Mathew Gollop found Hong Kong in the back of Recruiter magazine. A glossy advert, a Chinese temple, a palm tree. He flew out, signed the contract, and landed in February 2001.
The dot-com bubble had just burst. Then 9/11. Then SARS.
Within a year the founder wanted out, and Mathew took the business over. It was the only way to keep his job.
When the market finally turned, it turned hard. Connected Group went from 7 people to 85, across 5 offices inside 5 years.
Then the financial crisis hit. £800k gone in little over a year. Six months of runway. An investor brought in, his shares diluted, offices closed one by one.
“I had dumb confidence, I think, at that time.”
On this episode of The RAG Podcast, Mathew Gollop breaks down the full arc. The scale, the near collapse, and the decision that rebuilt the business: giving recruitment away for free.
Mathew is the first to admit he loved running 85 people across five offices, and wasn't actually good at it.
If you have ever wondered whether purpose can survive a brutal market, this episode has the blueprint.
------------------------------------------
Episode Sponsor: Atlas
Admin is a massive waste of time. That's why there's Atlas, the AI-first recruitment platform built for modern agencies.
It doesn't only track CVs and calls. It remembers everything. Every email, every interview, every conversation. Instantly searchable, always available. And now, it's entering a whole new era.
With Atlas 2.0, you can ask anything and it delivers. With Magic Search, you speak and it listens. It finds the right candidates using real conversations, not simply look for keywords.
Atlas 2.0 also makes business development easier than ever. With Opportunities, you can track, manage and grow client relationships, powered by generative AI and built right into your workflow.
Need insights? Custom dashboards give you total visibility over your pipeline. And that's not theory. Atlas customers have reported up to 41% EBITDA growth and an 85% increase in monthly billings after adopting the platform.
No admin. No silos. No lost info. Nothing but faster shortlists, better hires and more time to focus on what actually drives revenue.
Atlas is your personal AI partner for modern recruiting.
Don't miss the future of recruitment. Get started with Atlas today and unlock your exclusive RAG listener offer at https://recruitwithatlas.com/therag/
------------------------------------------
Episode Sponsor: Hoxo
Every recruitment founder is investing in LinkedIn, but AI has turned templated posts and outreach into a commodity. When everyone sounds the same, the market stops listening. The recruiters winning now are the ones the market trusts.
At Hoxo we help recruitment founders become the most influential name in their niche, using AI to multiply output while trust stays the product. Our clients turn their existing networks into £100K to £300K in new billings within months. Watch the free RAG listener training to see how: https://hubs.ly/Q03lBpYC0
