Virtual recruiting team vs in office

I am considering hiring recruiters and sales people that will work remote from their home offices rather than in a central office. I am looking for people on this forum to share their opinions and experiences.

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Permalink Reply by KKenner on May 28, 2015 at 12:25pm

Hi John,I have worked (and currently work) on 3 different virtual/remote teams of recruiters, and manage one now. One of the larger companies was Coram, a division of now CVS. The entire recruiting team, as well as the Director all worked from their home offices. The benefits were huge.

Since we all supported requisitions and company teams that were National, we could work varying hours to support east coast. vs west coast hours, etc.
None of us had a commute (except our Director did travel a lot), so we were able to get to work right away, and put in some very productive days.
We had to guarantee we had designated space and phone, internet, etc. We reimbursed monthly a small stipend (about $100) to each recruiter for phone, internet costs, and allowed up to $20 monthly for supplies. That was a huge savings. Annually the company saved about $18,000 for a team of 12 recruiters just on rent and utilities alone.
The work/life balance provided for a VERY happy and productive recruiting team. The turnover in that group was only 1 loss annually.

The cons: we were only able to meet once a year (budget issues) in person as a team. We scheduled a weekly meeting with our small teams, and a monthly meeting with our entire team so we can feel a part of the team.

Your virtual team needs to be highly self motivated, so adding people to your team requires good scrutiny.

We were all over the map, so sometimes getting a hold of someone in very different time zones has its challenges.

There were alot of positions based at Corporate offices that didn't' like the fact we were all virtual, so we didn't brag about it.

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Permalink Reply by John Meurer on May 28, 2015 at 2:02pm

Thanks!! This is super helpful. I was going to provide a desk phone, but a stipend would be easier.

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Permalink Reply by KKenner on May 28, 2015 at 2:06pm

Hi John,

The Stipend was much easier. That allowed them to use whatever designated phone they wanted. A lot of people bundle their Internet, with their phones, their TV, etc. so it just made the process easier We had them fill out a monthly expense report and turn in, and they would get reimbursed in the next pay-cycle. That and it made it easier tracking on the P & L for company expenditures!

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Permalink Reply by Teresa Balke on May 29, 2015 at 11:54pm

Hi John,

I've been doing remote recruiting for two years. At first I didn't want to recruit from home, but once I started doing it-it would be difficult to go back to the office.

I have found that my productivity has no limits. I can work when and where I want. I started my own company this year - The Titan Group LLC, and have found that there are a lot of company's that are 'stuck' when it comes to bringing on recruiters.

What I mean is that I've reached out to other agencies who are looking for top talent and have actually been told by a branch manager "oh I hadn't even thought of that" when discussing using a remote recruiter. After discussing it further she liked the idea but was really looking for someone who could wear multiple hats in the office.

My website actually has a page titled "Why". This is for clients or others who wonder Why would I want to use a remote recruiter to fill my jobs. I list multiple reasons "why" and just hope that the overall economics of doing this will wake up company's with regards to being diversified with their recruiting needs.

Overall, I love working remotely. I had a new client of mine ask if I would be available to look for candidates for her since I was supporting a major global client as well. I told her that I can work whenever I want, and that this allows me to source at midnight if I want, and make calls in the morning. My time is "my time". I don't need to source only at a office during 'normal' working hrs.

For me 'working hrs' are all day every day.

If you hire recruiters and sales people and allow them to work remotely you will need to be able to assess who is actually committed and motivated to work. The person would have to have great time management and commitment to the job. You would also need to monitor their progress to see if working without a boss around is productive for the company's goals.
This would also take someone who can work without the office chatter and people interaction. I've heard from other remote recruiters that the people interaction was a facet that they were missing.

Me personally- I don't. I'm good with conference calls and e-mails.

That's my take on it. Hope it adds to the overall discussion.