask what else they need. That\u2019s the job.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But pressure doesn\u2019t only come from the outside. Inside the agency, the weight of keeping the team motivated is just as real. Especially when things get tough \u2014 market dips, pipeline delays, or when results don\u2019t reflect the effort put in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just about KPIs. It\u2019s about making sure your people feel seen. That they know their work matters, even when outcomes fall through.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why Guy leads with transparency and calm. He brings in people who\u2019ve experienced growth \u2014 people who know the ups and downs aren\u2019t signs of failure, just part of the ride. And he makes space for the human side of pressure: conversations, patience, and support when it\u2019s needed most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KPIs That Build Trust<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For Guy, KPIs aren\u2019t about checking boxes \u2014 they\u2019re about accountability and clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cYou can\u2019t promise results in recruitment. But you can promise the right activity \u2014 and that builds credibility.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Each month, clients receive two reports: one on recruiter activity and one on pipeline performance. Internally, these metrics also help identify where support is needed or where something\u2019s breaking down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below are a few KPIs that are the backbone of his business:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Recruiter Activity<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n