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Permalink Reply by Slouch on February 8, 2008 at 10:19am

Do you charge the candidates to help them find new work? If not, it sounds like a regular recruiting firm

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Permalink Reply by Catherine on February 8, 2008 at 10:25am

No we don't charge. We get a fee from a client. I know it sounds like a regular recruiting firm but I have spoken to so many recruiters this week who have had negative experiences from dealings with rec-to-rec's.

One recruiter posted her CV on a website, I spoke to her about her requirements rather than discussing all of my clients who are looking for people...it is all about the candidate and making sure it is the right companies that could be of interest. In the mean-time, another agency had picked up her CV and sprayed her details across to all the agencies within the London area...which actually included her current company who weren't aware she was looking. They never even spoke to her but had interviews arranged. They just sent her an email with website links and interview times...this is not a service to a candidate!!

We have so many horror stories about Rec-to-Rec agencies and I want to know what I am actually up against in order to make prospective candidates/experienced recruiters realise that not all R2R agencies work like that.

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Permalink Reply by Slouch on February 8, 2008 at 10:44am

Maybe I am issing something. If the client pays the bills then, they are the client, not the candidate and I would figure you would do what has to be done in order to make the client happy. It's important to make the candidate happy to but they don't pay the bill so...

Recruiters who just mass email to candidates looking to get lucky will find themselves in a new career soon. I have a regular writing gig on a site called the Fordyce Letter and it is all about third party recruiting. There is tons of info in the archives there as well.

I think, you just need to pick the hottest order you have ( hot means urgent and fillable based on your network of candidates) and forget aboiut everything else until it's filled. I hope I am not missing the point of your post. If I am, I apologize

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Permalink Reply by Catherine on February 8, 2008 at 11:32am

ok, how do i explain this. Equilibrium specialises in the recruitment sector so we specialise in placing resourcer/trainee candidates up to the directorate level within Recruitment roles. Everyone of our clients are looking for trainee or experienced recruitment consultants to join their businesses (as it is a candidate driven market-place) so we don't have any clients that are more urgent than others, plus every client differs so what some experienced consultants are looking for is not going to be every recruitment agency out there. For example, work/life balance (not a 8-8 working culture), management style (micro-management not what they want, more autonomy to run their own day), career progression (no opportunity to move up the ladder).

How I work is to speak to recruiters who are looking to move and I find out what they are looking for, there is normally a company that I or a colleague deals with that is a match to their requirements. It is a complete waste of mine, theirs and a clients time to send a candidate to interview for a role which is not right for them.

It is more than important to keep the candidate happy in these roles as if it is the wrong one for a candidate then you won't be getting them come back to you when they look again in the future...and that is what Equilibrium is all about - long term career management for their candidates. We even understand when candidates take other roles if it is the right move for them as we hope they will come back to us down the line if they look again in the future.

At the same time, client are also important so you need to make sure candidates we put for interview for them are going to be right for them, otherwise it is a waste of time....and we lose our credibility in our market-space.

Recruiters who mass email candidates to clients in the UK do still have jobs as the demand is so great in the UK for candidates that they deal with them but it gives Rec-to-Rec's a bad name in the marketspace. Where is the service in providing candidates just a website link and interview date/time. I meet my clients and the key decision makers so when I find a candidate, if they match my clients, I am able to give them the full low-down on what to expect.

Unfortunately the "spray and pray" effect with other bad experiences do give us rec-to-rec's a bad name in the market-space...I set up this forum as I want to gain an understanding of what some of these horror stories so I know what else I may be up against to help clear some of the bad reputation.

I hope this makes sense...

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Permalink Reply by Greg McLean on February 8, 2008 at 11:38am

Catherine,

I understand what you are saying my firm works much the same way yours does. We provide a customized service for both candidate and client. The idea being today's candidate is tomorrows client. Of course we tend to only work more senior positions so this works out well. Don't think it would work in a real high volume firm where they place lower level or non management people. Treating the candidate right is important, I have had candidates call me with Job orders after they landed in new positions, The fun part is I didn't place them in those jobs but they valued the way I treated them in the process and wanted to do business with me afterwards.
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Permalink Reply by pam claughton on February 8, 2008 at 1:40pm

Catherine,

The way you work is the way all good recruiters work! Seriously, you're not doing anything new or unusual here. This is the way you must work as a recruiter to be successful in the long term. There will always be bad recruiters who spam resumes without the candidates permission, as long as you tell candidates upfront how you work and follow through, you'll do well.

Keep in mind though too, your true client is the company that pays you the fee. If you focus on what they are looking for first, and find those candidates who are looking for what they have to offer, it will all come together. If you focus too much time and energy on the candidates, you may find yourself spinning your wheels trying to 'help' them if you don't have places to send them. It's a constant balancing act!

Pam

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