Now that we’ve talked ALL about attracting talent…

Hopefully you feel a little more comfortable looking at recruiting your next staff superstar!

I have given you some useful tools, processes and things to think about if you are looking to recruit yourself.

At the same time, I’ve had a few questions regarding using recruitment agents and the services we offer…

So, below are a few things to consider!

Doing the job search yourself

PROS:
If you spend the time doing recruitment properly, or set yourself and your team up to constantly keep your eyes open, you’ll almost certainly be more selective of which candidates you interview (no-one knows your businesses’ needs and culture quite like you do). This may translate into a better long-term hires, and a backed-up database of potential fit candidates.

You can also access affordable online recruitment tools like SEEK and LinkedIN (which recruitment agents also use), or leverage your existing social media networks to let people know you are on the hunt for great new team members (which can be cost free).

CONS: 
Most business owners don’t realise the amount of time this takes. Working back from a typical business owner’s hourly rate (+$200 ph), your time can quickly get eaten up thinking and working on how best to advertise, managing candidates, the interview process and referencing. Generally this is around a 2-6 week process depending on the position.

Also be aware that recruitment shouldn’t be taken on lightly. If you don’t recruit correctly, you can end up with candidates having a bad experience with your business, and it can impact your brand negatively.

Hiring a recruitment agency

PROS: 
Recruitment agents all operate slightly differently. An industry experienced recruitment agency can have access to a network of talent who may be open to chatting about new opportunities. This can tap you into sources of talent that job Ads sometimes can’t offer.

Recruitment partners that are updated and regularly work with your business and brand are definitely recommended (as opposed to recruitment agents that just provide resumes in response to seeing that you may be recruiting from your own Ad or from one of their competitors).

CONS: 
Some poorer recruitment agencies’ make it their primary goal to earn commissions from the candidates they place. Therefore, their priority can be to place a candidate, any candidate, rather than the right candidate for your business.

Then there’s the costs. With fees ranging from 10% to 25% of the total package (10% for unskilled roles or lower salaried positions, and up to 25%+ for more senior appointments or executive search). Fixed fees can also be provided by some Recruitment Agents or Search functions for particular positions.

Now that you’ve looked at both options, let me show you to a third possibility…

If you’re looking for an alternative to total DIY or using conventional recruitment agencies, then read on…

If you would like to be in control of how you use a recruitment agent…

I’d like to introduce you to BespokeHR’s recruitment service, and explain why it can be an attractive alternative to using a traditional recruitment service.

How the BespokeHR recruiting service is different

BespokeHR provides recruitment services as part of our HR Consulting Packages.

We charge a standard consulting fee as part of a HR package which can include recruitment services, versus a traditional % fee.

So effectively, you can use BespokeHR as a partner to help recruit staff or provide advice along the way, usually for less than the cost of a typical recruitment agencies’ commission.

On top of that, you get access all of our HR services (such as Leadership Training, Development Planning, HR Forms and Policies, your Employee Handbook, first 120 day monitoring and much more) which will help you onboard new employees.

If you are thinking of hiring and may be interested in this service, here’s some additional details:

Things we DO when we assist with recruitment

• Charge our HR consulting hourly or daily rates, plus advertising costs (i.e. SEEK, tools etc.). This means we don’t just want you take on any candidate, we want you to take on the best candidate.
  • Please note for the sake of total transparency, our fee is paid irrespective of placement. However experientially, this ensures the best candidate is appointed as we can work with you through the whole process (i.e. whether it’s an internal employee who has gone through a process and is successful, or a temporary person who has been appointed in the interim who may be offered the position). This means it wont be in our best interest to push any particular candidates, internal or external – we will advocate for the best.
• We get to know your business intimately BEFORE we start the recruitment process (so we can nail your culture fit requirements)
• We advise you where our costs are and provide you with options about what you can take on versus using us. We can run the process fully or we can just get involved in particular parts.
• We can provide assistance with your position descriptions and help clarify the reasons to work for your company
• We can assist with staff onboarding and providing coaching support for the first 120 days
• We can book any managers into our Leadership Program as part of their induction
• We can assist with all of your interview questions
• We can sit on panels and structure your interview process
• We can offer video technology to assist with your shortlisting stages

Things we DON’T DO when we assist with recruitment

• We will never float candidates to you without a brief or a prior request to do so
• Tell you we have the best candidate without fulling understanding your requirements
• Send you candidates when you have your own SEEK Ad up (without your request)
• Advise you that we will match whoever is doing your recruitment. We start by giving you our most competitive price, all of the information, then leave the decision in your hands

Would you like to learn more?

It starts with a low-pressure, friendly conversation where I learn more about your needs and let you know if we are the best ones to help. If we are not, we work with a number of recruitment agents that we can refer you to!

If you’d like to set-up an obligation free chat, just give me a call on +61 412 393 068.

Any questions?

If you have questions on this topic or any others, feel free to reach me by email or set up a free one-on-one consultation session, or drop me a comment below.

Thanks for sharing!