NO Agencies Please!
So many times, as an agency we see and hear this phrase. But what are the reasons behind it? Faster and cheaper are common reasons, but what are the pros and cons and who are the winners and losers here? After all, the end game should be you fill the vacancy– so who does it best?
Let’s break it down…
- You have a vacancy to fill.
- Write an advert.
- Upload to job board, social media, and any other professional channels.
- Then sit back and wait for an Inbox full of perfect candidates to choose from right…..?
- Pick the top few CV’s.
- Interview and hey presto.
- Job filled. Who needs an agency?
IF ONLY it was that easy! It’s a tough market out there.
You might be thinking, I am an external recruiter so of course I am going to say that, this blog is designed to sway my opinion. In fact, it’s not. You are about to read an honest account and facts of what it’s really all about. It’s up to you then to make an informed decision.
According to Glassdoor the average internal recruitment consultant salary in the UK is £35,524. Some companies have 1, some have a small team so let’s say 2 plus a senior team lead or maybe a HR professional at an average £50,701. So anywhere between £50k and £120k for inhouse recruitment.
Remember this – We will come back to this later.
Let’s talk through each step, the pros and cons of both.
1. Write a job advert!
Simple surely, It’s basically a list of all the duties and skills you require a candidate to have.
An internal recruiter will have the upper hand here. Direct contact with hiring managers and teams can mean an accurate job description and allows them to add as much or as little information about the company as they choose. Job adverts posted in this way, can often appear formal and lacking information to really draw in the very best employees in a challenging recruitment market.
A good external recruiter will take information and research to sell the company, the role and benefits in a very different way. Creating an attractive job description will draw the best employees by really selling a company and highlighting its benefits which can show how much a company values its employees.
2. Post the job.
Internal recruiters will often advertise on their own website, social media channels and often have an advertising budget using Indeed or maybe a job board subscription but this can work out expensive if only using on an ad hoc basis.
An external recruiter will have access to a wide range of job boards, a strong network of potential candidates on LinkedIn with both company and personal accounts and a wide following on social media as well as a higher footfall to a website advert.
3. Applications
Depending on where you advertise, you could be inundated with applications from hopeful candidates who when you look, do not have any skills you require.
Recently I have worked a job with over 250 applications, with just 2 having the right skills and meeting the required criteria for the role, that was with qualifying questions. HOW MUCH TIME do you think that takes up looking through those CV’s? Filtering the good from the unsuitable and shortlisting candidates. Scheduling interviews and chasing candidates can be a time-consuming task. Are you paying an employee to do this? At the end of the day its costing you time and money.
On the flip side, you could also receive no applications. Now what do you do?
Sourcing the best candidate does not always come through an application, in fact headhunting and carrying out executive searches is often the best way to find premium talent. As a recruiter we often have access to a huge, diverse talent pool through a company database and a strong network of connections which an internal recruiter would not have access to.
Often, we work with candidates exclusively and confidentially that do not want to publish a CV or apply through regular channels due to the risk to an existing position. Again, internal recruiters would not have access to any of the candidates recruited in this way, which more often than not are the premium candidates we are looking for.
4. Screening Candidates
As an internal Recruiter, you have to take the candidate at face value, from a CV, phone call, teams meeting or a face-to-face interview and potentially relying on references. But the benefit is the opportunity to have direct access to the candidate and a greater control over the hiring process.
An external recruiter is able to take the time to speak to candidates and really get to know and understand what makes them tick. The best candidate for the job is not always the best on paper. CV’s can be deceiving (watch out for my next blog…).
A recruiter is aware of time wasters and candidates that may have been unreliable before.
We also have a very good grasp of the quality candidates in the market, we take the time to understand their skillset, the type of company and culture they want to be part of and have the knowledge to know if candidate and company values are going to align.
As an internal recruiter, you could pick your top 3 on paper candidates to interview, at interview they just don’t give you the right feel. Knowing a bad hire can be expensive, you are back to the drawing board.
With an external recruiter, they have a great understanding of the candidates, if you have given the best insight to your company, role and team environment. More often than not, a role with a good recruiter can be filled with 2 or 3 CV’s. Just think, how much time, hassle and money would that save?
5. Securing the candidate
An internal recruiter will not know the candidates background, other opportunities they have, or know what it’s going to take for them to accept. Offer too high, the company is out of pocket. Offer too low, the candidate will likely be offended and accept elsewhere feeling undervalued.
An external recruiter has all this information and can negotiate on your behalf to rule out all of the above and ensure both parties are happy. It is also easier for a recruiter to be able to keep candidates warm until the vacancy is filled.
Ultimately, the above may all seem a bit overwhelming and possibly a bit one-sided, but it’s an honest recruiter’s account and the end goal is still the same – to source the right candidate.
So, does it come down to cost?
Using the services of a recruitment agency has many benefits, it can save you time, hassle and most importantly money whilst providing you with the very best talent. So, let’s take a quick look back.
With an average UK salary falling just under £40k and an average agency fee falling anywhere between 10 and 20% of a full-time annual salary. Let’s say the average agency fee is £6k. Now take us back to the beginning with internal recruitment costs, that’s anywhere between 8 and 20 candidates before you have covered your internal recruitment team salaries, that’s without advertising costs and that doesn’t even guarantee you the best talent, remember the cost of a bad hire? At least with a good recruitment agency, you get 100% rebate within the 1st 4 weeks. So, what do you think?
Let’s just clarify – Working with a professional recruitment company
- You pay for specialist market knowledge, advice on salary and how best to advertise your role.
- A good recruiter will attract top-tier candidates and have access to premium talent through headhunting and executive searches.
- Database of passive candidates and extensive candidate feedback and company knowledge
- Support through the process to secure the perfect candidate to get the deal done.
What it boils down to, is do you just need to fill the position, and are you happy to risk missing out on the perfect employee for the job? If so, insert ‘No Agencies Please’.
