Recruitment can be a very lonely place. Clients don’t trust you with their roles; candidates don’t return your calls; you have a list of “live” jobs as long as your arm but you don’t know which one to prioritise. Your boss is starting to pile on the pressure as you didn’t make a placement last month, and everyone else seems too immersed in their own worries to be concerned about yours.
For some consultants, this is a reality. They have their own desk that they run independently, and the buck stops with them and them alone. When times are good, they lap up the praise, but when times get tough, there is no hiding place. We wonder why attrition is so high in recruiting – and why there don’t seem to be so many truly experienced consultants out there? I’d suggest that this lone-wolf existence is a big part of the reason.
It doesn’t have to be like this.
Many successful recruiting companies structure their businesses in a more collaborative way. They have specialists working within inter-dependant teams. This spreads the workload, increases accountability and makes for a far more enjoyable experience. Each “team” works like an engine room.
For example, in the Retail specialization there may be a permanent recruiter and a contingency / contract recruiter. They might be supported by a resourcer, who sits across a number of teams. Alongside there could be an account management team who manage the process and specialize in client relations.
You work together for common success. You have a source of new roles and you have people who are expert in their markets to assess the best candidates. You have social media sourcing wizards to find the best people and you have a client team who are great at smoothing out all the issues in a complex recruitment process. There is no focal point; there is just a team. You split the fees, you share in the good times, but you take the accountability for the bad times. Together.
One person cannot compete with that.
The MD can structure his KPIs for each person. Resourcers are measured on quantity of candidates but also the interview ratios that they hit. Consultants are measured on candidate care KPIs – not only the numbers of placements they make. Business developers are measured on the suitability of roles that they bring in – and the commercial terms that they negotiate. Account Managers are measured on client satisfaction and placement ratios.
One person would find all those priorities hard to juggle.
In this case, companies hire for more specific skills. They are no longer looking for all-rounders – who are inevitably hard to find, and certainly harder to train. As well as skills, they hire for attitude and personality fit. High performing teams are all about getting on with each other.
Some clients of ours have doubled their turnover as a result of such an approach. Would these “engine rooms” make recruitment simultaneously more client and candidate centric? Is it the key to the survival of our vital industry?
Check out this presentation to help you visualise what we mean or give us a call on 0800 161 5100.
