Recruiting FAQs: What’s it Like to Work With, Utilize, or Even be a Recruiter!
The wait is over! Part 2 of our hot takes on some Frequently Asked Questions about the world of recruiting is here!
“Why do companies use external recruiters?”
Yes, it’s because they can’t find someone on their own, but it’s much more than that. The steps listed above should demonstrate the value a good recruiter brings to the table, but there are several other reasons why using a recruiter makes sense.
- Our best clients don’t just want a body, or “someone” in the role. They want to find a “special someone”, a candidate who wants to contribute in ways that go beyond the job description. It’s most likely that candidate is so busy contributing in their current job they aren’t looking at job postings. They need a recruiter to get their attention with a well prepared and attractive presentation.
- We’re more motivated. There are many good corporate recruiters out there, and we have a great deal of respect for them. But on most searches, we only get paid when we source the candidate who is ultimately hired, unlike a corporate recruiter who is paid regardless of the result. Working overtime to find more candidates is a lot more palatable when I know I’m getting a nice commission check at the end.
- I cannot imagine having to recruit for every type of position a company hires for. Recruiting someone in IT one day, an accountant the next, a scientist, an administrative assistant, and then a salesperson. It’s an inch deep and a mile wide. I could never have a deep enough network in accounting if I had to also source these types of positions. As it is, a specialty practice like ours has the time to cultivate relationships and deep networks in our areas of expertise – accounting and finance and information technology.
- Confidential searches. If a company is hiring a CFO and its confidential, their internal recruiter can’t source candidates for the role without tipping their hand as to what company it’s for. An external recruiter can thread that needle with messaging about a “Confidential CFO search” and vet candidates before disclosing additional details such as the company name.
- Track record of success. Many of our clients have used our services with great success multiple times over the years for difficult searches. They know we’ll deliver results and don’t have time to wait for any internal process to run its course for a specialized and time sensitive hire. They also know we’ll be prepping our candidates for counteroffers, and doing all the best in class steps noted above that need to be taken for consistent results.
“How will working with a recruiter help me find the right job?”
There’s no guarantee it will. But working with the right recruiter increases your chances dramatically of finding the right position. The main reason a candidate chooses one recruiting firm over another is they believe that firm has access to the best jobs at the best companies. So a bit of vetting of the recruiter you’re speaking with is needed by a candidate.
Questions to ask are:
- What is your client base?
- How many publicly traded clients do you work with?
- How many non-profit clients have you placed people with if that’s your desired industry?
- Do you specialize in my area of skill?
- How many years have you been doing this?
Our firm has connections to almost every publicly traded company in the DC metro area. We also work with many candidates from the Big 4. Those happen to be the clients many Big 4 professionals want to work for, and those are also the candidates our publicly traded clients look to hire, so the stars are aligned there. But a Big 4 candidate should not be speaking with someone from a staffing firm who dabbles in accounting and finance or only has 1 or 2 publicly traded clients.
Ask the right questions of your recruiter before sending your resume. Shop around!
“As a candidate looking for a job, will working with a recruiter cost me money?”
A recruiting firm’s fees are paid for by their clients. You should never pay anything to a recruiter. Find someone else if they ask you for money.
“What’s it like to work in the recruiting industry?”
The recruiting business is exciting, whether you’re doing executive search or placing interim or consulting resources. It’s fast paced, it’s challenging, it’s hard, and it pays very well. It should pay well, we deliver our clients their most important resource – their people! But if it paid well and was easy, everyone would do it right? So, unfortunately it’s not easy, but if you are motivated, hungry, smart, willing to work hard, and are a people person, you can do extremely well in this business. In the right recruiting environment, there should be appropriate training and mentoring, and a vibe or a positive energy in the office. That type of environment is hard to replicate.
Stay tuned for the third and final part of this FAQ series in the coming weeks.
If you have more questions that were not answered here, feel free to contact us!
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