What I’ve learned about recruitment, reflecting on nostalgia and embracing change.

It’s been a little over 30 years since I first started recruiting and I have witnessed first-hand how the industry has evolved. The transition into the ‘digital era’ as it were.

Recruitment has left the dark and embraced the golden age. We have entered a world where tasks are completed with a lot less tools yet a lot more style and ultimately put the individual in control of their success. It’s fair to say the industry itself, and the position of a recruiter, has changed drastically over the years.

Us ‘old school’ recruiters initially lived in a world where relying on the yellow pages, a rolodex and a diary was our definition of business development and placing a job advert in the paper was deemed an effective means of sourcing. Newspaper posting, albeit expensive, was the go to method but would result in the office being inundated with calls. The telephone however was our main way of communicating with both candidate and clients and remains one of the most important business tools today.  Top marks to those who assigned a specific phone number to the advert though, using the main business telephone number was a well -known huge ‘no no’ as it  resulted in the main line being constantly jammed all day, bringing the business to a halt.

These days when we talk about the different methods of recruiting or looking for a job, the internet would not be overlooked. I therefore find it amazing how quickly things have advanced in such a short space of time and how ‘retro’ some of our old techniques would now seem.

Alongside the few hundred calls per day, we can’t forget the many many job applications received via post. I recall many mornings spent opening a mixture of CV’s, assessing their suitability, to then have to type, file and fax over to the respective client- yes fax and post as we had no emails. Out of hundreds of applications, each opening was a roulette as to their suitability and then we had to figure out which job role (of many) they were even applying for. This resulted in an immense daily task, all of which had to be done before 10am,  followed by a swift move to business development with the yellow pages in hand.

The job board era
‘Reed’ was one of the first job boards to come onto my radar and essentially changed the whole process.
From a candidates point of view, where having to fill things in manually, post, fax or even show your face in person was the norm, it now meant that everything could be done from the comfort of a home or office.
From our point of view, as technology began to change through computing and the internet, we were able to source potential candidates online, eliminate unsuitable applicants quickly and create client contacts quicker than ever before.
During this shift, it was certainly interesting to the see old school versus new school recruiters go at it, over what methods worked the best.

Step forward LinkedIn & Social Media
I started my LinkedIn account pretty much as soon as it launched. I would argue however, that it has been only in the past three or four years that I have started using it extensively and as one of my daily tools. I think LinkedIn differs from the job board norm in that everything is so up to date and the candidates put every effort into selling themselves with it being so accessible by others. The same however, cannot always be said for CV’s unfortunately. LinkedIn is a personal platform in which everyone is available and in turn, everyone has to stand out.
I do however believe LinkedIn should be an aid to recruitment and not regarded as a replacement. Myself and my fellow Westray Recruitment Consultants feel there’s nothing more important than talking on the phone and having face to face contact, exactly the same as the ‘old days’.  Maintaining that human element is absolutely essential and will never change in my opinion.

As social media started to become more significant in the recruitment process, you could say from a recruiter’s point of view that our detective skills almost took a step back. There was no more digging for information as suddenly everything was already posted for us, and on multiple sites, individuals were suddenly sharing everything about themselves making them instantly accessible for us. Social media allowed us to increase the range and depth of our search, because let’s face it, as humans we are inclined to be a little bit nosey and I would say even more so when working in recruitment. At Westray Recruitment Consultants, we’re happy to evolve and use new techniques to locate and assess talent, we do not however neglect our tried and trusted techniques in the process.

The recruitment sector has undergone a huge change in the last few years. Old methods of sourcing candidates have been replaced by newer tactics which are arguably far more effective at locating the best applicants for a role. In order to successfully compete in this shifting market, it is essential for candidates, companies seeking employees and the recruiters hoping to secure them, to understand how these changes have altered the job marketplace.

Technology however has been known to slow the process down in the past, and I personally have known candidates to be offered jobs before their CV was even read by the client, following a compelling call from the informed recruiter. Therefore there is something to be said for consultants always using our initiative and maintaining the face to face impact we have with our candidates to temper the pace, rather than allowing technology to do all the work.

I do therefore believe a shift in technology is a great thing when used alongside traditional methods, which in turn make them more effective and efficient. Balance is key, and being able to adapt to change and evolve as a company, yet still possess old values and ethics, is when I believe recruitment excels.

I am the Operations Manager at Westray Recruitment Consultants, a leading North East consultancy. We are one of the few recruitment consultancies that have gained REC Audited status from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, which means that we are fully compliant with industry regulations and best practice. Our reputation exceeds us in operating across a number of different divisions and being able to supply the very best candidates for both permanent and contract roles. Whilst I enjoy a fond look back every now and then I am very much looking forward to seeing where technology takes the recruitment sector in the future.

There’s bound to be some old school methods I've forgotten to mention during my trip down memory lane, so please feel free to continue the nostalgia in the comments below.