Press Coverage
Moving on up
Professional Recruiter - 2001-09-19
Tightening Up
Long-term relationships are the ideal, but in some areas of the industry, simply hanging onto clients from day to day is a struggle.
The dotcom and technology downturn has affected all areas of the recruitment industry, and recruitment to recruitment is no exception, says Zena Everett, managing director of Perriam & Everett.
'Recruitment to recruitment is a barometer of the recruitment industry itself. Most of our clients are still hiring, but they only want people that can really add value to their businesses and give them a competitive edge. We started this business in 1992 at the tail end of the last major recession, so we know how to manage the business in a downturn. I think that the recruitment to recruitment industry has exactly the same pressures on it to deliver as the rest of the recruitment industry has. Like every canny business, we are looking at our break-even points and our fixed costs. Most importantly, we are using this opportunity to get closer to our clients and really give them what they want.'
The Service Game
Zena Everett notes that clients are the final arbiters of service standards. 'If they are not happy with the service, they don't pay the invoices. We've got our head down trying to deliver what our clients want. At this stage, I know what my good competitors are doing but not what the bad ones are doing. In our client base, we don't compete with those types of business. Frankly, I think slow markets are a challenge. We have the opportunity to show people what we are made of.'
Certainly, the difficult times being experience in some recruitment sectors should not deter recruitment to recruitment consultancies from committing to improving standards within their organisations. At the very least, this kind of commitment helps both clients and candidates to evaluate the ever-growing range of recruitment to recruitment companies within the marketplace. Those with nothing to hide can only benefit in this process.
