“It’s been a good response, lots is happening and we’re busy.”

With 83 percent of the Idealog readers survey saying finding the right staff was the biggest issue their business currently faced, Stewart says for the industries he deals in, there are skill shortages, but the jobs he’s recruiting for are not jobs people grew up wanting to do at school.

“Trades and surveying might not be as exciting as doing a marketing degree, but the reality is, we’ve got massive shortages and those jobs are really well-paid… just because you can go to university, it doesn’t always mean you should.”

He says there also needs to be a shift in attitude in New Zealand towards recruiters.

“But I do think the market is becoming a lot more mature. When I first started, you’d literally be explaining to people how it worked.”  

In terms of strategy, Stewart says a recruiter has ensure the expectations are right on both sides of the candidate and the company.

With a shortage of specialised staff, managing expectations on both sides and having a clear process is key. “This also applies three to six months down the track to make sure issues have been ironed out.”

Prior to starting Lynx, Stewart worked for big multi-national recruitment agency Hay as well as other recruitment firms and start-ups.

“We just really want to change the perception of recruiters – and we’re genuine about doing the best job for our clients that we can.”

Stewart says Lynx’s marketing and branding is very different from the norm and pushes the boat out by having a wild cat – a lynx – for its branding and logo.

“I wanted something that was one syllable, one word, and a bit different – a lot of recruitment firms are double barreled surnames. I was also was adopted from Romania and the lynx is the national animal.”

Another a point of difference is Lynx incorporating video into the job boards on TradeMe, Seek and other advertisers.  The company also has a YouTube channel which people can visit.

“It’s early days but hoping to get more stuff out there – we’re trying to develop interesting content that is value to our clients and candidates,” says Stewart.

Stewart works with the SME market, and currently is talking to around 30 individuals on a monthly basis.

“Smaller businesses are great for building relationships with, I find it much more enjoyable helping people build their business while I’m building my own. It’s a real partnership.”

Currently Lynx is only based in Auckland, but Stewart says it’s looking to get to Christchurch and Wellington, then on to be nationwide.

“We don’t want to be the biggest, but we want to be the best.”