Employers should expect their recruitment partners to quickly deliver outstanding candidates. But, recruiters will only give you great results if you do your part too. This short blog will help you understand how to make sure that your organisation is worth their time.
Managing Recruiters – The Terms
You want cost-effective commercial terms guaranteeing an outstanding level of service for the lowest overall cost. The 3 commercial levers for managing recruiters are:
- Rate
The percentage of basic salary and benefits payable to the agent once candidates are successfully placed. - Rebate
The period over which a percentage of the rate is repayable due to premature departure of the candidate. - Exclusivity period
The period for which a single recruitment partner retains sole right to present candidates for a vacancy.
Some employers desire a mutually rewarding relationship with their recruitment partners. Others seek commercial terms that recruiters describe as unrewarding.
Settling punitive terms generally demotivates recruiters, resulting in less focus on the employer. Don’t fool yourself; the best candidates are presented to employers who pay more per placement or pay more per annum.
If you feel that your recruiters are slow and produce credible candidates only when you chase them, you might want to review your Terms.
Managing Recruiters – Quality control
Poor practice is endemic within the recruitment industry, so we should all hope that upcoming GDPR regulations will put a stop to the presentation of candidates without their prior consent.
Some employers believe that retaining many recruitment partners gives them an edge. However, recruiters placing only one in thirty vacancies can’t justify the cost of maintaining a relationship with an employer.
Our advice is to check past candidate submissions for accuracy. Reduce the number of recruiters by retaining only the top third. By ‘feeding’ the best and supporting greater placement ratios, your recruitment partners may reward you with greater focus. Besides, who wants to keep reading irrelevant CV submissions from less capable, poorly motivated recruitment partners?
Managing Recruiters – The Reward
Some employers withhold invoice payments for as long as they can get away with it. Among other unsavoury reasons, some do it to retain rebate control. However, late payments can only weaken an employer’s relationship with their recruitment partners.
Recruiters commonly earn commission on the fees they generate. However, commissions are often withheld until invoices have been settled, so the employer unwittingly discourages the recruiters who works hardest for them.
Our advice is to pay on time. Tackle all issues of quality and rebate independently and make sure your Service Level Agreement is robust enough to manage this.
Who are we?
Xperian Recruitment offers the best search and selection service for Software IT companies throughout the UK. Find out more by contacting us for a confidential discussion.