What is Volume Recruitment & How Does It Work?

Volume or high-volume recruitment can also be known as the following:  Seasonal Recruitment; Ramp-up Recruitment; In-house Recruitment; Onsite Recruitment or Bulk Recruitment.  A high volume recruitment project would typically happen when a company needs to hire large numbers of candidates in a stipulated time. Therefore to lessen the workload on HR and other departments of the company clients outsource the project to specialist recruitment providers.

Essentially any hiring project which involves between 5 and 500+ staff, at one time, would be considered a High-Volume recruitment project.  This is an area which very few recruitment companies are capable of delivering.  It is not simply about numbers, it is also about quality, as the learning curve of new hires is fast and they need to hit the ground running in their new position.  The selection process needs to be rigorous to ensure that the right people are being taken on regardless of whether it is 20+ people or 200+.   

In most cases, the client’s Recruitment/HR team, need help and support to make a project like this happen. Handling volumes of CV’s, interviews,   Assessment Centres, Reference Checks and all of the administration that needs to happen on a requirement of 350+ staff is both challenging and significant. Recruitment companies with this expertise have dedicated Project Managers who specialise in this. Back office support teams are used to handling volume, they have the ability to make a high volume project happen fast. 

Situations which might lead to a high-volume project:

-         Seasonal headcount increase – for example, a company may be forecasting a peak in their busiest quarter of the year, so an increase in headcount could mean a high volume recruitment solution.  This would be key for online retailers, gaming companies, travel companies etc.  This is usually for contract or temporary positions.

-       Winning a major client – a company which is bidding for new business, without the staffing levels in place needs to be quickly ramp-up staff when the business closes and go-ahead is given.  This would be relevant to outsourced call centres, where staffing levels can fluctuate significantly.

-         A Company arriving into a brand new country – for example, a company may be

    relocating to a new country such as Ireland or UK, and they have plans to establish a new Facility or European Shared Service Centre, in many cases this will involve a high-volume project, usually for permanent positions involving multiple languages and disciplines.   

The recruitment partner on a project like this will often perform tasks right from sourcing candidates through to final assessments, so choosing the right company with a track record and a solid approach to this type of recruitment is essential.   Mobilising teams quickly to be able to handle high volumes of CV’s and a volume driven recruitment campaign is critical. In most cases, there will be an element of onsite or in-house recruitment, where members of the recruitment agency project team would be working out of the clients office, to speed up the process and build a strong partnership with hiring managers.  

Selection of one or maximum two recruitment companies is vital, there will be a limited number of candidates in the market and each agency would be able to tap into a wide talent pool.  You will usually get a better price if you offer exclusivity to a recruitment company, although you would need to have a high level of trust in your recruitment partner to do so.  

High-Volume Recruitment provides peace of mind for the client in mass numbers in a stipulated time period. It helps save time and money for both the client and the agency. With this kind of services the agencies ensure good growth and development for the company and help to represent their client as an Employer of Choice, selling the opportunity to prospective candidates.  

If the project is for contract or temporary staff, they will usually be on the payroll of the agency, and an hourly rate will be agreed.  If the project is for a ramp-up project for a new company coming into the local market, then rather that a % per head fee, you should look to agree a total project cost for the completion of the whole project.  Build in milestone bonuses with your recruitment partner, so that they are fully accountable for reaching all of the recruitment goals and deadlines.  Your project cost can work out much more cost-effective and everyone knows where they stand on budget from the outset. 

Many recruitment companies will claim that they can deliver high-volume recruitment, but you will find that only a few of them are actually able to make it happen.  Always look for experience and expertise where high volumes have been involved, and speak to clients that they have previously worked on ramp-up campaigns for recommendations.  Always ensure you go through their recruitment procedures, ways of working and case studies of other similar high-volume projects before selecting your partner.  High-Volume recruitment is not for the feint-hearted, but it is great fun and always a rollercoaster ride!  

Tips for Selecting the Right Recruitment Partner

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.

It Was Much More than I "Expect"ed...

This weeks blog is written by 16-Year Old Aaron McCarthy, who has just completed his 2 week work placement with Expect Talent.  

   

"I remember the day when Samantha Rathling, a local Entrepreneur, came into my business class at Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh (local School here in Cork) and taught us about the ins and outs of business.  She told us the history of her recruitment company Expect Talent and shared secrets to her success.

Four months later, and I have just finished two weeks of work experience with Expect Talent. My honest opinion? It was absolutely class.  Stepping into the office for the first time was like entering a new world. I have always wanted to be in charge of my own company when I’m older but, the thing is, I had absolutely no idea of what an office even looked like. 

I expected to see grey walls, kind of a warehouse type building and very little sunlight. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Stepping into the Expect Talent office really was like stepping into a new world. While the employees were hard at work, they seemed to work in a sort of relaxed manner. This surprised me, but in a good way. Throughout the two weeks, I realised just how friendly everybody seemed to be. There is a really great team spirit at Expect and I was delighted to be part of it.

            

         But, it wasn’t just the laissez-faire setup that made me love Expect. I mean, on the first day alone, I partook in an online BNI conference with people from all over the world; from America to Japan to Dubai. It was exceedingly cool. And, speaking of Dubai, I had thought Dubai was in a third-world country. And I was shocked to find out how beautiful Dubai is after I researched it.  I wasn’t even here a day and already I was learning so much.

            The following day, I went to a local BNI meeting; this time in Silversprings Hotel. Again, I found that this was a real eye-opener. I wasn’t even here two days and I had already decided that I liked working better than I liked school. So much for the seven dwarves complaining about having to go to work all the time!

            During the two weeks, my principal role was to search for candidates for companies and I worked on a brand new online project. It was really quite amazing. I also did internet research. I also listened in when Margaret, a Talent Manager was interviewing a candidate, after which I wrote up a candidate profile. Most people don’t get to see the other side of the interviewing panel. I was learning all the trade secrets!

            During the second week I went to a large multinational client, a huge call centre!! Incredible to see the size of the companies that Expect Talent works with.  On the second Thursday, Expect had their annual strategy day, which started with us watching "The Secret", a philosophy which Samantha the Managing Director lives and breathes by.  We then had to apply what we had learnt and set our personal goals and dreams for 2011 on paper.  Then Samantha outlined the plan for 2011 and the team contributed with ideas and analysis on moving the company forward.

            Today, we had “Friday club” and went out for something to eat locally as a team. It was delicious! I also did an video email with Samantha. It was my first video email, my first time with a webcam to be exact, and I found it really cool.

            To put how great I found this placement down into words would be very, very difficult. I learnt more from these two weeks than I arguably did during my whole time at secondary school. I had a brilliant time. I was given many chances of a lifetime; from online conferences to trips to huge companies. I got involved with the start up of an online business, the list goes on...  

           I did a lot of work but had a great time doing it. The team were great, Samantha was great and everybody was fantastic to work with. I had an amazing time and learnt many things that will help me with my future plans. All in all, I loved my time at Expect Talent. But, as I said, it is very difficult to put into words how fantastic I found this work placement. I suppose, the only short and concise sentence that will work is:  It was class! Thank you Samantha and the team."

Aaron McCarthy, Aged 16