// Recruitment Influencers
The Atlas30 for 2025: Recruitment Influencers You Should be Following
15/01/2026
9 MIN
Looking back on 2025, one thing is clear: not every recruitment influencer experienced the year in the same way. Some adapted to major shifts in the market, while others stayed consistent, strengthening their voice and impact over time.
This edition of the Atlas30 brings together the final list of 2025, combining top recruitment influencers from across every month of the year. Through their work, posts, podcasts, and ongoing series, these voices continued to add real value, offering fresh perspectives and proven insights to help recruiters and recruiting agencies think smarter, act with confidence, and stay competitive at their desks.
2025: The Top30 Recruitment Influencers Driving Change in Hiring
Hishem’s Take on Why Market Expertise Matters More Than Simply Being a Recruiter
Hishem emphasizes that in 2025, many recruiters were using AI. AI can help automate administrative tasks, speed up processes, and handle repetitive work.
However, recruiters who have real experience, shaped by thousands of interviews, sourcing candidates, or deep knowledge of specific roles and job markets, will have a clear advantage.
AI cannot replace human judgment, relationships, expertise, and reputation.
Key takeaway: True success in 2026 will come not only from being a recruiter but from leveraging your market knowledge and experience, building genuine relationships, working diligently, and using your judgment.
Joel’s Advice on How To Be a Great Recruiter
Joel’s post gives us food for thought. He emphasizes the importance of going the extra mile as a recruiter and what you need to do to become a great one.
As a recruiter, you should always listen to your clients and offer thoughtful consultation, rather than just saying yes. It’s valuable to recognize the potential skills in every candidate. One crucial principle is never to ghost your candidates; always respond, even when delivering a rejection.
New trends and technologies are constantly emerging, so stay up to date and embrace new tools. Approach every task with creativity, because that’s how you truly make a difference.
Key takeaway: Go above and beyond to become a great recruiter. Listen carefully but also provide advice, stay engaged with your candidates, be responsive, and always stay informed about new trends.
Greg Explains Why Recruiters’ Value Is Important and What That Value Is
Every recruiter has to know their value and be able to defend it. In addition to that, many clients need advice on various aspects, including job salaries, job market information, and help in finding exactly what they are looking for. Recruiters can add high value in those areas, which is why they need to be well-informed about everything.
Another point mentioned in the post is that recruiters do not only find applicants who are actively looking for a job, but also top talent who do not need a job or did not apply for a specific position, yet are a perfect match for that position. Recruiters then convince this talent to have a quick call.
Last but not least, recruiters are responsible for managing the entire hiring process: the sourcing stage, the negotiation part, and candidate engagement until the very last step of the process. Their role is critical, as they directly influence hiring outcomes, candidate experience, and the overall success of the business.
Key takeaway: Every recruiter is important and needs to defend their value, because a good recruiter advises clients, finds unique talent (not only applicants), and manages the whole process from the beginning (sourcing) until the end (offer stage) at the same time.
Carolyn’s Inspiring Story Based on Actual Facts
To spoil you with the end, the CEO rebuilt a successful company, and today he leads it with over a hundred developers.
Carolyn’s inspiring post shows us that even when you have lost everything as a leader or CEO, if you still believe in generosity, kindness, and human connection, you will be successful no matter how many times you have fallen and no matter what you have been through.
A positive mindset in business is essential, especially when starting out. The early stages are often filled with uncertainty, and knowing who to trust can be challenging. Maintaining a positive outlook helps you navigate these difficulties with clarity and confidence.
At the same time, holding on to your kindness and integrity allows you to build genuine relationships and make better decisions, even in uncertain situations.
Key takeaway: Kindness matters more than anything, even in the business world.
Benjamin Is Asking If AI Is the One to Blame For Lower Job Openings In the UK
Benjamin’s data-driven post shows how ChatGPT has changed the U.S. economy in terms of hiring new people.
ChatGPT has helped many companies reduce costs because there is no need to hire as many people. This does not mean that AI will replace humans.
Of course, it is a controversial topic; however, we can focus on the positive aspects and acknowledge that AI has helped us a lot, especially in hiring processes with tools like AI Note-Taker, and still needs the human factor and human judgment to work properly.
Key takeaway: The use of ChatGPT and AI can have multiple effects, both positive and negative.
Emerging Leaders: Recruitment Professionals Gaining Traction on LinkedIn
Jordan’s Advice on How Important It Is to Make Decisions
As Jordan mentions, making decisions is an actual skill.
You might have a lot of good ideas and overthink what could go wrong or whether they will have an impact. The best way to overcome overthinking is action. Jordan’s advice is to make decisions quickly; it’s better to make mistakes and correct them rather than not do anything at all.
Many successful projects and companies have started from ideas and leaders who didn’t spend days overthinking. They acted quickly, iterated along the way, and were often ahead of the competition or among the first in their industry, which allowed them to start their journey and achieve global success.
Key takeaway: It’s better to make a decision fast, rather than wait to have all the information.
David’s Perspective on the US Market About Career Changes
David is sharing insights from his experience hiring in the U.S. market.
Many candidates in the U.S. change their careers often without worrying about what the recruiter might say. In recruiting, however, we all know that career changes usually require careful consideration.
Many recruiters, clients, and hiring managers, globally and especially in the UK, prefer a clear, “vanilla” CV with solid experience in one field. On the contrary, in the U.S., David has noticed that many clients want candidates who are not afraid to take risks and do what they love, even if that means making a career change.
Key takeaway: A career change in recruiting can mean taking a risk and earning a higher salary in some countries, but in others, it can be seen as a lack of drive to succeed.
Recruitment on the Mic: What Top Recruitment Voices Are Discussing in 2025
2025 Holiday Show: Key Recruiting Insights and Trends You Can’t Miss
In the 2025 Holiday Show, Chad Sowash and Joel Cheeseman present a “greatest‑hits” sampler of their most insightful recruiting conversations from the year. Throughout the episode, HR leaders and recruiting experts discuss major themes such as AI in talent acquisition, feature-bloated applicant tracking systems, candidate quality, and the enduring importance of the human touch in hiring.
They talk about real-world challenges like fraud detection, scheduling, cost reduction, and time-to-productivity, and express how AI is helping teams optimize interviews, standardize assessments, and free recruiters to focus on high-value candidate engagement.
They also share insights and data points, including how 60–70% of candidate traffic now comes from organic sources and how some companies have cut job board spending by 30–50%. Inbound sourcing has also dropped by as much as 80% in some teams, allowing recruiters to spend more time with top candidates.
Recruitment Growth in 2026: Score, Target, Engage, Monetize
In this live session, Ben Browning focuses on the number one recruitment growth strategy for 2026, addressing how the recruitment industry can evolve from the unpredictable business development of 2025 to a more predictable and sustainable revenue model. He introduces a four‑step system designed to replace chaotic BD activity with consistent billings.
He breaks this into four simple steps, using the STEM approach: Score (identify high-value clients), Target (focus on the right opportunities), Engage (build strong relationships), and Monetize (turn efforts into retained work, higher fees, and referrals).
Ben also talks through how recruitment leaders can win retained business with a simple operating rhythm, raise fees by demonstrating strong client value, and generate a steady flow of warm referrals.
Make Decisions, Take Actions, and Find Your Value as a Recruiter
Top recruitment influencers and thought leaders featured in the 2025 Atlas30 are doing more than just gaining visibility; they are shaping how the industry works.
From sharing insights on career changes, hiring trends in the U.S. market, and the evolving role of AI, to advising on decision-making, leadership, and human judgment in recruiting, they are refining their approaches, strengthening their market positions, and building businesses with staying power.
Every influencer and recruiter has a unique story to share, and most importantly, they inspire clients, peers, and other recruiters while highlighting the value of recruiting, especially in 2025.
As the year winds down, the message is clear: focus drives results, strategy creates sustainability, and action beats overthinking. Now is the time to invest energy in what works: advising clients, finding top talent, and managing the hiring process from sourcing to offer stage.
We can’t wait to see next year’s trends, how AI ATS tools will grow and evolve, how recruiters and markets will respond, and how AI-powered recruitment will continue to take shape and redefine the industry.
Make sure to also check out the October 2025 Atlas30 list and our featured recruitment podcasts for even more valuable insights.
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