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The Exec-Appointments' Interviews: Gary Watson

Published on: 14 May 2015

Name: Gary Watson
Job Title and company: CEO of Investigo


What other jobs have you done (before your current job)?
Regional MD of Michael Page UK

What makes for a good recruiter?
Inquisitive, personable, commercial, authentic, hard-working and pro-active.

What’s your view of the recruitment market just now – where are the real challenges?
Technology and social media have brought benefits but they’ve also created some challenges:

  • Having access to a global database of 6 billion people doesn’t make recruitment easier;
  • The rise of RPOs and in-house resourcing teams in larger organisations make it more difficult to build understanding and relationships with the hiring manager;
  • Cost of hire tends to take precedence over time to hire and quality of hire.

If you could change one thing in recruitment what would it be? 
To allow the recruiter direct access to the hiring manager/s.

If you were looking for a job in the future, where (apart from exec-appointments.com/FT of course) would you look, or what else would you be trying to do?
I’d use my personal network.
I’d be proactive by making direct approaches.
I’d make the relevant headhunters aware that I was interested in hearing ideas.

What is your favourite restaurant for entertaining a client/candidate? 
I don’t have one favourite restaurant. London has such choice and variety so I like going to lots of different places – and I tend to let the candidate or client choose.

What is your favourite (non work) website and why?
Duolingo – I’m trying to improve my French and Duolingo makes learning competitive and fun.

What is your favourite (work) website and why? 
Linkedin – it’s useful for candidates, clients and competitors.

If you won the lottery, what would be the first thing you’d buy?
A Hublot watch.