Learn more about us
Withfrontier is a recruitment consultancy with a simple USP: before recruitment, I was a hands-on SEO and performance marketer for 12.5 years. I worked in or around the very roles I now fill, so I know the industry inside and out.
During my time in the sector, I found my passion for sourcing search marketing and growth talent, as well as assembling award-winning teams.
Now I’m putting that experience to good use, matchmaking high-growth digital agencies, challenger eCommerce brands and SaaS businesses with commercially driven, AI-ready search and growth marketers.
More Than a Recruiter.
Part of the Industry Furniture.
I’m a trusted career partner and confidant to literally thousands of marketers, with relationships built over many years working in and around the search and performance marketing industry.
Those relationships give me access to some of the best off-market, growth-minded specialists in the industry. A good proportion of these people may never have been actively looking for a role.
I’m also firmly part of the industry, contributing to some of its most influential and transformational communities through event sponsorships, partnerships and mentorship cohorts.
My background as a former marketer gives me first-hand, lived experience and insight, alongside a network and level of industry understanding that goes far beyond traditional recruitment.
From Search Marketer to Recruitment Partner
It all starts with SEO
Started out as an SEO Content Specialist for an online pharmacy. Exposed to wider SEO and the passion was lit.
Agency life & the discovery of what became Digital PR
Moved agency-side, working across a range of SEO roles before finding what would eventually become a channel in its own right: Digital PR.
Once I’d got to grips with it, I built up a pretty substantial freelance operation alongside the day job, delivering early-days SEO and Digital PR campaigns for agencies and brands across the UK and US.
Building something from scratch
The freelance work led me to Lisa Paasche, founder of Verve Search. She convinced me to join and help build a brand-new Digital PR department.
I stayed hands-on with the work, but there was another challenge: building the team to deliver it.
Unable to find recruiters who really understood the nuances, I started recruiting myself. What began out of necessity eventually became a team of nearly 60 people, fully built via my own headhunting efforts.
Turns out, I loved recruitment too.
Verve Search was acquired by Omnicom Group. Growth accelerated, recruitment ramped up even further and I became increasingly involved in finding, hiring and developing search talent.
By this point, recruitment had become one of the parts of the job I enjoyed most.
The side hustle begins
People across the industry had noticed, and founders and agency leaders I knew started asking if I could help them find people too. As long as they didn’t compete with Verve, I did.
A recruitment side business was born.
Withfrontier is born
After more than a decade working in search, Digital PR, agency growth and team building, I left Verve to build Withfrontier.
The idea was pretty simple: create the recruitment partner I could never find when I was the one doing the hiring.
700+ placements and counting
Today, Withfrontier recruits across SEO & AEO, Paid Media, Digital PR, Growth, eCommerce and SaaS marketing.
Why Withfrontier?
An extensive network
My 12.5 years of experience as a hands-on SEO and performance marketer affords me an unrivalled network of marketers, so I always know when the best candidates are looking for new roles, and when top-tier companies are hiring.
A fellow marketer
Having worked in SEO and performance marketing myself, I know exactly what each role involves, and which candidates are most suited to them.
Discreet
I know the industry is small, but confidentiality and discretion are at the heart of everything I do. The 700+ marketers I’ve placed will testify to the fact that trust is never broken.
Relatable career partner
I see myself as more than a recruiter. I understand what you need and know fully which people would suit each role. Dozens of candidates and agencies see me as a confidant and long-term career partner.
Why Use Withfrontier?
I probably already know the people you are trying to hire. But more than this, I understand them.
I’ve built performance marketing teams, managed clients and delivered the work myself. I know what good looks like because I’ve done the job and hired marketers for my own teams.
Today, I operate as much more than a talent sourcer. I work closely with founders and senior hiring managers as a hands-on consultant, helping them map out their hiring needs, advising on the roles and skill sets they actually need, shaping and writing job descriptions, and connecting them with the right people.
It’s a close-touch, consultative approach built around genuine industry understanding, long-term relationships and delivering the right hires.
The results speak for themselves:
- 700+ marketers successfully placed in roles worldwide
- 3 weeks average time to hire
- Almost 3 years average tenure of the candidates I place
- International reach across the UK, US, Australia and Dubai
It’s why clients keep coming back time and time again. The reviews speak for themselves.
In their own words
James was a pleasure to work with, one of my favourites. He takes the time to understand each brief, our business and the type of person who would thrive at Wild Nutrition, and consistently introduced us to strong, well-matched candidates. He’s responsive, straightforward and genuinely lovely to work with. I’d happily recommend him to other businesses looking to hire.
James has been a great recruitment partner for us at Pareto Legal. He helped us add a key member of our leadership team, understanding exactly what we needed in a fairly specialised market. We’ve since continued working with him on other roles and have been consistently impressed with his understanding of the industry and the quality of candidates he introduces. I’d happily recommend him.
I would recommend James Congdon. His specialist knowledge was particularly impressive and gave me confidence throughout the process. I also appreciated his flexible approach and willingness to listen to and act on feedback, which made working with him both effective and enjoyable.
Not ashamed to say I’m usually speculative when it comes to working with recruiters, but I have to say James filled 3 key senior roles for us in the space of 3 months. He was easy to work with and kept coming up with good candidates until we found the right profiles. I can (and have) heartily recommend him.
James focuses on quality over quantity when it comes to CVs. He is extremely good at knowing when quality candidates are looking for their next move which is why we come to him time and time again.
We’ve worked with James a handful of times for different roles at our quickly growing digital marketing agency. James truly understands the industry, is well connected to talented folks, and is helpful in facilitating conversations to make sure you get the candidates you need. He is easy to work with, takes feedback well, and is invested in your success. I highly recommend him to anyone looking to grow their team with talented, driven people.
James’s big advantage over other recruiters is that he is well connected from working agency-side. That experience also means he really understands what you need.
James is the only recruiter I’ve ever worked with who was actually a practitioner in SEO + Content, and can actually get into the details and screen for skills – beyond taking someone at their word. That, combined with a very personal touch throughout the process, makes him a pleasure to work with.
James is discreet, professional and very communicative. His long tenure as a marketer is what sets him apart. He understands the roles and speaks the same language as candidates. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him.
James is a real recruiting force! I was incredibly impressed by the level of talent he was able to find, and even more, the speed at which he operates. Great individual to work with, brings a lot of ideas and truly cares about the outcome. Highly-highly recommend him!
The great thing about working with James is that with really extensive experience in digital marketing, he genuinely knows what you need better than you do because he’s been doing your job better than you have. It’s like having a mentor and recruiter for one simple price.
James is all about quality. He won’t waste your time with average CVs, he only ever fulfils the brief with top, relevant candidates.
James is more than a recruiter; he offers fantastic market insight and is always on hand to offer advice and strategy on our roles without always wanting something in return.
James’ personal digital network rivals that of the so called ‘large’ media recruitment agencies. He has access to people that wouldn’t ever engage with regular recruiters.
James reached out to me about 6 months ago about an opportunity. I was not actively looking at the time but his cold outreach was inviting and thoughtful and enough to take a call. After that initial call, he spearheaded the next several steps of ultimately landing me my current position. He was helpful, communicative and the first to provide clarification and be in my corner throughout the final stages. I’ve worked with several recruiters over my career in different capacities, James is top notch in all of them.
James was a fantastic help in finding me a new position. His experience in the industry helped reassure both myself and the company that was hiring me that he was able to not just be a middle-man, but actually provide an informed opinion on the quality of the candidate and job he was connecting. I’d recommend anyone looking for a placement to speak to him as his network and experience provide you with unrivalled opportunities.
It was clear from the start that James knows his clients extremely well and puts the effort into getting to know potential candidates just as well. This is something that goes a long way. He genuinely cares about finding the right fit and was a huge support throughout the process – from the first chat to even checking in months down the line. Nothing was ever too big an ask, and he’s refreshingly honest which always came across as genuine and knowledgeable. I would 110% recommend James to anybody either looking for their next role or looking to fill one, as he will find it!
To put it simply James is amazing at what he does! Over the last few months I’ve been in touch with a few recruiters but none were as attentive and helpful as James. Fast forward a few months and not only am I in a role that I most likely wouldn’t have considered myself ‘ready’ for but I’m also in a new role where I’m really happy and meets all my goals, as well as ticking all the boxes thanks to him.
James is a recruiter with a genuine understanding and passion for the digital sector, who knows exactly which agencies will be best suited for a candidate based on their experience and vice versa.
James has been a pleasure to work with! He communicates efficiently, listens to and respects your job requirements, and has your best interests at heart. I would highly recommend him and reach out to him again for career support.
As Seen On
I don’t just spray and pray to find you talent. I lean on deep applied knowledge as a former search and growth marketer, and on active participation in the industry’s communities. See some of our global industry coverage here.
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