How I got here
I have been in food manufacturing since 2006, ten of those years inside the industry before I recruited into it. I founded Williams Recruitment in September 2020 and run every search myself.
What I will not do
Where I draw the line
I said yes too easily in my early years, to work outside my industry and to demands I should have pushed back on. It built nothing. These are the lines I hold now.
What I believe
The volume model
Place people, make as much money as possible, move on. That is the model most of this market still runs.
Paid to close, not to be right
The candidate who can be placed, not the one who should be
Ten mandates, a shortlist barely met
Gone once the invoice clears
Speed sold as the answer to risk
How I work
Boards now ask what happens if this goes wrong. My answer is to act as a partner and focus on whether the leader stays, not on whether I get paid.
Fit before availability
Two people if I believe in two
Every conversation had by me
Accountable a year after the offer
Trust that brings the next search
My story
In this industry since 2006, ten of those years inside it
My own firm since September 2020, the American market since January 2026, food manufacturing since 2006. All three are true at once and I will not blur them to sound more established than I am.
FAQs
Questions about me
Why do you work alone?
Because the person who takes your brief should be the person who runs the search and answers for it a year later. It limits how many searches I run at once. It is also why the work is any good.
How long have you worked in the US?
Since January 2026. From 2020 to 2026 I ran searches through British consolidation, private label pressure and founder exits. The same patterns arrived here later, and I would rather lead with that than borrow tenure I have not earned.
What did you do before recruitment?
Ten years inside food manufacturing, starting in 2006 as a forecast analyst. I recruit into the industry I came from.
What have you got wrong?
I said yes too easily. I helped people outside my industry because I could, and accepted unfair demands because I was trying to establish myself. Fit discipline is what I built after saying yes to everything stopped working.
What do you do all day?
Five calls a day, five days a week, every one with a Director-level leader or above in food manufacturing. It is why I can tell you within a week whether the person you describe exists.
Where are you based?
In the UK. I spent the first five years of the business working that market, which is where the experience comes from, but the work now is American.
