We Recruit The Hard-To-Find Candidates...

Harry Pemberton - 8 months on - My first impressions of training in the Academy at Precision People. 

Harry Pemberton has been working as a Search Associate at Precision People for the last 8 months. He joined Precision’s bespoke 6-month recruitment training Academy after graduating from university with a degree in Sports Science.

Harry is a lover of all things sport and a passionate Leeds United fan. His sporting background is diverse, ranging from athletics to swimming and badminton to football. His years of playing have helped a competitive edge and killer instinct, something which is helping him thrive in his career in recruitment.

Why I chose Recruitment 

"After graduating university, I wasn’t that sure of what I wanted to do, I initially applied for jobs related to my degree in sports science, fearing that an office environment wasn’t my thing. Although I still feel like I wouldn’t enjoy working in a normal office, Precision is right up my street.

As well as being competitive by nature I’m also very people oriented. These two attributes are vital to be successful in the recruitment industry as you spend a lot of time on the phone cultivating relationships with clients."

Choosing the Academy 

"After deciding to work in recruitment, I applied to various companies and was in the very fortunate position of having multiple offers on the table. After researching the companies and reflecting on the feeling I had when I met with the companies, Precision was my first choice by far.

Precision seemed like a much friendlier working environment, everyone seemed welcoming and I got on really well with everyone that I met, and I could be totally myself."

What I love about my job

Since accepting the job 8 months ago, I can honestly say that Precision has not disappointed! Around the office, there is a family style atmosphere and everyone is  very supportive. My colleagues are genuinely pleased for me and very congratulatory about my successes, whether big or small.

  My role is in quite a niche area,  I focus on   technical recruitment in the aerospace and   automotive industries across Europe. I spend   a lot of my time on the phone to Germany as      there is a massive industry  there, I love that   my job has an international element.

 The environment

 Although it’s cliche to say, there is definitely a work hard, play hard atmosphere in the office.

We all make sure to finish on time  every Friday and head out for a drink, as we do on paydays. We also go out for a curry every couple of months.

We have quite a few socials which are used as incentives like going to Ladies Day at the races, something that really creates a great team atmosphere in the office.

Although I love the social element of working at Precision, another great thing which we do is a lot of charity events. The next one we have coming up is a charity game of tag rugby which I can’t wait to get involved in!

My career path

After joining the Academy 8 months ago I’ve learned so much - probably more than I realise. The normal path in the academy is to spend a few weeks learning the candidate side of things, what typical career paths are in your chosen industry and trying to understand the ins-and-outs of candidates wants and needs. After that, we move onto the sales side looking more into understanding the positions that companies have and what their requirements are. It’s a great way of learning your trade because you get a full 360 degree understanding of the process.  

Within a year of graduating from the academy, I’d like to be in a position where I have a few very good working relationships with companies in need of recruitment and be their ‘go-to guy’ for jobs in my field. Further, in the future, I’d love to lead a division. I’m very fortunate in being able to grow my career with Precision - the more you put in, the more you get out!

The challenges 

Like any job there are challenges and it’s not all plain sailing. There are frustrating times, especially on days where no one seems to pick up the phone or when another recruiter takes your client.

You need to be very resilient to work in recruitment and willing to put the hours in.

Why you should apply for a role at Precision

There isn’t just one type of person who does well in recruitment and if it tempts you even a little bit you should come to an interview to see if we fit your values (as much as you fitting ours).

There are some characteristics that have served me well in my career and I especially think you should apply if you’re any of the following: competitive in your nature; resilient when handling rejection and if you have any sales experience that would serve you very well in this role.

At the end of the day you have to be willing to put the work in, recruitment isn’t a normal 9-5 job. Successes aren’t handed to you, but that makes it all the more satisfying when you achieve them. When you work hard the rewards are there and they’re 100% worth it. Whether that be small successes throughout the week or when you get that bonus at the end of the month.

It’s not going to be easy, but it’s definitely going to be worth it!" 

If you would like to know more about the Precision Academy click here or if you fancy a conversation to see if the Precision Academy might be the right move for you, call Natasha on 0116 254 5411, email natashab@precision-people.uk or connect with Natasha on LinkedIn here.

Click to find out more about becoming a Sales Executive and applying! (Spaces are limited!)  

Unfortunately, we are talking about an industry and business service with many inherent flaws. In my opinion, many of the problems we see stem from some fundamental issues that recruiters have wrought upon themselves and customers unwittingly propagate.

The paying customers’ perspective

Having been a customer myself and in speaking with countless other recruitment customers, I can tell you that their complaints are very consistent.

There's a lot of them so I’ll list out the top 10:

1.     They waste my time

2.     They don't tell me the whole truth

3.     They keep hassling me every 5 minutes

4.     Fees are too expensive

5.     Recruiters don’t understand my business or the role

6.     Candidates aren’t even being interviewed before they’re sent to me

7.     They’ve been looking for months and can’t find anyone

8.     Everyone they send to me is terrible

9.     Too many cold calls

10.   I’m sick of junior recruiters who have no idea

The recruiters’ perspective

There’s a pretty similar list of gripes here too:

1.     They waste my time

2.     They don't tell me the whole truth

3.     I have to chase them for everything and they never call me back

4.     They cancel roles and they’ve always got 5 other recruiters working the same role

5.     This role is a £40K investment and they won’t even meet with me to talk about their business or the role in detail

6.     Every time I send a candidate they’re “already on our database” or another agency has just sent them 5 minutes before me

7.     They’ve been looking for months but won’t budge on the spec or increase their budget

8.     They don’t give me any feedback on candidates I send them

9.     There’s no customer loyalty and they always step outside the preferred supplier list

10.   I’m sick of ridiculously low “other recruiters” rates

And the sad thing here is the true victim of this lack of accountability and partnership – the rather important people – the TALENT!

What’s to be done? 

It’s tempting to work through each of these issues one by one and talk about solutions but we’d be treating the symptoms, not the core problems.

It seems to me that most problems stem from the bounty hunter style pricing model prevalent in the market where the fee is contingent upon success. With this model, the customer has nothing to lose by being non-committal and farming the role out to multiple recruiters.

To draw an analogy, this model is like giving your tax return to 5 accountants and telling them that you’ll only pay whoever gets you the quickest result. If you did that, what kind of result would you get? I bet any accountant worth their salt would turn it down instantly and if you were lucky enough to get a few to agree how would they approach the assignment? They’d rush it, they’d probably cut corners so they don’t invest too much time in case they don’t get paid. Just like you, they’d be hedging their bets.

So when we do the same thing in recruitment a few important things happen. Because we’re dealing with a number of recruiters this soaks up so much time that it’s too much effort to do a proper job brief. In fact, it’s too much effort to call everyone back or respond to the CVs they’ve sent. We haven’t spent any money so it’s no skin off our nose, right? Then the follow-up calls start and we get fed up pretty quickly.

The recruiters know how the game works so they’ll make a call on where your role should sit in their priority list. Most good recruiters will successfully place between 25% to 50% of the roles they work. That means they spend their own time and money on 10 jobs but only get paid for 2.5 to 5 of them (sometimes none).

So recruiters usually look at their jobs and think “what can I definitely place?”. This is where the bulk of their time will (should!) be spent. If you’re not a top priority because you don’t return calls or you have too many recruiters working your role, or your fee is too low, or you’ve been looking for ages and you’re not paying enough money… then guess what, you get a half-hearted effort.

More importantly, we’re motivating recruiters based on speed, so it’s in their best interests to try to get the best return from the least amount of effort. This encourages what we call a flick and stick, or spray and pray approach. Basically, this means playing the numbers and throwing as many CVs out to as many customers as possible knowing that the law of averages means that something will stick. The scary thing is, this is so entrenched that Recruiter’s KPIs are actually measured and rewarded based on these numbers! I hasten to add not at Precision for this very reason

There is a better way!

I think the solution is to throw out the contingent fee model. Instead, work with one recruiter and pay them a portion of their fee upfront. This commits both parties to receive a quality result and puts your job firmly at the top of the priority list. It means that the recruiter doesn’t have to cut corners to get you a CV before someone else snags the fee. It means recruiters can afford to take on half the number of jobs because they know they’ll get paid for all of them. It means candidates aren’t getting calls from 5 different recruiters and don’t start thinking “jeez these guys (Client X) must be desperate!”. It also usually means you’ll be able to negotiate a discount because you’ve removed some of the recruiter’s risk.

Is this risky for you? Yes, it could be, but in the context of all your recruiting over a number of years, doesn’t it make good business sense to spend time up front picking a good recruiter with good references and a strong track record? Then build a strong, exclusive relationship with them until you get to the point that they know your business better than most of your staff. If they let you down, find another agency. You might have the odd false start but over time you will get much better results and you will absolutely save money.

A common misconception

I once had a customer say “But I’m buying a product, if I like what’s on your shelf then I’ll pay if I don’t then I won’t”. Sorry, but candidates are most definitely not sitting on a shelf waiting for your call! You’re not buying a product, you’re buying a service. You’re paying for someone to go out to market and represent your business. You’re paying for someone to search high and low, ask for referrals, network extensively and generally do whatever it takes to find you the perfect person.

Having said that, the best recruiters invest heavily in their network so they will often be able to recommend someone they’ve already met. But it’s important to recognise, you’re still paying for a service. You’re paying for someone to successfully broker and secure a long term relationship on your behalf that you can then benefit from quickly. Just because they are in the recruiter's network when you ask doesn’t mean a huge amount of time (usually years) of effort hasn’t gone into making that the case.

Final thoughts

If you spent £40k (on say a piece of Software) in your business, would you spend a lot of time with a vendor to make sure they really understood what you wanted? You bet! Why is a £40k candidate any different? It’s a big investment and very expensive if you get it wrong so it pays to invest the time with quality partners to make sure you get it right.

At Precision People, we have built a new suite of models that make this transition easier for clients. One of them, for example, only requires a small proportion up front and then a reduced success fee at the other end which isn’t payable if the Talent comes from an ad as opposed to Search & Networks.  This reduces waste and risk on both sides for a win-win.

There is an element of Trust required still sure, but there is in any meaningful relationship in life! Whatever your solution, Clients and Recruiters need to start partnering more and at a deeper level to make sure the ever-growing disconnects that also affect the Talent (And therefore Employment Brands) start to be bridged and turned around.

If you want to discuss any of the solutions and ideation around how to make recruitment better for all concerned, please click here or call us on 0116 2545411.

Are you conducting an interview in the near future? Not sure what questions to ask? Here are 15 killer interview questions to help: 

1. If you had ten seconds to sell you and your abilities what would you say?

2. What are your weaknesses/ areas for development? What are your strengths?

3. How would you describe a great day at work?

4. How do you react if others around you are demotivated or negative?

5. What would current managers and colleagues say about you?

6. What would you plan to do in the firs three months of this new role and how?

7. What will your referees say about you?

8. What achievement that is not on your CV are you most proud of?

9. What is the biggest mistake you’ve ever made and what did you learn from it?

10. What do you know about our company? 

11. Where does the role fit in with your current career ambitions?

12. Can you tell me about a time when you added value to your previous employer’s business?

13. What would it mean to you if you didn’t get the job?

14. What aspect of your last role has involved working with others, what did you enjoy/ what did you not enjoy?

15. How much are you worth?

By asking these questions you should gain a very good insight into the candidate. Do you know about hard and soft skills? Read this blog post here: 'Hard & Soft Skills, what you need to know when interviewing." and also '24 Interviews tips to make sure you hire the right candidate."

Precision will help your business in all aspects of your interviewing process, including onsite training for line managers, advice, and we can even sit in on interviews to give an unbiased opinion on hires. We have done this for a number of our clients and it has proved very successful, especailly with family businesses who may not be used to interviewing. 

If you have a sensitive hire, and you don't want your current staff aware you are conducting interviews, we can help you organise meetings in our purpose built private interview rooms with easy access onsite parking close to Junction 21 of the M1. Click here to see our office.

Contact us today for more information on 0116 254 5411 or email hello@precision-people.uk or book a call in our calendar at a time to suit you here.

Judging people within the small window of opportunity that is the interview process is a skill that improves with time and experience. Regardless of the industry you work in or that you made the wrong decision.

When recruiting people for key positions within your company, you may well have to make an important decision in a relatively short space of time.

A CV can only tell you so much; it is the interview process which often determines the crucial decision. But how do you make the right choice within such a limited space of
time? The key is to plan and manage the interview correctly to make the most of the time that you have. This short tips have gone through the initial shortlist process either yourself or by using a reliable recruitment company such as Precision People.

Needle in a haystack
Choosing the wrong person can cost a business dearly in terms of time, productivity and money. Being able to match the right candidate to the right position is a real skill - developing an instinct for making the correct decision does come with time and experience. However, if you have the responsibility for selecting personnel for your company, there are many simple, practical things you can do to make the process a productive one. 

Getting to know the candidate
The interview process isn't just about firing questions at the person sitting opposite you. It takes preparation, planning and skill to draw out the best in a nervous candidate within the time limitations of an interview. The key thing to remember is that you are trying to get this person to talk about
themselves, what they have done in the past and what they want to do in the future. The more detail you have, the easier it is to make an informed decision.

Here are 24 Interview Tips to Make Sure You Hire the Right Candidate.

Planning
1. Planning is the foundation of so many things so plan the interview carefully. After all, you only have a short time to gather all the evidence you need, so make the most of the time that you have. Go through CVs thoroughly, make notes and highlight questions. Ensure that you have
decided what information you want to get from the  interview and devise a structure that will help you get it.

Feedback
2. People behave differently with different people, so ask your receptionist for their feedback. How did the candidate behave in the reception area? Were they polite to you and reading the company  literature or were they talking loudly on their mobile phone to a friend? Ask any of your trusted colleagues who may have come into contact with an interviewee for their thoughts.

Privacy 
3. Set the scene by preparing the environment for privacy. You need to ensure that you won’t be interrupted so divert your phone and put a notice up on the door ‘interview in progress’ if you need to. Think about how the room will be laid out – will a desk between you create a barrier and
how will chairs be arranged to create the atmosphere that you are aiming for?

Be punctual 
4. Punctuality is important and both a sign of punctuality and  respect so try not to keep the candidate waiting. This will usually only make them more nervous, which in turn means you might not get the best out of them at the interview. Overly nervous people rarely perform at their best.

Don't forget to smile! 
5. An interview is an intimidating experience for many people. If you want to get to know the candidate, you need to put them at their ease. The best way of doing this is to smile. Smiling goes a long way and usually people will mirror what you do, so sit back, relax - and smile.

TIDY
6. You are also trying to create an image of professional impression, so clear your desk and just have the paperwork out that you need in front of you. This way you have what you need at your fingertips.

At Ease

7. First impressions count, so start the interview process with a pleasant greeting. Introduce yourself by name and position with a firm dry handshake - don't break their fingers! As you sit down take yoru jacket off if you have one and check your body language. Remember that you are trying to put them at their ease so they will be more forthcoming.

Make eye contact
8.Make frequent eye contact- but don’t eye ball the candidate and make them feel uncomfortable! Looking  Looking people in the eye creates a feeling of trust and rapport.

Attention
9. Give the candidate non verbal encouragement. Look interested in what they are saying and maybe nod to showthat your attention is with them. Don't keep checking the  time or become too absorbed in your papers – it is very distracting!

Read the CV thoroughly again before the interview
10. The CV is an important document. As you are aiming to get to know as much about the candidate as possible, make sure you read through their CV before you start the interview – not half way through. If properly used, this document will greatly enhance the interview process.

Try to listen more than you talk

11. Listening is an under valued skill and surprisingly difficult.  However, in an interview, you should aim to listen for roughly 80% of the time and talk around 20% of the time. You want the candidate to open up but if you do all the talking they won’t have the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and personality.

Check your body language 

12. Check your body language and consider how you appear. Try not to cross your arms or legs as this can look defensive. On the other hand, don’t be too laid back and slouch. You need to lean slightly forwards to show interest. Crossing your legs loosely is fine if it makes you feel happier, especially if you’re wearing a dress or skirt, but if you can ‘point’ at the candidate with your knees or your feet it shows you’re focused right in on them.

Non verbal clues 

13. Look for non verbal clues by reading their body language. Crossing of arms can make a candidate appear defensive, nervous or negative, whilst touching the face can sometimes imply discomfort, suspicion or a lack of truthfulness. Many candidates will be nervous, so the signs
may be subtle, but they are there if you know what to look for.

Instant Rapport 

14. Breaking the ice. An interview is an artificial situation so if the candidate appears nervous start the interview by chatting something informal, such as their hobbies. Everybody should be able to talk about something that interests them – this way you put the interviewee at ease and create an instant rapport.

Take notes 

15. Note taking is a difficult thing to get right. You may well need to make notes during the interview, but you also need to listen to the candidate and it is hard to do both properly at the same time. Make some notes but try not to spend the whole time writing which is also very off putting for the candidate. Allow some time to convert your notes, ideally straight after the interview while it is still fresh in your mind. 

Diamond in the rough
16. Interviews are not everyones forte, so try to look beyond what the candidate is saying. Some people are very good at giving a polished performance but it doesn't necessarily mean that they are right for your position. Give people a chance, and remember that nerves can play a part - a
candidate may be right for the job, but they may not be all that good in an interview situation. You may find a diamond in the rough. 

Have an air of authority 

17. Have an air of authority – keeping the interview on course doesn’t necessitate a dominating or aggressive approach, but coming across as self assured and knowing what you want from the outset will give you an air of confidence.  Additionally, if you have a clear idea what you want, you are more likely to get it.

Plan your Questions carefully 

18. Plan your questions carefully before the interview. You are aiming to give the candidate an opportunity to talk about themselves, what they have to offer and what they have done previously, so use open ended questions to achieve this. Think carefully about what you are looking for and what you want to know and plan your questions so that they address the relevant issues. Read our useful blog post on hard and soft skills and also '15 killer interview questions' 

How to control a candidate waffling 

19. When a candidate is trying too hard to impress or is just plain nervous, they may talk too much. Using closed questions can help regain control over the interview if you feel like they are waffling or trying to take over. 

Benefits 

20. A good candidate will be in demand. Employing the right candidate is a mutually beneficial arrangement and you need to ensure that you make a good impression so that your ideal applicant actually wants to come and work for you. Be honest, but make the job sound attractive by outlining the benefits. Be positive and always strive to project a positive image of the role and of the company.

A balanced perspective  

21. A bit of healthy debate is usually a good thing and it is often useful to get different points of view – even if they don’t match your own. If you are conducting a series of eight interviews, build an interview team of three or four people and rotate them, this way you will get a balanced perspective of the candidates. Fellow panel members can confirm a niggling feeling of doubt or make you take a fresh look at an applicant and perhaps see something you’ve missed.

Questions

22. An interview should also give the candidate the chance to learn more about your company and the position that they are applying for. As the interview approaches its conclusion, make sure you invite the candidate to ask questions. The kinds of questions an applicant asks can be pretty revealing and will help to give you a good indication of how keen they are on what you are offering.

A clear finish 

23. Finish in style. Make sure that you conclude the interview by clearly signaling that it is the end and let the candidate know what will happen next. Then either walk them towards the exit or call someone to walk them to the door.

Be the employer of choice 

24. Have you expressed the benefits of your company to the candidate? Why would someone want to work for your company? What would it mean to you if they turned this job down. Remember the candidate is on the jobs market and may have several other interviews lined up. If you liked them, chances are that other companies will too. Don't lose an excellent candidate by having a lack of focus or because people within the vusiness are not making decisions. Get them lined up for a second interview as soon as possible. The candidate will also be impressed with the efficiency of your company. We have seen many candidates accept other jobs because companies moved to slow and miss the opportunity to hire the right talent. 

Conclusion

The interview is undoubtedly the main tool that we use when looking for the ideal candidate. If you believe that people are the key to any organisation then you will understand the importance of investing time and effort in the process. Like many things in life, you will get out what you put in. If you approach and conduct an interview badly with poor planning, you may find yourself re-advertising the position in a matter of months – or even weeks. But if you follow these tips and plan for success, your investment of time and effort will be well rewarded.

By asking these questions you should gain a very good insight into the candidate. Do you know about hard and soft skills? Read this blog post here: 'Hard & Soft Skills, what you need to know when interviewing." and also '15 Killer interview questions.'

Precision will help your business in all aspects of your interviewing process, inlcuding onsite training for line managers, advice, and we can even sit in on interviews to give an unbiased opionion on hires. We have done this for a number of our clients and it has proved very successful, especailly with family businesses who may not be used to interviewing. 

If you have a sensitive hire, and you don't want your current staff aware you are conducting interviews, we can help you organise meetings in our purpose built private interview rooms with easy access onsite parking close to juncrion 21 of the M1. Click here to see our office.

Contact us today for more information on 0116 254 5411 or email hello@precision-people.uk or book a call in our calendar at a time to suit you here.