Recruiters are so plentiful these days, it can seem like they’re a dime a dozen. Hiring managers the world over are inundated with a ceaseless stream of voicemails from recruiting firms eager to provide their services. Not all recruiters are created equal, and with so many competing firms it can be hard to discern whether you have the right staffing partners at your side. If you have found yourself questioning the relevance of your current recruiting partners, there are a few sure-fire ways to know that you haven’t chosen the right fit.
- You’re seeing too many candidates
Of course you’d like to see a good number and variety of candidates during the course of a search, and it is important to keep in mind that there tends to be a period of calibration with any search, during which your recruiting partners are fine-tuning their screening process and discovering a bit more about what you are looking for in candidates. However, if you find that you are seeing a huge volume of candidates – particularly if many of them are missing the mark in some way – it may be a sign that your recruiter doesn’t quite understand what it is you’re looking for. A recruiter who takes the shotgun approach may get you a good candidate occasionally, but it is certainly not the most effective approach and it will ensure that you spend more time than is necessary screening resumes yourself. Isn’t that why you work with staffing partners in the first place?
- You aren’t learning anything
While the primary goal of a recruiter is to match the right talent with the right opportunities, that shouldn’t be all that a trusted recruiter can do for you. A great recruiter can be an invaluable resource for you, providing insights into the market, actionable and applicable information, and guidance during your decision-making process. A true partner will be consultative and helpful, and you should find yourself better for having engaged them, even if you don’t hire their candidate.
- You’re doing too much legwork
Your staffing partners aren’t your secretaries, so you shouldn’t expect them to do an undue amount of paperwork or to run errands for you. However, you will find that most firms are very accommodating and will be happy to help remove some of the burden of the screening process from you. If you are finding that, too often, you must chase your recruiters down or take time out of your day to follow up on something they have promised to do, it is a clear indicator that you don’t have an invested partner by your side.
The next time you are evaluating your relationships with your staffing partners, make sure to think a bit about those three topics. Ask yourself if you are seeing an overabundance of resumes, if you have learned anything helpful from them, and if you are doing an appropriate amount of the legwork in the relationship. If the answer is no to any of the above, it might be time to return some of the countless voicemails left by their competitors.