Not all recruiters are the same ......

Over the last few weeks, I have had the pleasure of working with a number of new candidates, each of whom had worked to a high standard in the data centre industry. Initially all had some scepticism about working with a recruiter based on past experience. This had led me to start thinking about the perception that exists in the industry about recruitment agencies and what I should be doing to help change this for the better

Recruiters are simply chasing a quick buck 

One of the most common complaints I have heard about recruiters from candidates is we are simply chasing a quick buck. Whilst it is true most recruitment consultants are paid on commission basis; I find rushing to place a candidate in an ill-fitting role counterproductive.

First and foremost I value my reputation so trying to shoehorn a candidate into an ill-fitting role will mean my clients are going to be reluctant to work with me again. Secondly in such a tight knit industry, misplacing a candidate is going to simply mean word will travel and I will struggle to win trust of potential future clients and candidates. Personally I’d rather build up a picture of my candidate and there requirements to ensure I get the right role for them– even if this were to take longer and mean me having to explain why a particular role wouldn’t be right for the candidate. My opinion is I want to have career long working relationships with as many of my candidates as possible. 

Promising the world and disappear 

Another gripe from engineers I have spoken to is that they take lots of calls from agencies who run a couple of jobs past them and then vanish. I think at times this is a valid criticism and in my earlier days maybe was something I could be guilty of, nowadays from my perspective I will, when speaking to a candidate look to run through what opportunities I have, what’s coming up and get a picture of the roles they want to hear of going forward. From there I look to agree with them a time frame of when to call back – and then try and stick to it, even if it’s just a case of simply saying at present I have nothing that is quite right but am continuing to search. I’ll then explain who I’ve spoken to about opportunities and what I have in the pipeline. 

Will throw out my information here, there and everywhere 

I recall having a conversation with a Shift Engineer last week, who was aggrieved that an agency he was working with had put his CV in front of a former boss without his permission. This had got back to the candidate who wasn’t happy that the agent had expressly gone against his wishes. I think there is a view amongst candidates that once an agency has had a conversation with you, they will be pinging your details over to every contact they have. For me to counter balance this, I feel it’s important to go through with my candidates who they will or won’t work for, if there are any individuals, they feel they couldn’t work under and also if they want to be working for an end client or service provider. Once I have this information, I can then target relevant companies– at this point if I have an opportunity that suits, I give my candidate a courtesy call to say what I have and make sure they are comfortable with me getting their information over. 

Lack of real feedback 

This one is a bug bearer of all job seekers. So many times candidates go into interviews and if they don’t secure the position won’t get feedback for the future. I can relate to that position having been on that side of things myself, so it’s really important to me to get constructive interview feedback to candidates. Whether it’s due to lacking experience working with relevant equipment, not being technically at the right level or not putting your best foot forward in the interview I think candidates do need this feedback. This allows them to make improvements for the next interview they attend or indeed to know on areas they need to strengthen or get an overview on courses they may need to look to pursue be it 18th Edition or HV for example. My agency, dataxconnect, pride themselves on this and have signed us up for a software which allows candidates the opportunity to give feedback on how I’ve managed the interview process for them from start to finish 

Lack of interest in the bigger picture 

Another issue which comes up with candidates, is a lack of interest in the bigger picture. For example, I’ve heard of candidates who have been placed by an agency then not heard from them again to check in on how the role is working out. I’ve always been a believer in keeping in contact with candidates you are representing even after you have made a placement. One of the benefits of this, is it is often a good way of picking up on issues a candidate might be having in a new role – they may have something concerning them in the position that they find hard to discuss with the client, and by speaking with them you can help resolve the issue for them. For me even if the candidate is happy in the role, I do like to continue to build the relationship with candidates so will touch base every couple of months at least – it could be the case that your candidate flourishes and rises up the company and you may well indeed be needed to recruit for them in the future. 

 Anyway this is just based on conversations I have held recently, really interested in hearing of anything else that as candidates you would like to see from the recruiters who represent you?