How can you be sure you are working with the right company when it comes to selecting a recruitment partner? The answer to this question lies in the way in which you qualify and screen the agency to find out how they operate, and how they will add value to your business.
Expect Talent is a proud member of the NRF, which is a voluntary organisation set up to establish/maintain standards & codes of practice for the Recruitment Industry. Representing recruitment agencies throughout Ireland, NRF Members communicate their commitment to providing quality service by agreeing to abide by a strict Code of Conduct. Some key important elements of the NRF Code of Conduct include:
- The agency must have an up to date recruitment agency licence (issued annually)
- Candidates must be handled with respect, integrity and privacy at all times
- Candidates submitted to clients, must first be interviewed (phone or face-to-face)
- Candidates must be told which clients they have been submitted to
- Full candidate permission sought before submission
- References must not be sought without an applicant's consent
- Absolutely no poaching of placed staff
- Only real jobs should be advertised
A Membership Ethics Committee ensures that this Code of Conduct is adhered to, so always check that the agency you are considering working with is a member of a professional recruitment body such as the NRF (depending on which location you are reading this). There are currently 159 agencies who are members of the NRF in Ireland, however there are hundreds more listed in business directories, so make sure you are working with an agency who adheres to the NRF Code of Conduct, where you can be sure the ethics of that agency are in line with what you would expect. The list above sounds standard to the outsider, but there are many companies out there who don't even do the basics well.
Here is a list of questions you should ask recruitment agencies when meeting with them to decide whether or not to work with them?
1. Are you a member of the NRF? (or equivalent for your location)
2. Describe in detail your selection process. (look for a lengthy, structured process)
3. What checks will be done before submission? (look for references and full interviews)
4. What else will you send other than a CV? (look for detailed information)
5. How many CV's will I receive? (look for quality and not quantity)
6. Can you provide written or verbal references from clients you have worked with?
7. What experience do you have in recruiting for this sector/industry? (look for expertise)
8. How are recruitment team incentivised? (look for NO commission or low commission)
9. Where do you source candidates from? What sourcing methods do you use?
10.When can I expect to see CV's from you? (those who give you short lead times, beware)
Ask to see material to back their answers up, look for a copy of their interview questions, internal processes and forms used throughout the process. Do your homework, and speak to peers in other companies. Usually those who are recommended or referred top the list.
I had an interesting call from a new client last week. An ex-colleague who I worked with 10 years ago, gave me a senior role to work on for his company in the Middle East, and prior to speaking to me, he had spoken to another agency. The other agency had promised him 20 CV's in an hour!! What?? Yet another example of the industry being totally commission driven with no consideration for the client. I was amazed at how someone could do this, but it unfortunately happens all the time. No wonder this industry has a bad reputation.
We would much rather take 5 working days to interview, select and write up a detailed profile a maximum of 3 of the best candidates in the market, where all 3 are considered strong enough for interview, rather than waste a clients time filling their inbox with irrelevant CV's. As a result, that client gave us exclusivity on their position and 1 week later is about to receive a small handful of the best talent in the market for their role.
When you have a vacancy for a recruitment agency to work on, make sure that you really drill them on their internal processes, their approach, their experience and philosophy to recruitment. Contrary to popular belief giving the job to 20 agencies is NOT going to get you the perfect candidate. You would be much better to select 1 or 2 key recruitment partners based on the above criteria and build a really strong relationship with them so that they get it right every time. With some of our clients, they just know that when a detailed interview profile and CV hits their inbox from Expect Talent that it will always be good enough for the hiring manager to move to interview. Establishing that level of trust with your agency is vital. If you would like help in this area, please contact me and to the NRF, thank you for everything that you do for our industry standards.
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