As someone who has been living and breathing recruitment for nearly two decades, I have certainly seen the industry change. Now as to whether it’s been a change for the better or a change for the worse would depend on whether you’re talking to a recruiter, an employer or a candidate, since everyone would have a different story to tell.
Starting out as a recruiter in the mid 90’s I remember thinking how cool it was to be able to fax a résumé to a client. But then there were also times that weren’t so cool when I had to be in the office at 7:30am and still there at 7:30pm in case a client called in needing a temp for that day or the following morning. After all how else could they contact me? I wasn’t going to give them my home phone number! And then of course there times when my desk was covered in so many client files and candidate CVs that I couldn’t even find my rolodex if I tried!
Gosh how the recruitment world has changed.
Or has it?
Employers still want to deal with professional recruiters and to see the best candidates, candidates still want to deal with professional recruiters and to be represented for the best jobs, and the recruiters still want to be making the best matches.
So really nothing has changed … except of course for the way the whole recruitment process works.
Today hiring managers can scroll through CVs on their iPads (sorry what’s a fax?) in their office, at home or even on the bus; employers have their recruiters’ mobile numbers and email addresses stored in their mobile phones; candidate CVs have almost been replaced by the creation of a detailed LinkedIn profile and can be shared in the single click of a button; recruiters can ‘meet’ with candidates anywhere in the world virtually either via SKYPE or an on-line video interview platform; and new job openings can be fed straight into a candidate’s inbox via an online job board.
Long gone are the days of a recruiter having to wait on hold for half an hour before finally being able to dictate advertising copy to a customer service representative working in a call centre at the classifieds section of a local newspaper.
Yet while recruitment is now taking place at the speed of tomorrow, one thing that employers say has slowed down (or in some cases has disappeared entirely) is the concept of service. Even with all that technology has brought along with it – the social networks, mobile apps, video interview platforms, cloud-based candidate databases etc – if an employer decides to engage the services of a recruiter as opposed to undertaking the process on their own, then they want to be looked after. Employers want to be kept up to date at every stage of the process. They want recruiters to follow up, and to follow through.
Neither party in the so-called Recruitment Love Triangle (the employer, the recruiter or the candidate) should be comfortable hiding behind technology. It would be rare for a candidate to get a job without at least speaking to a recruiter or meeting with an employer face to face; Nor would an employer likely regularly use a recruiter with whom they only have an anonymous relationship over email.
I suppose it’s up to whether an employer is wanting a transactional relationship with their recruiter and a quick fix (bum on seat) solution to a hiring need, or whether they are looking for more of a consultative solution, and to build a long- term partnership with a recruiter who will help them grow their business, not just today but into the future.
When it comes to the world of recruitment, some things will never change.
Paul Slezak
February 2012.
Paul Slezak is Head of Community and Client Services with RecruitLoop. RecruitLoop gives employers a smarter way to recruit, with 80% cost savings: An online marketplace of experienced recruiters charging an hourly rate, and an online video interview platform.
