As I read the following article on ERE.net 6 weeks back, I couldn’t help but wonder which side of the fence my fellow recruiters would find themselves on. Are you helping to strengthen your company brand, or helping to tear it down? Here is a link to the article that brought this on. “Recruiters, You Could be Killing Your Employer Brand”
I reached out to a number of great consultants and employees I’ve had the privilege to work with and learn from over my 11 year career. I asked them two simple questions.
1) In your dealings with recruiters, what have they done to positively effect the brand they represent?
2) In your dealings with recruiters, what have they done to negatively effect the brand they represent?
After these questions, here are the top 5 responses to each question.
Positive Effects
1) A recruiter that negotiates compensation to fairly benefit both parties.
2) A recruiter that acts with integrity
3) A recruiter that is accessible even when it might be inconvenient for them.
4) A recruiter that is transparent in their dealings.
5) A recruiter who is willing to give their help and guidance even when they do not benefit financially
Negative Effects
1) A recruiter that over promises to get you to work with them and ends up under delivering.
2) A recruiter that demands that you push your rate lower even though they are making a margin that can support your rate.
3) A recruiter that comes across desperate and overbearing.
4) A recruiter that sounds more like a used car salesman than an informed advocate for an opportunity. They tell you everything you want to hear just to get you to commit to them.
5) A recruiter who calls you with an opportunity that isn’t even close to matching your skill set.
No matter what role you play in a company, the way you are perceived speaks volumes. Recruiters are in many cases, the first personal introduction one has to a company. As the old saying goes, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression”.
If you take care of your brand, your brand will take care of you.
[...] Here are a few related blogs on this subject: Are Your Recruiters Helping Or Hurting Your Brand? | The Jobs Guy – As I read the following article on ERE.net 6 weeks back, I couldn't help but wonder which side [...]
I couldn’t agree more with this post. I think that, first of all, you asked the right questions which is the perfect starting point to identify an issue. By asking those two simple questions, you got multiple simple answers. Because you didn’t ask an entire 20-questions-style survey, your information was easily interpreted.
As for the content of this, it reads like common sense, but hits home. When we read the positive and negative effects laid out in such a user-friendly way, we can see that maybe we’re doing things that may negatively effect the brand without even knowing it. I’ve known people at other jobs that had the attributes listed under “Negative Effects” and the brand did suffer because of it. That company thought that if they just continued to market their business, everything would work out just fine- not knowing the problem was internal. Wonderful post, thank you.
Sarah,
So many times companies are so driven to drive sales. They don’t see things that can have a negative effect on all of that positive work.
Thanks for your support and comments.
Don’t hesitate to e-mail me if you have any topics you would like addressed.
Thanks again,
Steve “The Jobs Guy”
Steve, this is great! I think the number one complaint that I hear about recruiters is that they never get back to candidates, at all. This truly hurts the employers’ brand because it makes potential employees feel that they aren’t important. Even if the company isn’t interested in the candidate today, if they would hire them in the future, they must say so and work to advocate this “opportunity hire” to other team members in recruiting and also to hiring managers.
I think all too often recruiters come off as self serving. I believe there needs to be a paradigm shift to remember who we all serve. It’s the candidate and the hiring manager. We must serve them and if we do, the rewards will come from this meaningful endeavor. Great post, Steve!
Good Afternoon Claudia,
You are correct that we serve both sides being candidate and hiring manager. My challenge is when candidates who are not even close to being qualified, continually apply for positions. I had a candidate go as far as to call our offices and was connected to me and demanded an explanation as to why he/she was not considered for a Director position even though they had never worked in our industry.
One of the things we hang our hat on is our ability to be thorough and timely. I know that the best candidates will understand that when we move through the process as long as we communicate effectively as to where they stand.
Thank you for the support and I look forward to your feedback as I begin to write more original content in the near future.
Respectfully,
Steve “The Jobs Guy” Feinberg