Beginning a new recruitment campaign can already feel demanding on your time. The temptation to send a rough brief to multiple agencies and wait for the CVs to roll in is understandable, but taking the time to invest in one or two good agencies will pay you back tenfold.
How urgent is your hire and how committed are you to making it?
In most contingent recruitment processes, companies do not pay a few until the individual is hired. Sometimes engaging with multiple agencies to deliver the best results. Risk free right?
Sometimes. But now you’ve created additional risk and time constraints for all your recruiters. There is a lower % chance of an outcome, reducing motivation and commitment from all your recruiters – diminishing the quality and speed of your service.
They will do the same thing that you have just done, and “hedge” on other companies, splitting their time evenly on other processes. You might get the right person, or you might get an expedient person.
Invest time to build a partnership.
If you have a recruitment strategy that is going to involve multiple hires, you should be looking to build a partnership with your recruiter.
Investing in your relationship is more than just finding people.
Have you considered the following:
They market your message. Approaching the best talent in the market carries risk, if you don’t know how to position the brand, role, team, and key people. Even the candidates you don’t interview/hire are now prospects due to the quality of the approach and message.
Consistency. They have the benefit of knowing what you look for and repeating that pattern.
The trust has already been built with the recruiter. We know what makes the candidate tick, and why the match is a good one. A specialist recruiter would have spent several years building relationships with their candidates, take advantage of this.
Don’t assume that you have a positive employment brand in every part of your business. Recruitment partners may not always like giving candid feedback on your prospects, but if they committed to getting you the people you need, they will help you to overcome the challenges, not just provide you with “who is available” or “who needs a job”.
No two hires are the same, and sometimes it will make sense to have a distant relationship with your recruiter. Before starting the process, think about what you are trying to achieve and plan your approach accordingly.
