Potential clients often ask me the question: What should I look for in a good recruitment consultancy? Short of the tempting, if facile reply: "Look no further!" I thought it would be useful to provide a checklist of my personal views on the subject. Here goes:
- Check out the consultancy's reputation across similar businesses and sectors - do they have strong testimonials from past and present clients and candidates?
- How willing are they to invest in a long-term relationship with you - will they take the time to really understand your business and its recruitment needs?
- Are they up to date on the latest trends in your market sector?
- Are they growing and therefore able to keep up with your resourcing needs and ahead of their competitors?
- Look at the calibre of their consultants and their specialisations across your industry sector. Also, how long have they been with the consultancy? A high turnover of consultants should sound an early alarm bell.
- Research - do they have a dedicated research team to keep abreast of the movers and shakers in your specific sector?
- Are they able to work to your processes and timescales? Can they deliver results on time, every time?
- Are they up to date and in line with current recruitment laws such as the completion of required documentations, e.g. EAA forms for proof of candidate identity etc.
- Ask what their standard operating practices are. Will they interview potential candidates face to face?
- Do they invest in thoroughly preparing each candidate for interview? Will they prepare a role-specific short list of exact matches?
If you have answered Yes to the majority of these questions, then you are on the right path. If No, then take care as your recruitment partners are an extension of your own business out there in the market and they can both enhance or damage your reputation.
The other aspect of developing a strong long term partnership with a professional Recruitment Consultancy is the benefit of resourcing teams rather than individuals. We have lots of examples of where we at FMCL have sourced and placed entire Executive Teams for clients, enabling us to balance skills and working styles around that senior team table. Having placed these senior functional managers and developed a personal relationship with them as ex.candidates, it is also easier to work with them as clients on recruiting people for their own teams.
What you need to remember is most recruitment businesses are client focused. For example you will regsiter your CV and you will only get informed of a vacancy if you "match" their criteria.
Here at www.parisauk.com we focus on a proactive appoach with our candidates.
The key is to go for smaller specialist businesses like us.
Feel free to go too www.parisauk.com for ow we help our candidates search that next career move.