If It Don’t Make Dollars, It Don’t Make Sense!
2026
–A Seven Part Series–
Part Three
by
Bob Marshall
March 31st, 2026
Part Three – My Value to my Firm is my Ability to Pick up the Phone and Speak into it
We live in the Information Age—arguably now the Overload Age. Data is everywhere. With a few keystrokes, we can access résumés, compensation reports, org charts, company news, and entire talent pools.
And yet—despite all this access—most recruiters are not more productive.
Why?
Because information is not income.
The modern recruiter faces a new kind of challenge: digital distraction disguised as productivity.
CRMs to update. LinkedIn profiles to review. Emails to answer. AI tools to explore. Internal messages to respond to.
All of it feels like work.
Very little of it produces revenue.
The computer has become a compulsive tool. It pulls us in the moment we sit down. We tell ourselves we’ll “just check a few things”… and suddenly an hour is gone—and we haven’t spoken to a single decision-maker or candidate.
As Robert A. Heinlein once said:
“In the absence of clearly-defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia until ultimately we become enslaved by it.”
That line hits even harder today than when it was first written.
Because in our business, our value is not measured by how much we know… but by how many meaningful conversations we create.
All top producers understand this at a gut level.
They know that their real value to their firm is simple and irreplaceable:
Their ability to pick up the phone and speak to another human being.
To connect.
To engage.
To influence.
To move someone to take action.
The legendary sales trainer Cavett Robert said it best:
“In order for people to buy from us, we must establish rapport. We must have people like us, believe us, trust us, and understand us. You can’t heat an oven with snowballs.”
That kind of rapport doesn’t happen through emails.
It doesn’t happen through texts.
And it certainly doesn’t happen by hiding behind a screen.
It happens in real time—voice to voice.
Now, don’t misunderstand—technology is a powerful ally. It can help you identify, organize, and track. But it cannot replace the one activity that separates billers from dabblers:
Live conversations.
Because conversations create:
- Opportunities
- Interviews (Send Outs)
- Offers
- Placements
- Fees
No conversation → No momentum → No money.
A Short Story
A few years ago, I worked with a recruiter—we’ll call him Mark—who was working harder than anyone in his office.
He had the cleanest database.
The most detailed notes.
The most polished emails.
And the lowest billings.
When I sat down with him, I asked a simple question:
“Mark, how many live conversations are you having each day?”
He paused… and then admitted:
“Maybe three… on a good day.”
Everything else he was doing felt productive—but it was all preparation, not production.
So we made one change.
For the next 30 days, Mark had one primary metric:
20 live conversations per day.
Not emails. Not InMails.
Conversations.
The first week was uncomfortable. The second week was better. By the third week, something clicked.
He started building rapport faster.
He started uncovering real needs.
He started controlling the process.
And in the following 90 days, Mark billed more than he had in the previous 9 months combined.
Not because he learned something new.
But because he finally did what matters most.
So as you start your day tomorrow, ask yourself:
“How quickly can I get into my first real conversation?”
Then the next one.
And the next one.
Because in this business—always has been, always will be—
your value is in your voice.
Next week: Part Four – Make Scintillating Presentations
Bob Marshall began his recruiting career over 45 years ago at MR in Reno, NV. In 1986 he established The Bob Marshall Group, International, where he has trained recruiters throughout the United States and also in the United Kingdom, Malta and Cyprus. With a dedication to executive recruiting, he continues to offer his proven training systems to individuals, firms, and private corporations both domestic and in select international territories. To learn more about his activities and descriptions of his products and services, contact him directly @770-898-5550/470-456-0386(cell); bob@themarshallplan.org; or visit his website @ www.TheMarshallPlan.org.
Bob Marshall
President
TBMG, International
247 Bryans Drive, Suite 100
McDonough, GA 30252-2513
770-898-5550
520-842-5550 (fax)