Adding more people is how you grow a recruitment firm.

Michelle Lownie spent years believing it. Then she watched it go wrong.

Michelle is the CEO and co-founder of Eden Scott, one of Scotland's leading recruitment firms. She started in recruitment in 1989, filing documents and making tea at Melville Craig on a six-week summer contract. She stayed 15 years. In 2003, she co-founded Eden Scott alongside Guy Martin and Chris Logue.

Today, Eden Scott generates approximately £25 million in annual revenue with 38 consultants across Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Glasgow. At its peak, the business had nearly 70 people.

In this episode, Michelle talks through what it took to rebuild around a smaller, higher-performing team - and how that decision changed everything about how the business runs today.

She covers the hiring process Eden Scott uses to find recruiters who don't need managing, why they've stayed on the 360 model for 23 years while everyone else splits desks, and what keeps recruiters at Eden Scott for years in an industry known for high turnover.

She also shares what the last 18 months have looked like on the ground in Scotland - and why relationship-led recruitment still matters more than ever.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How Eden Scott rebuilt from 70 people down to 38 - and what changed
How COVID became an opportunity to rebuild around the right people
The hiring process - including why interviewers never discuss candidates between stages
What Michelle is actually looking for when she makes a hiring decision
How their commission and retention structure works, including sabbaticals at 5, 10, and 15 years
How the 360 full-desk model still produces a £25 million business
What consistent business development actually looks like in practice

Episode highlights:

[13:39] How COVID forced a complete rethink of the business

[17:51] Why Michelle has no interest in scaling back to 70 people

[26:29] Why Eden Scott has stayed on the 360 model while others split desks

[35:30] The hiring process - and why interviewers don't discuss candidates between stages

[45:11] The retention strategies that keep consultants at Eden Scott for years

[52:18] Why good recruiters don't need to be pushed

This episode is sponsored by Recruiterflow - an AI-first ATS and CRM built for recruiters who want to spend less time on admin and more time on relationships. See it in action at recruitmentcoach.com/recruiterflow.

About Michelle Lownie: Michelle Lownie is the CEO and co-founder of Eden Scott, one of Scotland's leading recruitment firms with annual revenue of approximately £25 million. She began her career in 1989 at Melville Craig and co-founded Eden Scott in 2003 alongside Guy Martin and Chris Logue. The firm operates across Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Glasgow with 38 consultants.

Connect with Michelle: LinkedIn: Michelle Lownie Website: edenscott.com

Connect with Mark: Free 30-minute strategy session: recruitmentcoach.com/strategy-session Mark on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/markwhitby Follow on Instagram: @RecruitmentCoach