Stereotypical Recruitment Agencies.

I just read an interesting article by my colleague Simon Halkyard on how Social Media has changed the recruitment industry.  If you havent had a chance to read it, its definitely worth a read (http://simonhalkyard.blogspot.com/2011/08/how-social-media-has-changed.html).  Anyway, on reading Simon's blog, it got me thinking about the image candidates and clients have about recruitment agencies and whether their feelings were justified.  Lets be honest, I'm sure most of you don't have a favourable image about them.

I have been in the recruitment industry for over 11 years and have mainly worked in the IT & Marketing sectors for varying sized agencies, from start-ups to larger more established organisations and I have seen the way that they work and also I've listened to my clients and candidates feedback on other agencies.

Why does Recruitment have such a bad reputation?

Recruitment agencies don't exactly endear themselves to either clients or candidates alike as it seems like the relationship is all about money.  Now don't get me wrong, recruitment is a business so of course its about making money.  Its just most recruitment companies act as though that's all that matters.  How are clients & candidates ever going to have anything other than a negative opinion if they're just seen as money.

Recruitment is about service.  We're offering a client a recruitment service, enabling them to save time and evidently money on getting the ideal candidate into their organisation.  From a candidate perspective, again its a service.  We're supposed to help them find their ideal job, by offering advice with regards to their CV and recommending clients we feel they would be suitable for, and then approaching that client on their behalf.  It's not all about KPI's (Key Performance Indicators) including number of CV's sent to clients, number of interviews, number of vacancies you can get in a week.

I know I'm simplifying the recruitment process, and of course its more involved than this, however I'm not writing this for recruitment agencies.  I believe for most its a lost cause, and they'll continue to work the same way and give candidates and clients the same opinion of them.  I feel that the recruitment industry has to change and adapt the same way that all companies have to change or they will get left behind and become obsolete.  How about offering Quality, not Quantity?  There's a novel idea that could improve peoples opinions.

If there are any candidates or clients out there reading this blog, and you're dealing with agencies that aren't offering you a service, then know that there are companies out there that appreciate you as more than just a pound sign.  If you would like to find out more about the SERVICE we offer then get in touch, I'd be more than happy to run through how we can help you.

If you're looking for PPC jobs, SEO Jobs, SEM Jobs, Search Jobs, Social Media Jobs, Display Jobs, Digital Planning & Buying Jobs, Mobile Jobs, Web Development Jobs or Senior Digital Jobs, just give me a shout.  Or if you have any questions drop me a line on: dale@digital-minds.co.uk