Working with a recruiter outside your firm’s internal human resources team can be an advantage in many situations – but it’s safe to say there are more strategic occasions to use a trusted recruiting professional.
The answer comes when you take the time to understand exactly what an outside recruiter can provide your team, that you cannot provide yourself using tools that are already at your disposal. As we know, the prevalence of online job boards is ever growing and ever changing to meet the needs of modern Information Technology firms. Sites like Indeed, Monster, LinkedIn, and even Facebook provide a quick, easy way to post an open position for the public to view. This method is simple and to the point, and I recommend that any firm use this strategy as a first course of action when a new position becomes available. This strategy tends to yield the best results (at a low cost) for entry level, less-technical, and non-urgent hiring needs – positions that you can afford to wait for the right person to come browsing along at some point in the future.
This strategy doesn’t tend to work as well for technical, high level, specialized, in-demand, and often higher paying positions. The issue lies in the disconnect between the platform of the post and the target audience. The most talented and specialized candidates are often gainfully employed with a great company (your dreaded competitors)! For this reason, Mr. or Ms. Highly Specialized isn’t spending his or her valuable free time perusing websites like Indeed for a new position. Let’s take a deeper look at the top 5 reasons that you aren’t getting results.
Why aren’t candidates responding to my online job posts?
1. They are already satisfied with their current position
The number one reason that your indeed posting is not yielding a large number, or even a single candidate that meets your criteria, is because the best people in the IT industry (and any industry for that matter) are satisfied in their current position. After all, the best and brightest talented individuals are generally appreciated by their current company, and that company is doing everything they can to make sure they stay. This is what the best firms in your industry make their top priority, and could be why your competitor seems to be growing year after year.
2. Your Indeed posting (with a similar salary) is not compelling
As a rule of thumb, talented candidates tend to think of the career change process as a time when they should be looking for an increase in their salary. What does this mean for you? Well, if you are fortunate enough to have one of these individuals taking a look at your job board posting, they may become turned off by the prospect that you may not be able to increase their salary. (People will assume, even if you aren’t posting the salary!)
3. Candidates aren’t aware of what makes your company Great (and they are too busy to go find out on their own)
Creating a job posting that tells a compelling story about the position and the firm in question will be the top skill of a talented recruiter. Depending on the size of your firm, you may not have a person on staff who has the training and experience to put together a great Job Description. You need to enthrall and attract the top talented professionals that you want for the position. Folks – don’t just copy and paste the description that corporate has been using for years!
4. They don’t know they are the perfect fit for your company
It’s a fact that the absolute perfect candidate is out there, working for another firm, in some capacity. They may be spending their days performing the same types of responsibilities that you are looking for, but it’s also possible that they may not be living up to their full potential. Do you need a CFO that also understands Network Engineering? Or maybe you need an Audio Visual Project Manager or Security Engineer that has experience effectively managing a project budget? Regardless, someone with the right combination of skills is out there. For the right occasion, you will need a specialized IT recruiter on your side to seek out the right candidate.
5. They assume their resume will be lost in a pile and forgotten (they’re probably right)
This one may be the most unfortunate – a missed opportunity. I don’t know how many times a candidate has told me that they have given up hope in applying on Indeed because it seems like they send out 100 resumes and get 0 responses. Part of this is the candidates fault for throwing resumes out to positions that don’t quite match their skills, and part of the fault lies in the firms who don’t (or can’t) respond to the massive piles of resumes from under-qualified candidates.
Quick-Tip – when working with a recruiter, one of the easiest ways to determine if they are adding value to your hiring process is to review the quality of candidates they send for your review. Is your recruiter simply tossing the same resumes to you that you would have gotten from Indeed?
Ask them before entering into an agreement: What is your process for vetting candidates before you send them to me, the hiring manager?
Odyssey Pursuit Enterprises is a specialized IT Recruiting Firm that focuses on a consultative recruiting process that clearly defines what value we have to offer (as opposed to posting your job on Indeed). From day one – we want our clients to understand if their situation makes sense for using an outside recruiter. We want you to know what to expect for every step of the process, from sourcing candidates, to interviewing, job offers and through their first months on the job. If you have wondered exactly “How do I know if it’s the right time to work with a recruiter?”, please give us a call or visit our website – we would be glad to answer your questions.
Thank You From The Odyssey Pursuit Enterprises Team
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