The Ultimate Checklist for Outsourcing Recruitment.

 

The process of recruiting can be time consuming and frustrating. While the business case for outsourcing recruitment is well documented, equally, it is not uncommon to hear stories of frustration from businesses who have had a negative experience from using recruitment agencies.

You only have to go onto LinkedIn to see that there is no shortage of recruiters who proclaim to be better than the rest. Yet how do you successfully select a recruitment agency and build a long term sustainable partnership?

 

To avoid disappointment, we have outlined the 6 point checklist that all businesses should use when outsourcing their recruitment.

Qualify the lead

As with any procurement process, you should be looking for recruiters who have experience recruiting for the sector that you operate in. If the agency has industry experience, they will have connections in the sector to whom they can turn for referrals and for knowledge of who may be ideal and/or available for your role.

Be Specific

Write a very clear job specification of what you would like the role to entail and the characteristics of the kind of person you think will fit in well with your company culture. The more specific you are the more likely they will be able to identify the right candidates for you.

Clarify the benefits

Recruiting is also about making you, as a business, appealing to the prospective employee. With a shortage of skills in specific sectors, positioning your business to make it that little bit more attractive is essential in securing the right talent. Make it easy for the recruiter to sell you to the candidate. Highlight the perks of working for your business, this could be anything from the working environment to the company benefits.

Set the remit / objectives

Specify upfront what the deadline for the application process is, what your preferences are when looking for a candidate, and highlight any non-negotiable factors that you are not willing to compromise on. Be clear about what the interview process will entail and who will handle the qualifying interview.

Communicate expectation

Be clear about how frequently you would like to be sent CV’s, and how many CV’s you want to see. How frequently do you want to receive an update from the recruiter on the position advertised?

Feedback

Having an effective feedback process not only helps the recruiter to refine their process but it will address any issues regarding potential applicants early on in the process.

 

 

By following this checklist will create the framework for building a long term, beneficial relationship with your recruitment agency. Once the recruitment agency is familiar with how you like to handle the recruitment process and what you want to achieve, they will be better placed to ensure that they align their actions to deliver the results.

 

For help with your recruitment strategy, email justin.henshaw@fmi.ie