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5 Hiring Pitfalls Recruiters Make When Hiring Other Recruiters

Bad hires happen from time to time and they are costly, disruptive, and ultimately disastrous when it comes to a teams productivity. While you might be scratching your head and thinking that as a business owner, manager or hiring recruiter you have first hand experience on sussing out winning talent, it is not always so cut and dry. We have created a list of things to watch for when hiring other recruiters:

Blasé Job Descriptions

This should be a no brainer and it is the perfect place to impart your empathy as a recruiter. What kinds of things drew you to your current position? What kind of language can you use to engage the best of the best? First of all, ditch the formal ‘this candidate will possess’ talk. We all know that recruiters thrive on being personable. Your job description should emulate this. Also leave off obvious buzzwords like “innovative, problem solver, excellent communicator and self-starter” because these things go without saying for any recruiter worth their weight. Instead focus on what you bring to the table and be direct about what you’re NOT looking for “this job isn’t for you if…” If you are putting blasé job descriptions out into the world, you will get blasé candidates!

Avoiding Your Immediate Network of Recruiters

It’s a small world and if you have been in the industry for as little as a year, you have likely met a decent amount of competitors or know colleagues-turned-competitors. We are in a competitive business but we are also in the business of helping people. Give your peers the benefit of the doubt and allow them to help you. Not only does it show a sense of humility but it can be healthy for your business to keep the competition close. Of course, nothing is for nothing so offering a reciprocal arrangement to the contact or recruiter who helps you place is a great incentive and a great way to scratch backs.

Only Hiring People Less Qualified Than You

Sometimes we can let our ego take control of a situation and discredit a candidate that we may be threatened by and instead select a candidate that you feel you have a higher authority over. Since you won’t be working directly with this recruiter, it isn’t logical as much as it is an unconscious impulse that feeds your ego. Be aware of it. Showing that you aren’t afraid to recognise someone that impresses and inspires you as a recruiter to your clients shows business maturity.

Rushing The Hire v Speed to Hire

Hiring is a deadline driven world but that doesn’t mean you should rush the process. There is a fine balance however between not rushing a hire and reacting quickly to a great candidate that’s put before you. If they are “hot” on the market, sometimes speed will win the day and secure the hire, however if your gut isn’t giving you the green light on a candidate when they look perfect on paper, it can be tempting to push them through. The reality is you could be saving yourself hours of paperwork and headaches later if you take a bit more time on screening up front. You never know who might appear that’s perfect in the next 24-48 hours. Trust your gut and don’t rush the hire, but move fast if the market place dictates that you need to.

Taking Their Word For It (Research!)

Any half decent recruiter is going to come to the interview polished and ready to chat. It is natural to be charmed and engaged by someone who normally sits on the other side of the desk for a living. The important thing is that you do your due diligence and check up on some of their claims. If they claim to have a stronghold on a particular niche, check their LinkedIn and see what groups they are a part of, research their Twitter to see what events they have attended and who they follow.

Using a Recruitment to Recruitment Firm

We will obviously be advocates for this point (can’t think why?)

Part of the reason that we started Raymond George Consultancy was because there was a gap in the market place for a great Recruitment to Recruitment firm on the South coast. Whether it’s us, or a different firm that you use, the services that a specialist firm can offer should mirror the business practices that you would expect of your own team and help you in the hiring process to find great recruiters that will add value and profitability to your business.

Our philosophy is to meet with our clients and candidates wherever possible. The selection of candidates that we send to a client should be based on our personal interaction and thorough interview, we will not spray and pray. We know that diligence around our interview process and really trying to understand the clients needs which are discussed during client visits will mean that we get as close as we can be to finding the right folks and we do our best to not waste valuable time for any party. A simple yet solid step to developing long term partnerships that is the basis of successful hires.

All in all, hiring a recruiter through a third party or not, means being hyper vigilant and keeping in mind that the cost of a bad hire can far outweigh a more cautious approach. If your client is pressuring you to present candidates, you can always share the statistics of what the wrong fit means to their bottom line and give them an inside peak to your thorough screening process that shows you are doing what you can to provide a solid addition to the team. Most clients will appreciate that your extra time is an investment that you are making to protect them vs. laziness or incompetence. Good luck!

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