Season 9 | Ep32 Paul Strouts: When Growing Headcount Is a Strategy and When It Is Just a Cost

Episode notes

Paul Strouts has run a business of four people. His first business, James Harvard, quickly grew beyond 100 people and sold to Hays for approximately £20 million at 32. He then spent a decade running Hays Life Sciences globally. Got headhunted to PE Backed Acacium and quickly made two strategic acquisitions. He now runs: 3 brands. 250 people. 12 countries. Contingent, SOW, RPO and Solutions revenue Predicted £45 million GM in 2026. £12 million EBITDA target. He has seen every stage of headcount growth. The good version and the expensive version. This week on The RAG Podcast, Paul Strouts gives the most direct answer we have had on this show about when headcount creates value and when it just creates cost.

• Season 9 | Ep35 Oliver Paull: £800K in 3 Years, Solo, From a London Flat79 / 100
• Season 9 | Ep34 Mathew Gollop: 7 to 85 People, a Near Collapse, and the Free Idea That Paid Him Back79 / 100
• Season 9 | Ep33 Greg Fischer: $4.2M Revenue, $1.4M Net - Then He Left With Nothing but a Handshake72 / 100
• Season 9 | Ep31 Nathan O'Connell: Building a £1M R2R business on 4 x Retained Clients
• Season 9 | Ep30 Emily Angeloni: Why She Nearly Walked Away From WOW After 9 Years of growth