Episode 124 - How to Build A High-Performing Staffing Team Without A Toxic Sales Culture with Corie Begley

The staffing industry thrives on performance...but at what cost?

In this episode of Talent Titans, Suki is joined by Corie Begley, Senior Vice President at Vertical Staffing Resources, to unpack one of the most overlooked challenges in recruitment: the rise of the "lone wolf" biller and how it silently erodes team culture, client growth, and long-term success.

Corie shares how her organization transformed from siloed, individual-driven performance into a collaborative, high-impact model, without sacrificing results. From navigating client demands, AI in recruitment and protecting margins to knowing when to walk away from bad business, this conversation delivers valuable leadership lessons for anyone in staffing or sales.

If you're leading a team, scaling an agency, or trying to survive in a high-pressure sales environment, this episode will challenge how you think about performance, culture, and growth.

Key Moments:

00:00 Intro and Message from Ascen
00:40 Meet Corie Begley
01:37 The Lone Wolf Culture
03:41 Building Collaboration
16:19 Upgrading Candidate Quality
22:59 Walking Away from Risk and Over Terms
26:44 Honesty Builds Partnerships!
28:49 An AI Hype Reality Check
39:18 We're in The People Business

Favorite Quote:

"We're in the people business. If everything becomes manufactured, you lose the relationship—and that's everything."

Connect with Corie:

Corie is an accomplished executive with a diverse leadership skill set that spans sales, marketing, operation strategic planning, and finances. For the past 10 years she has leveraged these experiences to ensure best-in-class client service delivery, building and maintaining key partnerships as well as driving sales, profit, and market shares in the staffing industry. As the Senior Vice President at Vertical Staffing Resources Inc, one of Canada's fastest growing staffing companies, Corie oversees the success of 5 regional operational teams, a national sales team, and a successful direct hire division. She has been instrumental navigating two acquisitions in under four years setting the standards for creating a collaborative, inclusive, empowering working environment while striving to ensure Vertical remains a trusted, respected business partner to their many clients across Canada.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coriebegley/

Check out more episodes of the Talent Titans Podcast:

Why Contingency Recruiting is Dying: https://youtu.be/BAE9lrl8z74

Master Niche Recruiting: https://youtu.be/RoRWQ5bwPm0

Connect with Suky:

Award-Winning Advisor & Industry Voice | Founder: Canadian Staffing Summit, Talent Titans, Recruitment Professionals Forum | Backing Bold Moves in Staffing, Tech & Investment — No Clickbait, Just Real Talk

Suky doesn't just observe the staffing industry — she helps shape it.

She's built platforms where the industry's most honest conversations happen:

🔹 Canadian Staffing Summit

🔹 Talent Titans Podcast

🔹 Recruitment Professionals Forum

For over two decades, Suky's helped recruitment businesses scale with integrity — from internal team builds to boardroom strategy. She works with agency leaders, tech innovators, and the investors backing the future of staffing.

But here's what Suky doesn't do: copy-paste playbooks, fluff-filled advice, or empty hype.

She believes in smart growth, real talk, and community over competition.

Her work sits at the intersection of:

People + Performance

Tech + Disruption

Strategy + Soul

Whether she's coaching founders, advising SaaS firms, or connecting those quietly rewriting the rules — one thing holds true:

Suky backs those who build.

www.eliteglobalrecruiters.com

Grab of a copy of "How to Launch a Staffing Agency: Plan to Profits in 90 Days or Less"

Talent Titans is sponsored by Ascen. Ascen is an employer of record that helps staffing and recruitment agencies hire employees compliantly throughout the US and Canada. Ascen's all-in-one, white-label platform handles onboarding, timesheets, payroll, benefits, insurance, invoicing, and funding so you can grow quickly in the US and Canada without worrying about back office and paperwork. Visit ascen.com to learn more.