As an employer then recruiting is tough at the best of times and deciding whether to use an agency/consultancy or to source direct is the first of many choices to be made. Should you decide to use an agency then who you work with is critical, so I thought I would highlight the criteria I would look at to choose a recruitment partner.
- Does the recruiter understand the job role? - seems pretty basic but get them to spell out exactly what they are looking for. If it isn't accurate then either choose to set them straight or do not use them.
- Do they understand the culture at this business? - There is no point meeting a load of people who look good on paper but wouldn't last two minutes in your team. Cultural fit is so important that if they cannot verbalise the kind of individual you are looking for then do not use them.
- Are they able to advise around the current state of the market? - I want a recruitment partner, not just someone who will throw CV's at me for the sake of hitting a KPI.
- Have they advised as to what the market looks like at the moment and the impact that has on the search? If not do not use them.
- Do they understand your sector and what the key challenges are at the moment? - if they are going to source a key post for the business then they need to be able to understand at least some of the nuances of the sector. Again if they don't then do not use them.
- Have they confirmed a clear set of objectives and timescales for the process? - Your diary is going to be tight but if you can plan ahead and know when you are going to receive CV's, when roughly you can expect to have candidates to interview then you can plan ahead. It will make the whole process far simpler in the long run and if they are not trying to explain this to you then do not use them.
Using the wrong agency, using many agencies and not having a clear process can all lead to the wrong message landing on the market place and your recruitment problems can multiply many times over. However if you invest the time at the beginning of the process to choose the right recruitment partner based on the objective of hiring the best possible candidate for your role then it should be much simpler.
If you want to discuss how hatch can work with you on any requirements then please get in touch.
