Whether you lack the time to conduct a job search yourself or you’re getting frustrated with the talent pool your job search has drummed up, working with a recruiter is an excellent way to streamline your hiring process.
In the 20-plus years I’ve spent working as a recruiter, I’ve helped a ton of businesses find talented individuals to join their teams. Over that time, I’ve learned that the best talent searches occur when there is a strong relationship between the recruiter and the company in need of talent.
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Here are 5 tips for companies to follow when working with a recruiter to hire talent for their organization:
1. Establish a Relationship with a Recruiter
I think most people would agree, it’s much easier buying goods and services from people you know and trust. You know the “seller” is trustworthy, has your best interest at heart, and often times is more willing to negotiate with you because they feel the same about you.
If you are hiring, get to know the recruiter you use. Doing so will make you feel comfortable with the candidates and info you get from the recruiter. Many times, we as recruiters are eager to share information about candidates, salaries, market trends, but if we don’t ever talk to hiring managers, that valuable info doesn’t make it to you.
2. Only Use One Recruiter
Think about the last time you purchased a home or property. How many realtors did you use? Most of us would say just one. Why? Because it’s a VERY important event in our lives. You want to get close to the realtor, so they know exactly what you are looking for. You want them armed and empowered to find you the very best you can afford, and you want to be able to challenge them if they aren’t delivering.
Also, if you are only using one realtor, they are more likely to give you their very best effort, knowing they need to deliver, and have a chance to win. Recruiters are much like realtors in this regard. If you as a hiring manager are sending your open requirements out to 10+ recruiters, not meeting them, not vetting the recruiters, how do you know they really understand your needs, and are going to give their best effort for you? If you’re not sure, see tip #1.
3. Give Quality Feedback on the Candidates Presented
By quality feedback on candidates, I’m not only talking about things you like about candidates you want to hire. Negative feedback, or areas where the candidate missed the mark, is sometimes MORE important than what you like about candidates. This is how we refine the search. Again, I go back to the real estate example. If you want a 3-car garage, and keep seeing homes with 2-car garages, eventually you’ll tell your realtor to STOP sending you to see homes with 2-car garages.
4. Work with Recruiters on Creating Expectations for Candidates
Recruiters spend their entire day talking to candidates about their jobs, skills, titles, geography, salary, bonus etc. ALL very valuable information when you are trying to hire people. Think about this. If I talk to 15 new candidates per day, that’s 75 per week, nearly 4000 candidates per year. As you are crafting a new job requirement, and trying to determine what the market bears for salary ranges, have you ever reached out to a few recruiters you trust to help you level set your expectations? We as recruiters LOVE it when clients ask for information from us prior to sending out the jobs.
5. Time Kills Deals
If you have a hiring process that has a candidate coming back 3 times to meet people and takes nearly a month to arrive at a decision, you might want to reevaluate. Great candidates these days are not in the market long. I’m not suggesting you make a hasty decision and rush, I’m suggesting you do whatever you can to get to a comfortable decision quicker. If you see a candidate you like, make sure they know you like them, keep them engaged, get them through the process. Recruiters can help you with this!
Related Post: 5 Tips on How to Find Best Fit Candidates ➢
Conclusion
Hiring in today’s job market can be very difficult, especially if you’re doing it alone. Working with a recruiter is an excellent way to accelerate your hiring process and have the best candidate join your team. When you do work with a recruiter, remember the five tips I provided today to ensure you get the most out of your business partnership.
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