There are a few key variables that differentiate a mediocre, slightly above average recruiter from a recruiter who has the ability to positively influence their clients’ businesses time and time again.
1. An understanding of not only sales and marketing, but also the business and corporate culture of the hiring client:
Sales and marketing, compared to intuiting each individual corporate culture, is inherently easy to understand. The best headhunters realize that no two companies are the same. Each one has its own corporate culture and way of achieving the objectives of its company.
Before hiring a recruiter, any recruiting or job search party should have a conversation with headhunters that doesn’t involve selling recruiting services, but rather talking to the actual recruiting professionals who will handle your particular job. (These are not always the same people who are selling you the company’s services.)
Some things to ask or think about during this discussion include whether you think the recruiter knows enough about your industry and your clients’ industries; if they are at a high enough level to determine potential job applicants like the ones he will need to see; and if they can and will end up being a successful recruiting engagement for all 3 parties involved.
2. A strong ability to read resumes and make judgments that are close, if not accurate, with the hiring company:
There should always be a good cohesion between a recruiter and their client, as well as between the recruiter and the job seeker. Recruiters shouldn’t be just another vendor, and if any of the parties dealing with them feel that they are, it’s best to go ahead and write off the time lost in the process as a learning experience.
Since companies live and die by employees, job applicants should not be commodities in the eyes of any outside party working with them. Although there are many differentiations in technology and technology offerings, no technology or business plan will be as unique as the differences between people. Smart, hardworking people recruit smart, hardworking people, no more, no less, no exceptions.
3. A sincere feeling of concern for the welfare of clients and candidates:
The problem with many recruiting professionals is the way their employer pays them: too low on base salary, too high on commission. As in any industry, this leads to a conflict of interest between the recruiter’s bank account and the people they hope to place. In this case, the recruiter might settle for hiring mediocre job seekers to make a quick buck. Whether the recruiter will understand his role and responsibility in the recruitment process, as a personnel consultant to both job seekers and the recruiting firms that come across his organization, is another matter entirely.
4. Recognition and success within the field or fields in which the recruiter works:
If you are hiring a software recruiter, your website should not be a basic WordPress template, just like if you are hiring a media and marketing recruiting company, they should be successful and knowledgeable in both areas. There is a direct relationship between the amount of success and recognition a company has received throughout its tenure and the length of time the recruiting firm has been in business.