THE LIFE OF A RECRUITER...IT'S NOT WHAT YOU MAY THINK!

Recruitment is one of the most difficult but rewarding industries in the world.

Nearly ￡1 in every ￡20 that's contributed to the British economy is supported by the recruitment industry and?over six million workers?(a fifth of the entire workforce) found their current job through the recruitment industry.

BUT IT'S NOT ALL EASY FLOWING!!

Where do I start?

Building a desk yourself can be extremely difficult. It's like any sales job, you have to identify potential clients, understand the nature of their business and listen to the client so that you can fulfil their expectations and provide an exceptional service. One key element is missing here.....NO ONE LIKES COLD CALLS REGARDING RECRUITMENT!! We will come back to this later on.

One thing some recruiters neglect to remember is that candidates are ALSO clients. Having worked at both ends of the spectrum from being a temp worker myself, many years ago for Unilever. I worked for an agency (Meridian Business Support) who were excellent with communication and did their best to help candidates find work that was right for them and they took the time to listen/help with any issues that developed along the way.

I also worked for a few other agencies that were "NOT SO GOOD" at listening and the communication was horrendous. Sometimes you felt like you were in limbo waiting at the end of the phone.

This was the main reason I entered the recruitment world (as I like to think of myself as a people person) was to help people with their career moves by listening to what CANDIDIATES WANTED and not treating them like a book you can pick up and put down at the drop of a hat!

Funnily enough, Meridian was where I began my career in recruitment and the training they provided and support they gave was incredible. I can't thank them enough.

A huge number of people think recruiters are only in it for the money and sometimes clients think the fees recruiters charge are extortionate but when in reality, they are a lot cheaper than most companies actually realise. The fee you spend engaging with a recruiter actually saves a business a lot of time and money in the long run, doing all the leg work, filtering through CV's, preliminary vetting, background checks etc (which is extremely time consuming and stressful) and if you still think its expensive, I also offer a FREE replacement should the first placement not go as planned. One more thing....always make sure to ASK ABOUT THE REBATE SYSTEM!! Not really expensive now is it?

So, lets kick off with a normal working month for a PERM recruiter.

You will probably engage with (on average) approximately 8 new roles per month. Let's say a ￡5K fee per role (Billing ￡40K) sounds amazing from a business point of view but then this is what tends to happen behind the scenes....

You post all 8 job adverts through various job boards you subscribe to along with sending out a mail shot to suitable candidates through your in-house CRM system. This is the easy part and will probably take you a day in total to execute all 8 specs.

For each role, you will then look to headhunt through the likes of social media, company websites and various job boards etc. There is no time limit on this one, this is usually my 6pm-10pm tasks on weekdays and any other spare time I may be able to squeeze in between meetings, interviews etc throughout the working day.

Now, let's actually look at these positions a little closer...

• Roles 1-6 are being advertised in-house and also have another 3-5 agencies looking into them.
• Roles 7-8 are exclusive clients who will only deal with me. Winner!

Role 1 is now three weeks in and 4 candidates have been submitted and the client isn't answering their phone and no response to emails. ?? (approximately 38 hours spent)

Role 2 is now two weeks in and 6 candidates have been submitted and two have actually sat their first interviews as it is an immediate requirement. Looking positive. ?? (approximately 42 hours spent)

Role 3 has been worked on for three weeks and the client sends a short email saying they are putting the role on hold as the Director is going on holiday and there won't be anyone available to manage the interview stages. ?? (approximately 26 hours spent)

Role 4 is now four weeks in and 8 candidates have been submitted. 3 sat the first interview and 1 is due to sit their second interview next week ?? Oh wait the office have just confirmed the Hiring Manager has now left the business and they are reassessing their requirements but will let me know in a month or so if they want to see the candidate who was supposed to be coming in again. ??♂? (approximately 60 hours spent)

Role 5 is TWO DAYS in and only the formalities were done of job advert, email shot and a few calls to candidates I knew, who I felt would be appropriate for the position. However, the client has now filled the position in house. ?? (approximately 4 hours spent)

Role 6 has been worked on for one week but the client is reluctant to sign the terms until they see candidates so we pull out as there is no commitment from the client. ??(approximately 8 hours spent)

Role 7 has now been worked on for three weeks and 5 candidates have been submitted. No interviews as of yet but three candidates have been accepted and awaiting details for interviews. Promising ?? (approximately 34 hours spent)

Role 8 has been worked on for two weeks but the client has changed the job description twice and isn't sure if now is the right time as someone else within the business is going to be promoted instead. ?? (approximately 20 hours spent)

Take all of the above into consideration and there has been 232 hours spent (29 days @ 8 hours per day) working on these positions and the end result is that two positions are looking promising for ￡5K each. Likelihood of both completing is not certain so we will go with 50/50 - ￡5K achieved. Now pay the consultants wage, job board subscriptions, CRM licences, their phone bill, their mileage, their reimbursement's for client drinks, food etc the ROI is now not looking very profitable is it!

Yes there are months where things go swimmingly well but there are some long months where nothing goes right. You also have to consider all the candidates you are submitting are also attending other interviews for different companies so timing is of the essence when it comes to recruitment.

Recruiters get extremely bad names for themselves but the honest truth is 8/10 of them probably haven't actually done anything wrong.

• A client can pull a contract, hire someone else, promote within etc
• A candidate can accept work elsewhere, not turn up to an interview, change their minds (they are only human after all, circumstances can change).

Supplying a product is simple, you place an order and then its delivered! Supplying human beings…not as simple unfortunately.

I love recruitment but some days things are so tough you feel like doing a Phil Mitchell and I know other recruiters reading this will certainly relate to this at some point in their careers. If you haven't yet, YOU WILL!!

Advice to all Hiring Managers and Candidates.

1. Choose your consultant wisely and make sure they understand your industry and have your best interests at heart.
2. Keep the communication flowing at all times and the recruitment process will be a lot smoother for all parties involved.
3. Be open and honest with us, we are only trying to help and some of us actually care and enjoy our jobs.

Thank you for reading my latest article. If you would like an open and honest discussion regarding any construction related recruitment requirements, please feel free to give me a call anytime on 07510 004 389 or drop me an email [email protected]