The Recruiting Blog | People First Recruiting

A colleague of mine tweeted this article yesterday: “Recruiters: Your Days are Numbered” and when I read it my first inclination was to re-tweet it.  The only problem was that I was limited by the number of characters and I wouldn’t be able to clearly express how I felt about this article concerning the “future of Recruiters.”

I know why she tweeted it.  She was equally disturbed by the fact that a blog could be written about a career she so passionately and firmly believes in and that the success of an entire profession which is built around people (and the relationships you develop with these people) can be thought to be replaced by technology.

So often you read, regardless of the position or industry, that eventually a company or a function will no longer be relevant because technology will replace it.  Don’t get me wrong; we here at People First Recruiting completely support and embrace technology – in fact I love it and would like to have more of it.  What was shocking to me about this article is how recruiting can be boiled down to “3 critical ingredients” - sourcing, screening and verifying.

Boy, if only it were that simple. 

Any recruiter, one paid by a company like us here at People First Recruiting or one who works internally for a company, knows that recruiting is just not that simple – an industry focused on people never is. 

What’s interesting about this article is that it refers to technologies that only cover a small piece of the world of recruiting.  Recruiting isn’t just about finding 'key words' that match a job profile – it is about finding the right person for the role.  Sure, technology can run 24/7 - sweeping LinkedIn and/or the online world to hone in on the right keywords – but can technology then call that person up? Talk to them? Get a sense of whether or not they are truly happy doing what they are doing?   Analyze the actual fit between employer and employee, culture and personality?  Needs versus desires?

While we do embrace technology and look at technology as a partner in our business to help round out our skills, we still ensure we invest in our people.  An example is adding and training people to join our Talent Discovery Group; individuals who everyday utilize research techniques, social channels, and networks.  They turn to their existing relationships to reach out and engage with potential candidates to inform them of some of the incredible opportunities we have with Canadian businesses. 

When our clients come to us they need 3 things:

• find me the best candidate
• within a reasonable amount of time
• for a fair fee

Never do they ask what specific technological tools we used to find that person.  Instead they ask us how we will go about our search.  Where will we focus?  Have we filled a position like this before?  Do we understand the role we are filling on their behalf?  Once they are satisfied we then use a proven methodology and approach to finding them candidates.  The next questions our clients ask us are: What is our screening process?  Do we know how to interview for these roles?  How do we assess candidates?  And so on.

The point I am trying to make is that leaders of companies are not looking for a person to just fill a role, they want the whole package.  They want to partner with experts who use the best processes to find the right candidates; experts with the strongest experience and knowledge to assess the fit and qualifications of candidates.  Companies want to be assured that the person we find for them will be that right fit so that they can retain that individual and remain free to focus on their business.

If you are a Recruiter right now and you believe your job is to simply source, screen and verify then you are missing out on what is the most fulfilling and rewarding part of your job as a Recruiter.  We have the privilege of meeting new people who are making important career decisions every day.  We get to learn about great companies and meet great leaders and then we get to bring the two of them together in what is hopefully a perfect match.  That cohesion is what gets us excited around here.

In an industry that is all about people, technology can never be, and will never be an aspect that will replace the human touch.

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If you haven't figured it out, I am pretty passionate about recruiting, as is the team that I work with.  Because we love what we do and because we are growing - we are looking for more Recruiters to join our team here in Winnipeg.  Never considered recruiting before?  Take a look at our 10 Reasons You May be a Recruiter...and not even know it.  If you identify with these 10 reasons...drop us a line.

~Karin Pooley

The word ‘fit’ is defined in many ways.  According to Webster’s dictionary, ‘fit’ means “adapting to the environment so as to be capable of surviving.”  Wow, that sounds harsh!  I certainly hope companies considering a new employee and individuals considering a new job don’t use this definition when assessing the “fit.”

I expect there are many individuals out there who feel this way – adapting to their work environment in order to survive.  Whether you are an employer or employee, if you take a moment to think about this you will see how detrimental it is as it harms your business, your team, and your confidence.  Unfortunately, it still remains an all too common occurrence in the work place.

In my experience there are two primary reasons for turnover in a company: 

1. The inability to drum up passion or enjoyment for the job.  Perhaps there is a lack of inspiration or just a lack of desire to achieve more than you thought you possibly could.  This isn’t something that should be shrugged off as unimportant.  How you feel in your work environment is just as important as the work itself. 
2. Not developing connections to your team or company you work for.  Perhaps you don’t feel part of the corporate culture. 

Organizations and individuals can reduce turnover by paying more attention to fit.  Unfortunately, it can be the hardest part of the screening process as it is often times based on a feeling or a sense of belonging.

Consider the following in your process to help you assess “fit”:

1. Four Generations of individuals are working side by side in today’s workplace – the Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Gen X’s and Gen Y’s.  Having an appreciation for the different work styles, perspectives and expectations of these generations will help in your assessment.  Do the responsibilities of the role, team and culture hit on some of the elements that are an ideal work environment for the person from one of these Four Generations?
2. Motivational Fit.  If you are interviewing candidates you are most likely engaging this type of assessment whether you are aware of it or not.  This is an important element.  After all, the best predictor of future success is past performance.  Ensure you include Motivational Fit questions in your interview process.  Simple questions such as “What do you (the candidate) find most satisfying about your work,” or “What brings you the most frustration,” or “Why did you leave your last job” can reveal great insights regarding a person’s likes or dislikes.
3. Meet the team...and then meet the team again.  As an individual considering a new opportunity you need to do your due diligence.  If you don't think you can connect or like the people you work with how do you expect to be successful or even happy?  As an employer, ensure the candidate has an opportunity to meet the team in a formal business setting and then again over a lunch or dinner (a meeting which is more informal is a great way for people to get to know each other).
4. Homework assignments.  This is an excellent way to determine the candidate’s interest and desire for the role.  Depending on the role itself, have them complete an assignment.  For example, if you are hiring a graphic artist, get them to create an image for your business.  If you are hiring a Sales Manager, get them to put together a presentation.  Not only will this allow the candidate to determine if your organization is a good fit for them (due to the research that will be required) but it will also demonstrate to you their passion, desire and interest in the role.
5. Finally, have a solid on-boarding plan you can commit to which involves the organization and your team.  The transition into a new job isn’t easy for anyone so anything you can do to ease the process will contribute to the success of your new employee and of your team.

Want more information on the Four Generations?  Read “Four Generations in the Workplace” by Karen Rae Short from the Canadian Management Centre.

One thing is very clear, when you hire a recruitment firm you need a candidate fast, but you also want the best in the market.  Most times you have worked the search on your own and hit a wall so to speak, or you have a highly sensitive replacement search on your hands. 

When you outsource recruitment you expect there to be a database of candidates available immediately and one important question you will ask is, “how long will it take to find my candidate?”  You may be hoping for the answer to be yesterday but the reality is quite different.

I don’t believe there is a recruitment firm out there that doesn’t want to fill an assignment just as quickly as you do.  Recruiters are busy, they have many assignments, candidates and, clients to juggle and remember most work on commission so they are as invested as you in the search.  The question remains then is whether or not you want the search filled quickly with A candidate or with the RIGHT candidate.  This is where your due diligence in finding the right recruiter is most important.

When a position remains vacant your company is losing money and the company stakeholders are hunting you down every day for an update on the search.  I may be stating the obvious but hiring the wrong Recruiter simply to get the job filled will lose you much more than money.

Consider the following domino effect when speed trumps quality: 

• The hired candidate may be leaving a very good job for what they believed was a better one but because of a quick interview process the right questions weren’t asked or important information was not provided.
• Due to the fast turnaround, the appropriate people aren’t involved in the hiring process which means they aren’t available to be a part of those interviews that would allow for such valuable information to be shared with your possible hire.
• You make the offer and the candidate starts.  Now you are spending time and attention evaluating, training, and re-evaluating  the new hire only to realize they may not be the right fit.  You may find yourself reaching the inevitable decision to let them go.  Now you have a replacement search on your hands.
• Sure you are likely to get a replacement search in the fee you paid to the Recruiter but now you might be incurring new costs depending on what’s in the contract.  Regardless, having to start again is in itself a reason to take the time to have a thorough process.

The honest truth is many engagements do take time to complete.  The candidate pool is tight in North America and some candidates are risk adverse right now; they don’t want to take the chance leaving a stable job. 

Here are a few things you can do to ensure the search moves along:

• Provide a job description to the recruiter.  If you don’t have one, put one together.  There are a lot of resources out there that have basic templates.  Or ask for the Recruiter’s help in developing one.
• Meet with the stakeholders in your company to ensure they are in agreement with the job description and criteria.  There is a world of difference between the “must haves” and the “nice to haves”.
• Meet with the Recruiter who will be filling the job and mutually agree upon a timeline.  Try to involve a few people from your company (this might be the Manager of that particular department or HR).  Whenever possible give the Recruiter a tour of your office.  This is great for the Recruiter to get a sense of the environment as the environment and culture is critical to the sourcing of talent.
• Ask for transparency.  By that I mean, rather than an update each week from the Recruiter that goes something like this, “We’re still having some challenges locating candidates, we have interviewed a few this week but they were just not right.  We are continuing the search”, ask these questions:
• Specifically how many candidates have you interviewed this week
• What were their backgrounds and what industry did they come from?
• Why are they not suitable or interested in the role?
• Specifically how many candidates are you interviewing next week
• What are their backgrounds and what industry did they come from?

I think you see where I’m going with this.  If these questions cannot be answered with confidence by the Recruiter then there could be a problem and your search may be longer than the agreed upon deliverables.  At this point you will know whether or not it is time to have a meeting and serious discussion with your partnering Recruiter.