How Ethea Solutions Scales GTM Search in APAC with 500% More BD Outreach and 50% Higher Responses

About Ethea Solutions

Ethea Solutions is a next-generation executive search and international expansion consultancy specifically for technology businesses looking to expand into (or grow within) the Asia-Pacific region.

Successful expansion within the Asia-Pacific region is a unique challenge, one where engaging with a specialist partner is essential. Every country has different cultural nuances along with laws and regulations, not to mention languages. Ethea Solutions was created to be that partner.

They work only with technology businesses and cover only the Asia-Pacific market. They’re hyper-specialised in delivering exceptional GTM talent in the region with a market-leading time to hire. We spoke with James Homer, Founder of Ethea Solutions, about building his firm from the ground up with Atlas.

Check out our full discussion below or keep reading for more details!

Creating a Focused GTM Search Practice Built for Scale

Starting the firm meant balancing incorporation, IT setup, early client delivery, and the demands of managing every function alone. After 15 years in recruitment, James knew that admin had always slowed him down. 

Processing 30 to 40 candidates a week while keeping systems accurate felt unrealistic without a better operational setup. He wanted a genuinely tech-enabled foundation that could help him move quickly without compromising quality.

“Launching Ethea meant managing every operational detail while still delivering at a high level. I needed a system that would support the business from the ground up and remove the friction I’d dealt with for years.”

Discovering a System That Matched the Vision for Ethea

James explored multiple platforms while preparing to launch the business. His goal was to find technology that could support a streamlined, high-performance search model without the administrative load he had dealt with for years. 

He tested systems such as Bullhorn and Loxo, along with different supporting tools, but none delivered the cohesive experience he needed as a founder managing every aspect of the company.

A Reddit thread eventually pointed him toward Atlas. After speaking with the team and starting a trial, it became clear that the platform aligned with the way he wanted to work. “I wanted a small, highly profitable, highly focused search business and needed to know how I would do everything,” he said. “I have never been great at admin, and Atlas removed that concern immediately.”

The impact was strong enough that James decided to build Ethea on Atlas from day one. “I managed to build the business around Atlas,” he shared. “There were no integration issues at all because every tool I considered had to be able to work with it.” The platform provided a scalable, automated foundation that aligned with his vision for a boutique, tech-enabled practice ready to serve high-growth clients across APAC.

Streamlined Recruiting That Saves 15+ Hours Every Week

As Ethea grew, James needed a system that could manage the volume and complexity of GTM searches without slowing him down. He regularly processes 30 to 40 candidates a week, and in previous roles, this workload created a constant backlog of notes, updates, and data entry. Atlas changed that reality from the first month.

The AI note taker, calendar booking tool, automatic enrichment, and AI-generated reports removed the repetitive tasks that once consumed entire evenings. “I have never been great at administrative tasks because there are always so many variables to control,” he said. “Atlas took all of that away and allowed me to focus on the work that moves searches forward.”

It gives me an extra day back. I do not write candidate notes anymore. The platform handles all of it.

With every interaction captured and structured automatically, James no longer updates systems retrospectively or moves between spreadsheets, email, and separate extensions. The Chrome extension moves candidates directly into projects. Contact details appear instantly. The platform assigns information to the right record without manual intervention.

The Kanban view also added clarity to his daily process. Before Atlas, James did not consider himself a visual organiser, yet the structured layout helped him stay on top of each search while reducing cognitive load. The streamlined workflow became an essential part of how Ethea operates.

Driving Better Conversations and 50% Higher Response Rates

The candidate experience became a central advantage for Ethea once James integrated Atlas into his daily workflow. He had not used an AI note taker before and quickly saw how it reshaped both the structure and quality of conversations. With transcription handled automatically, he could focus fully on the person in front of him, ask broader questions, and guide the discussion with greater attention.

The change also influenced how candidates engaged with him. With each conversation captured in detail, James encouraged longer, more reflective answers, leading to a deeper understanding of their motivations and capabilities. “I ask open questions and let candidates speak. The note taker captures everything in the background,” he said.

I have no idea how many details we missed in the past. That is not a problem anymore.

The impact extended beyond calls. By using the Ask AI feature to review transcripts alongside CVs, James could provide structured assessments to his clients more quickly and with more clarity. This consistency strengthened trust with hiring teams and improved the speed of shortlisting.

Candidate response rates also improved significantly across challenging markets. Regions like Japan, Korea, and China traditionally require more effort to reach talent, yet Atlas campaigns increased replies by 50%. This opened new streams of qualified candidates in geographies where engagement had previously been unpredictable.

500% More BD Output and New Clients Won

Atlas became a core driver of revenue for Ethea once James began using sequences to manage outreach. The BD tools replaced a fragmented process that once required multiple platforms and manual tracking. With templates, automation, and integrated client records, outreach increased sharply without additional effort.

We now send five times the amount of BD messages while spending less time on it.

The impact was immediate. A pre-IPO FinTech client in Singapore, converted through an Atlas sequence, has billed more than 100k USD with Ethea. Several other campaigns produced new conversations that evolved into retained projects, setting a strong foundation for the firm’s first year of growth.

Atlas gave James a scalable BD engine that supported consistent activity, clearer follow-up, and stronger conversion rates, all without additional tools or administrative overhead.

Winning Clients With Clear Insight and Structured Process

Atlas helped James strengthen his client pitches by giving hiring teams a clear view of how each search operates. Sharing short Loom walkthroughs of his workflow became an effective part of winning new projects, especially retainers. Clients saw how the platform assessed candidates using transcripts, CVs, and structured fields, which elevated the professionalism of the process.

“Clients are always impressed when they see how Atlas evaluates candidates and organizes the search,” James said. Magic columns added further clarity by helping him sort profiles quickly and explain his reasoning to stakeholders.

The platform has helped convert more of my searches into retained work.

As a result, several clients brought on in recent quarters started on a retained basis, with Atlas contributing to a more consultative and credible search experience.

Real Time Visibility That Reduces Meeting Overhead

Working with leadership teams in the United States meant James often managed searches across a 12-hour time difference. Before Atlas, this required late-night calls and frequent updates to keep projects moving. 

The Client View changed that rhythm entirely. With a live, always updated link, stakeholders could review candidates, leave comments, and track progress whenever their schedules allowed.

Clients can review everything while I’m asleep, and I pick it up when I come online.

This asynchronous workflow removed the need for constant status meetings and kept decisions moving at a steady pace. Atlas gave clients confidence that each search was progressing, while giving James a more predictable and balanced operating rhythm.

Practical Insights From a Connected Recruiter Community

Beyond the platform itself, James found consistent value in the Atlas Slack community. The shared space gives agency owners a place to exchange ideas, explore new tools, and learn from each other’s operating practices. It became a source of quick answers and practical recommendations that improved his daily workflow.

The Slack channel has added real value. I get advice from people running similar businesses.

Discussions about warming up emails, experimenting with AI tools, or refining outreach sequences helped James adjust his setup without trial and error. The community also surfaced platforms he had not encountered before, enabling smarter decisions with less research time. These peer insights complemented the product experience and gave James an extended network of support as he refined Ethea’s growth model.

Advice for Recruiters Building a Modern Workflow

James encourages agencies to start by defining the type of business they want to run. For teams aiming to operate as streamlined, tech-enabled boutiques, Atlas offers a complete environment that reduces complexity and supports consistent output. The platform replaces multiple tools, centralises workflows, and helps smaller firms compete at a higher level.

He notes that Atlas is most effective for recruiters who want automation, integrated communication, and a unified approach to candidate and client management. By removing administrative layers, the platform gives founders more time to focus on relationships, delivery, and BD momentum.

Atlas combines the tools we rely on every day into one system. It lets agencies operate with real scale.

For James, the advantages are clear. Agencies that want to grow efficiently and deliver a stronger experience to clients and candidates benefit most from adopting Atlas early.