Staffing
Right to the source
How to effectively work with direct-hire recruiters
By Marcia Passos Duffy
Smart Business Houston | June 2008
Ruth McCurdy
Vice President of Corporate Connections
Talent Tree
When a key position in your company needs to be filled, do you
know how to work with a direct-hire recruiter to fill that position quickly
and with the right person?
“Direct-hire recruiters need to know not
only a laundry list of the job descriptions
but also background information on the
company, the department and the corporate culture, in order for the positions to
not just be filled but be filled by the right
employees,” says Ruth McCurdy, Vice
President of Corporate Connections for
Talent Tree, a staffing company based in
Houston.
Smart Business spoke with McCurdy
about techniques businesses can use to
work more efficiently with direct-hire
recruiters so they are better equipped to
find the right person for the job.
What are some of the mistakes businesses
make when working with direct-hire
recruiters?
The problem is that often the only information given is the skills and experience
needed for the job. Not much insight is
given to the recruiter about the company.
Many CEOs or business owners tend to
look at a recruiter’s job as a transaction
rather than a relationship. In order for the
recruiter to bring the right person to a
company, the business owner needs to
spend time with the search consultant and
talk to him or her about the company, its
values, missions, culture and goals. This
information goes a long way when the
consultant is attempting to fill a vacancy.
It is even better if the direct-hire consultant talks to more than one person in
the company for a complete picture.
Introduce the consultant to the hiring
manager and the supervisor of the department, as well.
How does this kind of legwork help the
company?
Despite the high unemployment rate, it
is still difficult to find great employees, particularly in specific fields. Often a key
position can take months to fill. Many
times, CEOs and business owners don’t
realize the true cost of vacancy.
Once a CEO or business owner of the
company realizes that vacancy of key
positions results in loss of revenue for the
company, it is a great ‘aha!’ moment and
the employment process is suddenly not
relegated to just the HR department. One
book I recommend CEOs and business
owners read on this topic is ‘The
Workforce Scorecard,’ by Mark A.
Huselid and Brian E. Becker, which
focuses on the importance of managing
human capital.
A key position that remains open will
affect the overall profitability of the company. Key positions can be in the sales
department, but it varies depending on
the company. For example, in a chemical
company the key positions are scientists;
for manufacturing, it’s usually engineers;
and for pharmaceutical companies, it
would be research and development
employees. Candidates to fill these positions are often difficult to find, so learning how to work effectively with direct-hire recruiters is very important.
What are some tips for effectively working
with direct-hire recruiters to fill these key
positions?
- Be open about the position, the
reporting relationships and why the job is
open. The more the candidate knows
about the position, the better.
- Realize that details about salary and
job description alone are not enough to
get the right candidate in for an interview.
The candidate is interested in the big picture. Let the direct-hire recruiter know
about the company’s values, goals and
culture.
- Have the recruiter talk to employees
who can tell positive stories about working for the company. Take these stories,
or testimonials, and put them on your
Web site for potential employees to read.
- Ask the recruiter to take a look at
your company’s Web site — and ask for
suggestions to ‘brand’ the employment
aspect of your business. Businesses
spend so much time branding products
and services but very little time branding
their company to attract good employees.
- Develop a partnership with your
direct-hire consultant. Don’t think of
executive recruiters as a ‘quick fix’ to a
pressing problem you are having at the
moment in filling a key position.
Remember that you need to be constantly thinking about positions that need
to be filled. If your direct-hire recruiter
knows your company and understands
what you are looking for in a candidate,
filling positions will happen much quicker and more successfully.
RUTH MCCURDY is Vice President of Corporate Connections at Talent Tree, www.talenttree.com, a staffing company based in Houston.
Reach her at (713) 361-7555 or ruth.mccurdy@talenttree.com.
