Is Your Relationship with Your Recruitment Consultant Trusted or Transactional?

Lisa Canning • Oct 19, 2018

Is Your Relationship with Your Recruitment Consultant Trusted or Transactional?

Posted on Oct 19, 2018

As experienced recruitment and search consultants, we know that building relationships is the cornerstone of our job. Working alongside a partner that knows the retail recruitment market inside out – the trends, challenges and everything in between – means increasing the chances of reaching top talent. There will always be some organisations that see recruitment purely as a transaction but here’s why nurturing a trusted relationship is the way to go when deciding on your recruitment provider. 

People are the most important resource of any business and a good recruitment practice involves having a thorough grasp of an organisation’s requirements. The better your recruitment provider understands the unique needs, as well as their values, goals and company culture, the higher the chance of success.

Transactional recruiting, on the other hand, focuses on the ‘here and now,’ and getting someone in the door as quickly as possible. Although there are certainly times when this type of strategy might be appropriate, such as a temporary role, in most situations the results will be better when working with a trusted partner; someone that understands the market, the organisation, the culture and the challenges it’s facing.

So, the key to a trusted approach is investing time into the recruitment process but how does this work?

  • It starts with having a clear idea of what’s needed and creating a comprehensive brief and position description. Without a proper brief, its hard to fully understand the role, the challenges and the opportunities, which can affect how it’s then presented to potential candidates.
  • Give your Recruitment Partner an insight into the ins and outs of the organisation and culture. This means they’ll be able to recognise candidates that don’t just tick the boxes, however, will also complement and add value to the existing team.
  • Provide comprehensive feedback as well as being open to receiving market feedback too.
  • Rather than using a Recruitment Agency as a CV service, create space for consultation and open communication throughout the hiring process.

In summary, providing your Recruitment Partner the best chance of securing the ideal candidate means prioritising recruitment and putting in the time it takes upfront, to get it right. I recommend really treating relationships with your provider as true business partnerships, rather than a transaction, and you’ll see better candidates and a better end result.

For advice and support and for access to some of the markets best ‘off market’ talent on your next recruitment assignment, feel free to get in touch with the team at People Equity.

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