Questions You Should Ask a Sourcer

On Tuesday's MagicMethod Class chat we got to talking about what questions one should ask a sourcer that one was contemplating hiring. Following are the suggestions:

Paul Davenport Cyber Sourcing is getting less and less expensive to companies because many are off shoring or lowering their prices to stay competitive. The problem is that cyber [Internet] sourcing creates data that recruiters need to sift through.
Maureen Sharib If you were hiring a sourcer - what questions would you ask?
Paul Davenport The questions is, "Do you as a Recruiter want to spend your day sifting through data or contacting solid leads?"
Andy Wileman What tools do you use? How do you use them?
Maureen Sharib Are you a Telephone Sourcer or an Internet Sourcer?
Maureen Sharib What training have you had?
Paul Davenport How fresh are your leads? Do you share the same leads with others?
Paul Davenport What is your area of expertise?
Todd Burkhardt Can you get info from P&G, Big 4, McKinsey?
Maureen Sharib Do you resell the names you give to me?
Paul Davenport Am I buying leads previously sold to someone else?
Maureen Sharib Do you guarantee your names?
Paul Davenport How can you help me increase my productivity?
Maureen Sharib What is your guarantee? How long does it last?
Paul Davenport What do you offer that nobody else can offer?
Maureen Sharib What is the area code for Austin? Shreveport, LA? Oakland, CA? Fast, fast fast! That'll tell you in the blink of an eye if they have phone sourcing experience. Most of them, anyway.
Maureen Sharib What is your biggest challenge while phone sourcing?
Maureen Sharib Do you like to phone source?
Maureen Sharib Or do you prefer Internet [cyber] sourcing?
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Comment by JimBo on October 16, 2008 at 12:34pm: Good stuff, I'd love it if potential clients grilled me with those questions and even asked me to demonstrate it. I've found very few recruiters really know how to source the Internet although many claim to, even the ones who are "AIRS" certified. Sourcing is probably the hardest part to recruiting yet many companies don't appreciate the skill it takes. The problem is after proving you're the real deal companies often try to low ball you on the rate. They were usually figuring on someone who'd just download posted resumes for $20 an hour having no idea what a real sourcer can do. Tell them your rate and you get eliminated because you're over budget even though in reality, you'll net a lower cost per hire due to your superior abilities. That "sourcer" for $20 per is actually very expensive when you consider you could write a search agent to automatically do the same thing.

Anyway, I liked your post!