How ABL Recruitment Switched to Loxo and Eliminated Operational Drag

“If you’re not acting on AI now, you’re already late.”

After 34 years in business, ABL Recruitment was growing steadily. The London-based, women-owned agency had expanded internationally, placing multilingual professionals across Europe and APAC, and was mapping out its next three years of growth.

But as the firm scaled, its systems didn’t.

“The biggest hidden cost that we found is operational drag. Our recruiters were spending hours moving between systems. Everything was very manual,” explained Genevieve Seal, ABL’s Director of Sales and Operations.

Bullhorn formed the core of their stack, but it required multiple integrations and bolt-ons to function the way the team needed. Job advertising lived in one place. Calling systems in another. Contact research required Google searches and manual entry. Notes had to be typed up after conversations. Follow-ups relied heavily on individual discipline.

None of it was catastrophic. But together, it slowed the team down every day and pulled consultants away from relationship-building — the part of recruitment that actually drives revenue.

At a time when speed and responsiveness increasingly define competitive advantage, that friction became hard to ignore.

Why AI felt urgent

Genevieve has spent two decades in recruitment. She’s seen plenty of trends come and go. But the shift toward using AI felt different.

“Speed and precision has taken over. It wasn’t a case of that AI was nice to have... It was the realization that it’s going to become a competitive differentiator between us and other businesses.”

Clients expect faster delivery. Candidates move quickly. Recruiters themselves want tools that make them more effective.

“If you’re going to survive the pace at which the market is moving when it comes to AI, you need to move with it.”

For ABL, continuing with a fragmented stack wasn’t simply maintaining the status quo. It meant falling further behind firms operating on unified, AI-enabled systems.

What they needed wasn’t another tool layered on top. It was consolidation: one workflow that reduced friction instead of adding to it.

An immediate difference

The difference became clear soon after switching to Loxo's Talent Intelligence Platform.

“Less clicks, less admin, more clarity.”

Tasks that once required multiple steps, like pulling contact details, updating records, and logging call information, became significantly faster. Instead of re-entering data or toggling between platforms, recruiters could work within a single environment.

“The amount of time they've saved is a minimum of an hour per day for each consultant every week, probably up to two.”

That translates to five to ten hours per recruiter each week. 

In practical terms, that means more conversations and more consistent follow-up. In other words, more time for what really sets recruiters apart.

Sourcing that doesn’t stall

Before the switch, business development often depended on individual reminders and manual tracking. When recruiters became busy with active searches, follow-up campaigns could lose momentum.

With Loxo, ABL built structured outreach campaigns that continue running in the background.

“The guys set up the campaigns, then Loxo runs that campaign in the background for them, helping to generate revenue.”

That structure created measurable impact quickly., the team ran a campaign for a highly niche role using Loxo Source. One candidate responded that the role wasn’t suitable — but referred someone who was.

That referral became a placement within weeks of going live with Loxo.

The result wasn’t accidental. It came from consistent outreach supported by a system that didn’t rely on a busy recruiter’s memory.

Visibility across languages and performance

ABL’s multilingual focus adds complexity to its operations. With over ten languages spoken internally, many client calls aren’t conducted in English. Previously, that limited oversight and coaching.

Now:

“[Loxo] records the call and translates it, transcribes it… I can actually read through what they've talked through…”

For the first time, Genevieve can review conversations regardless of language and identify areas for improvement.

“I can actually understand where the team has a skills gap now, which I couldn't do before.”

The same clarity applies at the leadership level.

“I can literally go onto a dashboard, I can see our time to hire process… I can see where we're at against our revenue target for the quarter, for the year. It's literally all there, with one click…”

Instead of exporting reports and rebuilding them in spreadsheets, she can see performance in real time.

The Loxo transition was unexpectedly smooth

CRM transitions are rarely simple, particularly for an established firm with years of data. ABL approached the change cautiously.

“The communication has been really clear from Loxo... the team has been great.”

From integration planning through training, the process was methodical and responsive.

“I felt like I had my hand held through it… We felt valued.”

For a smaller firm making a meaningful investment, feeling supported mattered.

The migration reinforced that this wasn’t simply a product change; it was a shift toward a more cohesive operating model.

Looking to the future

Genevieve sees moving to a modern recruiting stack as a vital part of protecting the time and energy that makes recruiting work.

“If you haven’t done it and you’re not in the process of thinking about it, you need to do it now. The operational cost to your business will be higher if you don’t.”

Asked for one word to describe Loxo, she chose:

“Transformational.”

For ABL, that means the team gets to feel like themselves again: less time wrestling systems, more time doing the work they love: building trust with clients, candidates, and each other. 

And as they grow, they’re not hoping their workflows hold together. They know they will.