The Situation A Commercial Manager from Electricity Northwest at one of the UK’s biggest utilities companies was stuck. Instead of leading, he was drowning in QS work — picking up the slack from unfilled roles. Hiring had fallen off the radar because he didn’t have time to give it the energy it needed. Without change, he’d stay trapped in delivery mode, not leadership. What We Saw The issue wasn’t sourcing. It was structure. Like many, they were relying on traditional channels — CVs from job boards, recycled agency lists — but without strategic oversight or bandwidth to do it properly. What they missed was that the best QSs weren’t applying. They were passive — not job-hunting, not on the market, and not replying to cold outreach. To access them, you need a system that earns trust, not noise. What We Did Differently The Commercial Manager came to one of our commercial leadership events. No pitch. Just strategy. He saw what was missing. Internal recruitment and TA teams couldn’t reach the passive market — we could. More importantly, he understood the upside. Passive candidates aren’t desperate. They’re in-demand professionals who only move for the right reason, not just the right rate. That’s who he needed. We didn’t take a wish list. We challenged his assumptions, reframed what mattered, and gave him the system to land people with the right mindset. Even when his gut said play safe, he backed the process. He followed through: coffees before start dates, social invites, structured onboarding. He didn’t just get hires — he built buy-in. The Result Five passive Quantity Surveyors hired in three months. No noise. No churn. Just results. He had speed, confidence, and a process he could trust. And now? We’re onto round two. Client Voice (Paraphrased) “I could’ve fought over the same QSs as everyone else. Instead, I trusted clearnorth and the process. The proof’s in the pudding.”  What This Proves Any firm can spray CVs. We build teams. This case proves what happens when a client leans into our model, not the market’s chaos. The best hires aren’t looking. They’re listening — if you know how to speak their language. And we don’t exist to take orders. We exist to guide.