We're a small executive search firm that has all full desk recruiters at it who take on BD, Client mgmt, recruitment, candidate mgmt, etc. We use Bullhorn for our CRM/Database but it is a bit cumbersome for our firm and we're growing more and more frustrated with it's functionality - especially it's search function which we have found to really suck without exhaustive coding of profiles.

We are considering other platforms and leaning to leaner ones and preferably agentic backed. Attio is one platform we're looking into. Would welcome any and all recommendations/thoughts on platforms that you've found to work well as well as the POV on Attio if anyone has used it.

Something I keep running into with machinery manufacturers and dealers: AMC revenue rarely goes to a competitor. It goes to a spreadsheet nobody opened.

The pattern is usually the same:

- The AMC list lives in one person's Excel file

- The renewal date passes and nobody calls the customer

- The customer keeps calling for service, and the team keeps going because "they're an old client"

- A few months later someone realises you've been servicing that machine for free

Nobody decided to drop the contract. It expired while everyone was busy.

What seems to work for the companies that fix it:

1. One named owner per contract, not "the service team"

2. Reminders at 60/30/15 days before expiry, not on the expiry date

3. The engineer can see contract status before the visit

4. Management gets a monthly list of expiring and lapsed contracts, with value

You don't need special software to start. A shared sheet with date alerts gets you most of the way. It tends to break once you cross a few hundred contracts.

How are others handling this? Excel, an ERP module, a CRM, something else? And has anyone actually measured how much AMC revenue slips through?

Disclosure: I work at a company that builds a CRM for machinery businesses, so I see this a lot. I wrote a longer piece on it and can share if anyone wants it.

My manager is AI’s biggest advocate, and he recently put me on the spot: do I actually believe CRMs will still be relevant a few years from now? As our firm’s CRM admin, he challenged me to come to our next 1:1 with a compelling case for why the CRM platform is here to stay - - or, if AI is fundamentally changing the role of the CRM, a thoughtful plan for how we should pivot. Any thoughts? Sources I can check out? Is there a CRM we should be pivoting to (ClaudeForce comes to mind)?

Hey folks! I’m 21, zero corporate background, and exploring freelancing with HubSpot/CRM systems. Before I invest hundreds of hours, I want to understand what the actual work entails.

If you work with HubSpot or hire freelancers, I’d love your input on 3 things: 1. Income timeline: Is $1k/month in freelance revenue doable in 6 months for a beginner, or does landing clients take much longer? 2. Learning path: What exact HubSpot certification or course should I start with if I know nothing about sales pipelines or marketing ops? 3. Practice work: What does "a random Tuesday" look like for a HubSpot freelancer, and what mock project should I build right now to simulate that?

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to break it down!