Press Coverage
Getting the best
Interviewer - 2001-02-01
That cliché, the worldwide are for talent, applies as much to recruitment consultancy staff as to any other sector. Despite the sophistication of our process and the value of our brands, recruitment firms are really only as good as the staff that deliver their services.
The ability to attract and retain the best of these - with or without previous experience - can be a major determinant to survival. The intensity of competition for these candidates is now fiercer than ever. The pages of advertising in this magazine, and our 300+ competitors, pay testament to this.
If good recruiters are hard to find, it makes perfect sense to ensure you get them on board when you meet them. However, many candidates are interviewing with a number of organisations and there can only be one winner.
Time Wasting
Some companies find their offers are turned down again and again; a frustrating and tie-wasting exercise. At the risk of teaching you to suck eggs, these are some ways to ensure you get the pick of the crop in future:
1 Recruiting consultants is different from the recruitment you do. You are hiring sales people who want to be sold to. The process may need to be different from the one that you use when recruiting for your clients and should be carefully examined. It should be fast, effective, slick and, depending on your sector, aggressive. The candidates have different competencies from the ones you generally see and need to be judged and interviewed differently. Make sure you know what your candidate is looking for in their next role and sell accordingly.
2 Most organisations these days have mixed-methodology and multi-product services. So, experienced consultants are on the market because they are poorly managed in their current company, rather than from a lack of opportunities. They may have a slightly warped perception of the business and often suffer from a fragile self-perception if they have been subjected to a brutal management style. You should make allowances for this.
3 Define your company's unique selling points and make them exciting. Why are you better and different than your competitors? There should be at least three reasons. We can help with these. They are particularly relevant for candidates who are new to your sector and not familiar with your reputation. The acid test is if they can go home and recite these points to their partners. Make sure you sell them at first interview, to get an early buy-in from the candidate (even if you haven't decided you want them yet).
4 Get your charismatic managing director or director out early in the process and get them to clearly articulate their vision and strategy. Everyone wants to work for a good leader. Hiring staff is crucial and it is shortsighted and lazy for senior management to delegate this. No one will sell your company as well as you do - or abide to your hiring criteria. Ideally, consultants should see the more senior management first.
5 Understand that consultants won't beg you for your job! The dynamics are different to how your own sector works. Perhaps unfortunately, the demand for consultants has put the candidate in the driving seat and the interviewer has to close the interviewee, rather than the other way round. You may have a large ego to charm here. A drink with the team is invariably a good tactic.
6 Clearly articulate the career path you provide. Make sure the candidate meets role models so he appreciates what you have to offer and how this beats his current organisation. This is vital if he is counter-offered and you should assume that this will happen.
