Economy

Nobody wins a Mexican Standoff

Three Mexican fellas. All with guns. At least one is played by the always-excellent Danny Trejo. Everyone pointing at someone else. Nobody moves. Nobody wins. Perhaps a tired movie trope, but one that 2026 can’t resist playing out time and time again. I’ve avoided blogging about Iran to date because…

Sean WaltersApril 23, 2026

Employment Human Resources Recruitment Technology

Accordant Group needs $5m (but don’t we all?)

I've been following a story which has perhaps slipped under the radar of most recruiters. Not because I'm any smarter than the rest of you, I just have to churn out a blog every Friday as part of my pact with Beelzebub. For those of you who have an irrational…

Sean WaltersApril 17, 2026

Employment Politics Recruitment

Job Hugging (and why I prefer “self-love”)

“…and trust me, we’re going to be dealing with many more w@nkers once the market improves” I find myself saying to Claudia during her annual review this week. This is my version of wisdom. Or motivation. Or both. Of course, calling candidates (and some clients) “w@nkers” is frowned upon in…

Sean WaltersApril 10, 2026

Employment Recruitment Work

Infrawork (that’s Extrastaff to you) sells for…$56 million

Yes, that’s right folks. In case you didn’t know, last week saw New Zealand’s biggest ever recruitment acquisition when ASX-listed PeopleIN completed the purchase of Infrawork for an eyewatering $56m. Infrawork, who you’ll most likely know as the skilled trades and labour recruitment firm Extrastaff, also include an immigration firm,…

Sean WaltersFebruary 27, 2026

Politics Recruitment Technology

Proofreaders, Prodigies, and the AI Panic

As if I wasn’t predictable enough, a blog criticising the RCSA is followed by a blog about AI. One about All of Government and another taking the p*ss out of Consult will make it a full-house. However, short of a seriously lame post comparing “your next hire” with an Olympic…

Sean WaltersFebruary 20, 2026

Employment Recruitment Sourcing

Backstreet’s Back (and so is saying “No” in 2026)

"Oh my God, we're back again!" sing the Backstreet Boys in their 1997 classic. And unless you're incredibly lucky, unlucky, or rich, so should you be. The rest of the song has no relevance to the first post of the year sadly. Before you ask, my break was lovely thank…

Sean WaltersJanuary 16, 2026

Human Resources Recruitment Work

Christmas is a confidence game (and I’m all in)

Regular readers may assume that I hate this time of year. The commercialism. The inability to get a seat or pie at Vultures unless you queue. The d*ckheads in Santa hats and Hawaiian shirts. The obligation to talk to (and even spend time with) distant relatives, neighbours you hate, and…

Sean WaltersDecember 19, 2025

Employment Human Resources Recruitment Technology

What SHOULD get you banned from LinkedIn

Getting banned from LinkedIn is easy enough. Trust me. All you have to do is write a few sharp blogs, tag a few people, and “enjoy” the cut’n’thrust of a comments section. Mostly, you’ll get banned for (as far as I’m concerned) no biggie. Such is life. In my strange…

Sean WaltersDecember 12, 2025

Employment Politics Recruitment Work

NZ and Me: The Story of a Droopy Pecker

"Keep ya pecker up" 'tis what they say. And having gone through a run of personal bad luck recently, I couldn't agree more. Without dwelling on it, I've had a motorbike stolen, a bathroom and bedroom destroyed by flood, shingles, two weird growths cut out of my body, and a…

Sean WaltersNovember 7, 2025

Employment Job Boards Recruitment Work

Submission Accomplished

This week I’ve been thinking about submissions. No, not arm bars, rear-naked chokes, or paying a leather-clad escort to urinate on me (although that has crossed my mind). I mean the increasingly common necessity for us recruiters to write stuff telling people how great we are at something in order…

Sean WaltersOctober 17, 2025