Dealing with a Recruitment Agency
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From dealing with candidates and clients on a daily basis, a common question is how does a recruitment agency actually works. To help address this, I’ve outlined the recruitment agency process below.
Stage 1: Candidate attraction
Once a recruitment consultant is requested by a client to recruit for a vacancy in their organisation, the consultant will begin searching for the right candidate. Candidate attraction comes in many forms, advertising the vacancy on the agency’s website, various national and international jobs boards along with an assortment of social networks. At the same time, the recruitment consultant will activate a search within the agency’s database to try and match live candidates to the position.
The recruitment consultant will then compile a shortlist of candidates to contact and inform them of the position, location, salary, benefits, potential start dates etc. If the candidate is interested in the position, the recruitment consultant will conduct an in-depth phone/face to face interview on the candidate to see if they fit the job description as set out by the client.
As a candidate, we advise you to always meet your recruitment consultant in person. It is easier to convey your experience, ambitions and motivations in person than over the phone. Also it is the starting point to building a relationship with your recruitment consultant.
Stage 2: Candidate Submission
Once the recruitment consultant is satisfied that the candidate is a good match for the role, the candidate will be submitted to the client.
Stage 3: Interview Process & Feedback
Once the consultant receives responses from the client, they will inform their candidate as to whether they were successful in reaching the next stage or not.
Unsuccessful candidates will return to the consultant’s active pipeline and will be provided with feedback. Candidates successfully called for interview will be informed by the consultant of the interview details (Location, Time, and Interviewer). At this point the consultant will also prepare the candidate for interview covering potential questions, dress code etc.
From CV submission to first round interview it usually takes one week to hear back from the client. Once the interview is complete feedback will be provided and second round interviews will be conducted on successful candidates.
An important point to note is that depending on the client, the time taken to give feedback on candidates may vary from client to client due to clients internal procedures.
Stage 4: Offer & Acceptance
Once final round interviews are complete an offer will be made. Offers are always dependant on the successful completion of references checks which will be conducted by the recruitment consultant. Once the reference check is complete and successful the candidate is formally offered the position. The recruitment consultant will manage the offer and negotiation stage on behalf of the client.
