Ask any veteran Information Technology manager who has been in business long enough to weather more than one downturn about the value of utilizing a good recruiter when hiring during tough times and the answer might surprise you. The return on investment in a partnership with a solid firm during a weak economy can be stronger than you think. Here’s some of the value that you should expect to receive from your key recruiting partnerships, especially in a tough economy.
Quantity – choice versus chance. I’ve always been served well by the understanding that quality follows quantity. Spend enough time at the driving range, and your golf game is likely to improve.The same holds true when considering your recruitment partnerships. The more candidates within a single skill set or specialization that your recruiter has conscientiously vetted over time, the greater number of choices you’ll have when it comes time to hire for a project or a position. Quantity is important. As a former hiring manager, I know that when I have made a poor hire, it’s been due in part to not allowing myself enough choices. And when we don’t have choices, we take chances. Quantity of choices helps you avoid taking risky chances where the success of your department is concerned.
Quality – From passive candidates to passionate employees. With a sufficient quantity of candidates (especially those passive or high demand candidates who for whom you won’t have access to without the involvement of a recruiting partner) it’s time to turn our attention to the issue of quality. Quality in your recruiting partnership is derived from two primary elements. Industry experience and standardized vetting processes. A deep understanding of your industry coupled with a standardized process by which to compare each of your prospective candidates or consultants will result in faster hiring, and reduces the risk of having to face an expensive re-hire for the position. This kind of quality recruiting effort must take into account factors beyond mere technical ability, and includes investigating such traits as work ethic, problem solving ability, and the often overlooked intangibles such as soft skills like organization, interpersonal skills and the ability to grasp how their individual contributions fit into the big picture.
Fit - 3D hiring. A faithful recruiting partner will help you by spotting candidates who shouldn’t be considered based on knowledge of that person’s work history, preferences, and goals. For instance, a candidate who is resistant to a broad definition of “micro-management” would fare poorly if hired into a heavily regulated industry where they are, by necessity, closely supervised. This topic will typically not arise during the employer portion of the interview process and the result will likely be a time consuming endeavor to refill the position and repair the morale issues left behind among your other employees. Your recruiting partner should help avoid such scenarios by aligning candidates and companies who share a similar view on any number of topics. This is the third dimension of hiring that gets you beyond the ineffective and depth-less 2-D approach many of your colleagues are faced with. Your recruiting partner will know you and your industry well enough to provide solid counsel about which candidates are flight risks when the economy improves, which candidates have work history issues that may be masked by higher unemployment numbers, and most importantly, which candidate represents the best long term fit.
Better, Faster, Smarter. A professional recruiter partner provides you the information quickly so that you can make the best informed decision, helping you avoid spending needless amounts of your own time and energy to reach a hiring decision.As a manager, you’re delegating the leg work, and inviting the counsel, without abdicating your primary responsibility to the company; making profitable business decisions thru access to the best information available.
So, the next time you are tempted to sift thru a stack of resume’s ask yourself this question. What else could I be doing with the time I am spending wading thru resume’s to find the right person for this project role or position? The answer will likely involve activities that are more closely aligned to your company’s revenue goals, your department’s mission, and that represent a higher and better use of your time. And a call to the right recruiting partner to delegate the legwork will put you in the position to make the best hiring decision possible, based on having all the information.
