5 Recruitment events that provide unmatched levels of industry insights and networking opportunities
After COVID-19 forced recruitment agency events online, 2022 was the first year things got back to normal – in-person events were finally back on the menu.
Having attended several recruitment events ourselves this year, the advantages of getting in a room with like-minded professionals to share knowledge, experience and expertise became abundantly clear. Nothing facilitates the same level of collaborative cross-industry fervour as an in-the-flesh meeting of the minds.
Acknowledging those invaluable advantages, we’re looking forward to the recruiter events of 2023 with a list of the best ones taking place over the next 12 months. You really don’t want to miss these recruitment events…
Recruitment Agency Expo
15th-16th March – London ExCel
4th-5th October – Birmingham NEC
One of the UK’s premier recruitment agency events, the Recruitment Agency Expo occurs twice a year, with one event at London’s ExCel and the other at Birmingham’s NEC.
Since 2012 Recruitment Agency Expo has been the tried and trusted annual meeting place for senior-level executives from the UK’s recruitment and staffing industry. We attended this year’s event and it enabled us to recognise some key emerging industry trends, from the broad adoption of automation to empower recruiters to the growing importance of identity document validation technology (IDVT).
This year’s events promise to deliver much of the same, with a long list of suppliers and speakers, and great opportunities to network with your peers. And, what’s more, entry is free!
To register for either of 2023’s Recruitment Agency Expo events, click the link below.
RecFest
6th July – Knebworth Park
Now if you’re not familiar with RecFest, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s anything but an annual meeting for the recruitment industry. The organisers have been putting together these recruitment agency events since 2016 when the inaugural RecFest was staged at London’s Borough Market.
RecFest as a recruiter event is truly unique. It packs in hours of relevant and relatable industry content wrapped in a vibrant festival experience that celebrates everything you do.
The festival provides a space away from the daily grind to bond with your team and network with your industry peers. Moreover, it’s about celebrating our industry, our people, and our work.
Tickets for RecFest are available from their website, and there’s an early bird offer that runs until January 12th, 2023.
Talent Tech Rising
TBC – Online
OK, so Talent Tech Rising doesn’t take place in person like the other recruitment events on this list. However, it is notable because it focuses entirely on recruiter tech.
2023 will mark Talent Tech Rising’s fifth year where weekly episodes feature a range of technologies revolutionising the recruitment industry. This year’s events featured 15 innovative solutions, including JobSwipe, Eli and Horsefly.
Although we’re glad to get back to normality in terms of in-person recruiter events, remote meetings still have their value. They are more cost-effective, but they also encourage wider participation for those attendees who may be unable to travel to an in-person event.
Registration for Talent Tech Rising is completely free and provides access to all three episodes of Talent Tech Rising 2023.
UNLEASH World
17th-18th October – Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, France
Recruitment events don’t come much bigger than UNLEASH World. Comprising two days of thought leadership, case studies, product announcements, networking, peer discussions, and personal development, 2023 marks UNLEASH’s twelfth year.
The perennial aim of this HR conference and exhibition is to showcase the next wave of breakthrough technologies and global innovators changing the future of work. Since its inception in 2011, UNLEASH has become the industry standard in recruitment events, driving progress in human resources, learning and innovation.
This year, we attended UNLEASH World where one of the main takeaways for recruiters, among plenty of other food for thought, was the importance of water-tight GDPR compliance. You can read more about what we learned at the event here, and more about GDPR best practices here.
We also managed to seal second place in UNLEASH’s start-up competition!
To book your ticket to UNLEASH World, follow the link below.
Bullhorn Engage London
8th November – venue TBC
With over a thousand attendees, Bullhorn Engage puts professionals in the room for one common goal: to share Bullhorn success stories through highly personalised experiences and one-to-one interactions with ecosystem partners, agency peers, and Bullhorn experts.
Unlike most recruitment agency events, Bullhorn Engage focuses solely on one technology. Discussions cover everything Bullhorn, including key industry trends, technology innovation, and Bullhorn best practices. The aim is to enable Bullhorn CRM and Bullhorn ATS users to make the best decisions for their future growth.
At this year’s event, there was an abundance of recruiters that are changing the game through this recruitment technology. It was the perfect place to make new connections and learn from the brightest minds in the field.
The salient themes from Engage were the importance of delivering a great candidate experience, the need to keep your database up to date, and, as initiated by Bullhorn founder and CEO Art Papas in his keynote speech, the benefits of nurturing your candidate community.
Whilst registration for the 2023 event is yet to open, we can be sure it’ll deliver once again on shaping the future of this recruitment technology.
Looking ahead
Whether in person or online, recruitment agency events are a great way of keeping your company plugged into the mainframe. Being selective about the most relevant and impactful events for your business is key.
We’ll be heading to a few if not all events on this list, so if you are too, see you there!