Unemployment is the lowest it’s been in years, meaning the job market has shifted in the applicant’s favor. As a result, companies are now struggling to fill open positions, regardless of industry, regardless of role. Although they’ll likely receive initial interest from many qualified applicants, it’s become increasingly more difficult for organizations to win over their most desired candidate. With a plethora of jobs for candidates to choose from these days, organizations need all the help they can get to recruit and retain top talent.
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A company’s success is a product of its talent; internal recruiters have the large responsibility of obtaining said talent, a task that can often seem daunting. In this candidate-driven market, recruiting firms can give hiring managers the competitive edge they need to secure their top pick—a huge advantage, especially when trying to fill highly specialized roles.
Here are four reasons why organizations should consider working with a recruiting firm to help supplement internal efforts when looking to fill open positions:
1. Vetting Top Talent’s Overall Compatibility
Interviewing potential candidates is a lengthy process, and more often than not, internal hiring managers aren’t able to gauge whether a candidate is a good cultural fit until they’ve met with him or her in person.
Résumés provide hiring managers with a detailed outline of a candidate’s previous experience and skill set, but how can they tell if a candidate is well rounded and a good fit for their company’s environment before they take the time to meet with him or her in person?
Since personality and cultural fit are difficult to glean from a piece of paper, a recruiting firm will vet and prep potential candidates for roles by meeting with them in person, allowing time for them to gauge overall compatibility before they meet with a potential employer.
2. Bias-Free Evaluation of Candidates
While there is always a sense of urgency to fill a position, it can be difficult to maintain an objective view of a candidate’s potential when a company’s goal is to extend an offer as soon as possible.
With hundreds of applications to choose from, it’s easy for internal hiring managers to disqualify candidates whose background and qualifications are different from what they’re used to seeing on a résumé. A good recruiting firm thinks outside the box when matching skills with job qualifications and often will connect clients with qualified jobseekers that internal talent acquisition teams may have overlooked from the get-go.
3. Up-to-Date Knowledge on Regulations That Affect Your Business
Recruiting firms will tirelessly keep tabs on ever-changing regulations that have a direct effect on your unique business operations. As a result, they are always one step ahead in making sure they have a variety of candidates in the pipeline who are qualified to take on any newly minted roles companies create in order to comply with these new rules and regulations.
The Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 606, for example, aim to simplify how companies record revenue from customer contracts. These standards, as one example of regulations directly changing business operations, have resulted in companies having to hire experts who are equipped to implement these new policies.
4. Reduced Time to Hire for Specialized Roles
It’s no secret that the hiring process is a lengthy one. Jobvite found that hiring a new employee takes an average of 43 days; that timeline increases to 71 days for a C-suite position and 76 days for a director or vice president role.
While it’s important to take the proper amount of time when making hiring decisions, most organizations can benefit from reducing their time-to-hire ratios, especially with C-level positions. A recruiting firm offers a vast network of connections and vertical-specific knowledge that helps you secure qualified talent faster.
Ask anyone who works in HR—it’s a candidate’s market; that’s why it pays for companies to partner with a recruiting firm that is driven by quality over volume, that knows how to perform a holistic evaluation of candidates, and that maintains a large network of potential candidates who are actively searching for new jobs.
Recruiting firms with a proven track record of success present organizations with candidates that are well-vetted, qualified, and a culture fit, ensuring companies have the tools and talent needed to achieve maximum successes.
 As a Recruiting Manager for Addison Group’s IT Contract division, Candace Murphy manages a team of associates in Chicago, Illinois, who place professionals with companies in search of their specialized skills. She is constantly striving to stay abreast of the latest technological advancements within the information technology industry in order to recognize trends, read the market, and identify opportunities.In addition to her recruiting responsibilities, Murphy directly supports the Managing Partner in hiring, training, and developing a team of junior and midcareer recruiters. She is responsible for leading training sessions, coaching in one-on-one meetings, and hiring and onboarding all new associates. Murphy has been with Addison Group since April of 2008. Before joining Addison, she spent 10 years as an IT Recruiter and Recruiting Manager with Robert Half International. |