In yesterday’s post, we uncovered the three “do’s” when using a recruiter to find top talent. Today we’ll focus on a few things you’ll want to avoid when using recruiters to scout top talent for your organization.
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Don’t: Forget to Ask About a Recruiter’s Past Performance
When hiring new recruiters for your organization, ask them questions like how long it takes them to complete a search for a highly qualified candidate for an open position, what percentage of new hires tend to stay with organizations they help, what their vetting process is like, etc. And don’t forget to consult their references to get an idea of what they’re like to work with and whether their recruitment techniques work. You’ll want to look for success metrics, as well as how involved they are in the recruitment process.
Don’t: Let Your Recruiters Only Rely on the Basics
Don’t just provide your recruiters with access to technology and tools and then expect them to work miracles. If you have full-time recruiters on staff, help them develop viable techniques and strategies that continue to build a successful pool of candidates for your organization, too. Ensure your recruiters have processes for finding top talent that go beyond scouring Craigslist and online job boards. Make sure they are engaged in discovering new and creative ways to continually find top talent, both in-person and online.
Don’t: Overlook Providing Recruiters with Access to Your Company Resources and Goals
Whether internal or external to your organization, make sure your recruiters are always aware of your organization’s strategic goals and objectives. This will help them narrow down their searches and keep their searches aligned with what your organization is setting out to achieve. And always make sure recruiters have access to your updated branding guidelines, letterheads, marketing materials, etc. It’s the only way to ensure they are accurately and consistently representing your organization to others.
Don’t: Neglect Understanding Your Recruiters’ Vetting Process
Make sure your recruiters are vetting candidates in a way that aligns with your organization’s goals and company culture. And make sure the vetting process is aligned with the real qualifications each role requires. Know how they will test candidates, as well as what techniques they’ll use to weed out bad candidates and focus on highly qualified candidates. For example, evaluating software engineer candidates’ knowledge of a programming language they won’t need to know for the specific job role they’re applying for isn’t very effective.
Don’t: Disregard the Power of Full Visibility and Access to Talent Pipelines
To keep communications with your recruiters transparent and effective, you’ll want to ensure you have constant access to their talent profiles and information. And they’ll need access to your organization’s information, too. It’s imperative that you’re always aware of who they’re considering for certain roles, how they’re finding candidates and vetting them, what your talent pipeline looks like, etc.
Refer to the do’s and don’ts listed above and in yesterday’s post if you want to use your recruiters wisely while scouting and acquiring top talent for your organization.