So flat fee recruitment is quite a new concept, especially in comparison to more traditional recruitment agencies.  There are many reasons for the rise of this type of company, and its establishment within the recruitment world, but there are still a lot of questions around it.  Therefore, in this post I’m going to give you an idea of what it is, and some of the history behind it, in the hopes of giving you a bit more of an understanding.

What is it?

Flat fee recruitment is a fusion of the best parts of recruitment agencies and job board advertising.  With this service you will have an Account Manager who will handle your campaign: optimising your advert and posting it on various job boards, screening applications as they come in so you only have to look at the good ones, and resourcing relevant candidates for your position. 

Obviously, the clue is in the title, with you only have to pay one flat fee for the entire process, and no sneaky commission fees will be charged when you hire, no matter how many candidates you recruit.

So, where did it come from?

Flat fee recruitment seems to be a fairly new thing, only having been established over the last 15 years or so.  This means that many companies are still finding their feet, and it’s understandable why some people are slightly sceptical about using a service they know hardly anything about. 

It seems that the main reason for the rise of this method of recruitment is the economic climate, with its rise and fall over the last few years companies simply don’t want to spend a lot of money on their recruitment, especially when they are having to make budget cuts all over the business.  This gave room for flat fee recruiters to slip past recruitment agencies and establish themselves as a great alternative. 

The main selling point when comparing the two choices is that flat fee services don’t charge an extra fee per candidate hired, meaning that companies who need to hire multiple candidates for one role are likely to pay way less when using a flat fee service rather than a traditional recruitment agency.

Are there pros & cons?

An obvious benefit of using flat fee recruitment over agencies or  job board advertising is the shocking news that you only pay one flat fee, and you receive the best bits of the other options!  You get branded campaigns (which have tons of advantages that you can read about here) posted on the country’s leading job boards just like job board advertising; your applicants are screened and the best ones are put in front of you, without you having to sift through tons of irrelevant applications; as well as your Account Manager having your role resourced and passive candidates being contacted about applying for the role. All of this for one flat fee – bargain!

Of course, as with everything there are also some drawbacks to this method of recruitment.  If you role is really specialist then it might be harder to fill through this method of recruitment, meaning that an agency with specialist recruitment consultants could be your best option.

I hope that this has given you a bit more of an idea about what flat fee recruitment is, and a better understanding of its rise in the recruitment world. 

If you are considering using a flat fee service, check out our website: http://www.crunchposter.co.uk/