The Profit & Cash Improvement Programme
A six-week programme helping recruitment business owners understand where profit is being lost and improve how cash moves through their business.
Working with Alison Humphries, you’ll review the commercial and operational factors affecting profitability, identify practical improvements and put clearer financial management routines in place.
Revenue Is Coming In. But Where Is The Profit Going?
Your turnover looks respectable, but costs are rising, invoices are taking longer to be paid and there never seems to be enough cash left in the business.
When you’re busy running an agency, it can be difficult to see exactly where margins are being lost or which changes will make the biggest difference.
Does any of this sound familiar?
- Revenue is holding up, but profitability or cash flow isn’t improving.
- You’re unsure which clients, services or desks contribute most to your bottom line.
- Supplier costs, commission arrangements or overheads may no longer reflect what your business needs.
- Overdue invoices and extended payment terms are putting pressure on cash flow.
- You have financial reports, but not always the information you need to make timely decisions.
The Profit & Cash Improvement Programme helps you find the operational and commercial issues affecting your margins and cash flow, and take practical steps to address them.
Make More Of The Revenue Your Business Already Generates
If Revenue Is Holding Up, Why Isn’t Your Profit Or Cash Position Improving?
A healthy turnover doesn’t always mean a healthy bottom line. Rising costs, margin leakage and slow payments can make it difficult to see where the money is going.
The Profit & Cash Check helps you review how your business measures profitability and manages cash. Answer 10 questions to identify areas you may want to explore further.
What’s included?
The Profit & Cash Improvement Programme combines financial and operational review with practical support from Alison Humphries. Working alongside you and your finance team, Alison will help identify priorities and put clearer reporting and management routines in place.
Week 1: Financial & Operational Review
Establish a clear picture of your current performance and agree a baseline for improvement.
• Review management accounts and gross profit across the business.
• Examine payroll costs, commission structures and supplier expenditure.
• Review working capital and debtor reporting.
• Agree how profitability will be measured.
Week 2: Identify Margin Leakage
Find the commercial and operational factors that may be reducing profitability.
• Examine fee discounts, rebates and guarantees.
• Review supplier costs and contractor margins.
• Identify inefficient processes and underperforming desks.
• Consider management overheads and where resources are being used.
Weeks 3-4: Implement Improvements
Work with your directors and finance team to put practical changes in place.
• Prioritise opportunities to reduce costs and protect margins.
• Improve pricing controls, invoicing and credit control.
• Introduce practical financial reporting.
• Develop a 13-week cash flow model with your financial controller or accountant.
Weeks 5-6: Embed Financial Accountability
Put clear measures and responsibilities in place so your team can continue monitoring performance.
• Build a simple management dashboard.
• Track gross profit, contribution, operating profit, debtor days and cash headroom.
• Introduce regular financial review routines.
• Clarify responsibility for agreed actions.
What you’ll take away
By the end of the programme, you’ll have:
• A profitability analysis
• A prioritised savings and margin improvement schedule
• A working capital action plan
• A 13-week cash flow forecast
• A board finance dashboard
• A 90-day financial improvement plan
What practical Change can achieve
A look at how Alison helped a recruitment business address rising costs, improve credit control and protect profitability.
The challenge
A specialist recruitment business had declining profits and lengthening debtor days. The owner believed the challenges were affecting the whole sector, but the business also had opportunities to improve how it used its resources.
The approach
Alison reviewed supplier deals, recruitment technology and job board spending. She also supported stronger credit control and helped the team adopt a “database first” approach to finding candidates.
The result
The business reduced overheads by 20% within six months, cut aged debt in half and has since doubled its average invoice value.*
*This was a previous client project, not the six-week Profit & Cash Improvement Programme. Results will vary depending on the business and the changes implemented.
Investment & commitment
A Defined Programme, With A Clear Commitment
- £5,000 + VAT for the six-week programme
- Approximately three days of Alison’s direct involvement
- Designed for UK recruitment agencies with approximately 5–25 employees
- A combination of remote and in-person support, depending on business requirements
- Agreed involvement from your finance team
The programme requires an agreed scope, access to management information and your team’s involvement in implementing changes.
It focuses on commercial and operational improvements and does not replace your accountant or provide audit, insolvency or regulated financial advice.
Alison Humphries
Hon (FREC) | Strategic Consultant to the Recruitment Industry
Practical advice grounded in Recruitment Experience
Alison Humphries Hon FREC brings over 40 years of recruitment industry experience, including director-level roles at Hays Plc, Robert Half International, BNB Plc and Penna Plc.
Her background spans commercial leadership, learning and development, HR, legal and compliance, across recruitment models including contingent, retained, temp and contract, RPO and Statement of Work.
Having advised recruitment business owners and leaders for nearly 20 years, Alison combines strategic perspective with a practical understanding of how to make change happen.
Client results
From Declining Profits To Stronger Financial Performance
A 15-year-old specialist recruitment business was experiencing declining profits and lengthening debtor days. The owner believed the challenges were sector-wide and that the business depended on LinkedIn and job boards to fill roles.
Alison investigated supplier deals and found overlapping services, particularly in recruitment technology, alongside significant job board spending. Consultants were paying to generate responses from candidates who were already in the company’s database.
Alison focused on supplier costs, credit control and embedding a “database first” culture, helping the team maintain candidate records and communicate with candidates more effectively.
The business reduced overheads by 20% within six months and cut aged debt in half. Its average invoice value has since doubled. The improvements also supported a stronger service for clients and candidates, leading to referrals.*
*This was a previous client project, not the six-week Profit & Cash Improvement Programme. Results will vary depending on the business and the changes implemented.
Ready To Improve Your Profitability and Cash Flow?
Together, you can explore the challenges you’re facing and whether the Profit & Cash Improvement Programme is the right fit for your business.