When I first joined the recruitment industry as a bright-eyed consultant 16 years ago, things were very different to the recruitment industry we know today. I quickly realised that the reputation of recruitment consultants was not exactly favourable. We were thought of as ‘sharky’ salespeople who would do anything for a quick quid and had little in the way of expertise.
The reason for the not so savoury reputation is that 16 years ago a contract IT recruitment consultant didn’t actually require too much expertise or, let’s face it, intelligence. Working directly with line managers with minimal interaction with HR or Resourcing (if they even existed), the manager would give us a brief job spec over the phone and we then trawled our in-house database as well as the one existing job board at the time (JobServe). A word-matching exercise ensued to identify the right candidate for the role. Not exactly rocket science. There was no real time for delving deeper and making sure the candidates were the right match for the company.
However, recruitment has now become more of a professional service. Hiring has evolved from a timely cold call made to a recruitment line manager to the now more formal Preferred Suppliers List, RPO and Managed Service Programmes. Businesses now appoint recruitment companies who they know they can trust to work as an extended arm of the business. We work with hiring managers, directors, HR and Procurement, getting to know the organisation inside out so we can find the perfect match for the business. Where our industry really comes into its own nowadays is the knowledge and expertise that recruitment consultants can offer to organisations. Not only do we find the right people for the job; we help companies plan their hiring budgets, offer advice for the types of roles they might need, update them on changes in employment legislation and make suggestions as to where they could be saving money. In effect, we have become true consultants.
And the reason for this change? Not only is it our clients’ desire for efficiency and cost savings, it is survival of the fittest in the recruitment industry. Advances in technology and the economic recession meant that companies couldn’t justify losing part of their hiring budget to recruiters who would just place a job advert onto a website. Someone in their own company could do that at little cost to the business. The fact of the matter is that if we didn’t evolve as an industry we would have been extinct by now.
Over the years, I have seen technology play a much larger part in recruiting; from the impact of social media through to automating the simpler parts of the job, such as CV searching, freeing up consultants’ time to put their expertise to better use. Recruiters now need to go the extra mile, consulting with businesses to get under their skin and find out exactly what it is they need. It is no longer enough just to post a job advert or a message on LinkedIn. Anyone can do that. Networking now features much more heavily in recruitment. A consultant is only worth as much as the network they have built up but even this is not always enough. Candidates are not loyal. Recruiters need to keep their network engaged so the potential candidates know we are the ones to come to when on the lookout for their next assignment. Our consultants are very active on social media, creating communities of candidates within their specific niche area where they exchange ideas, questions and issues as well as offering advice.
The successful recruitment companies have used the developments in technology to their advantage. For example, we have recently invested heavily in new, bespoke technologies to make the whole requisition process, including document signing, candidate management and pre- and post-requisition much more efficient, further freeing up consultants’ time to get under the skin of their clients.
Consultants are gradually shaking off their ‘sharky’ reputation. Choosing a career path in recruitment is no longer a fall back plan, it requires intelligence together with excellent people skills. In return, good consultants are rewarded with good earning potential and a clear cut career ladder for those with ambition. At Networkers, we have invested heavily in our training budget, providing consultants with bespoke in-house training as well as external training qualifications so they can be subject matter experts in their field, equipping them with the tools they need to progress in their careers.
The real test for the future will be what the recruitment industry does now that we are coming out of the recession. It won’t be enough to ride the wave of the growing economy; to stay ahead of the competition we need to continue innovating and developing.
A good recruitment consultant and recruitment company needs to continually evaluate the service they offer to their clients and candidates. Looking to implement new, innovative ideas utilising all means to engage our clients and candidates with social media playing a large role. It is evident in this day and age people are buying very differently with access to a wealth of information via reviews and forums on the internet so the traditional telephone-based hard-sell is no longer enough. Customers make informed decisions throughout the sales process so it is essential to make sure there is substance and quality behind the sale. We need to reach out to clients with a multi-pronged approach, embracing new methods along the way. In short, we have to keep evolving.
