The reality can be summed up with one sentence. ‘Candidate Rich’ does not mean ‘Skill Rich’. Or in other words Quantity does not mean Quality!! The recruitment process is an art, it is something that consultants develop through years of experience. It is involved, takes time, and requires expertise, knowledge and robust systems to manage the process. A candidate rich market means more candidates to manage, and it can be easy to ‘miss’ great candidates.

Time - Having an excess of applicants can seem appealing but when you have to filter through hundreds of similar CVs, respond to them all and telephone screen the candidates who have potential even before you get to the formal interview process, suddenly the task seems somewhat overwhelming. It’s obviously something a hiring manager can do, but there are undoubtedly other things their time would be better spent doing.

Brand Image - Why let someone with no or limited interview training run a recruitment process. Good recruitment consultants have undergone extensive training to ensure they ask the right questions and get all the relevant information in a way that keeps candidates engaged and assesses suitability. A specialist recruitment consultant can guide and help you to ensure you don’t miss out on the best talent whilst protecting your brand image in the process.

Candidate Reach - A specialist recruitment consultancy will have access to the best talent available; this includes access to candidates that are actively seeking work, but more importantly those who are passive and need enticing away from current roles. Their reach simply can’t be rivalled by an internal recruiter or a hiring manager. Especially if that consultant/consultancy is a niche specialist.

Separating the wheat from the chaff - For those whose profession isn’t recruiting it can be difficult to know who the top talent is. Applicants will seek assistance for CV writing meaning they look great on paper but are they?  After constant knock backs candidates may under value their ability or apply for roles significantly below their level of capability, and while these may appear great value for money there are risks. Candidates will interview with a great deal of pressure having been out of work for months, this itself can skew the interview and leave you to question the reasons. Utilising a specialist recruitment consultancy can help you navigate this minefield.            

Additional Services - Recruitment consultancies will also undertake time consuming background checks which are essential in a candidate rich market These will include following up on references, conducting preliminary interviews and making sure the candidate matches what they promise on their CV. They may also provide services such as testing, contract and permanent recruitment, executive search, project support, salary benchmarking and redundancy support.

Its free to benchmark -While the number of candidates applying for your vacancy might be impressive, can you be sure that the best person for the job is in that pool? What if they haven't seen your advert? What if they have the wrong impression about your business so don't want to apply? What if the advert you've written inadvertently discourages them to apply? Using the traditional recruitment model of 'pay on placement' means it costs nothing to benchmark your current talent pool against that of an external recruiter and it costs you nothing unless one of them actually starts with you (which means it was worth the fee).

Cost Savings -The cost of sifting through CVs and conducting initial conversations alone adds up. Using a recruitment consultancy increases the opportunity for cost savings. Posting job adverts is not required, In-house staff can perform other duties, overtime/additional staff costs to manage volume is eliminated, the likelihood and cost of hiring a candidate unfit for the role is reduced, future hiring costs are reduced. There is also the ability for the recruiter to help negotiate the best salary (giving both guidance and advice on what is fair pay) resulting in a greater chance in hiring the top candidate. The cost saving of using a specialist recruitment consultancy are both short term and long term, tangible and intangible.

Market Knowledge - Specialist recruiters are experts in their markets and can give the hiring team regular insight into what is happening. These recruiters will know how to reach out to the best available talent, salary rates, career expectations, current hiring complexities, available skill sets and shortages. Often, your candidate requirements may be specific and difficult to find; this is where a recruiters industry expertise and market knowledge proves to be priceless.

The Future - Finally, what happens when you want to hire again? Do you start from scratch? Or do you have a long-term strategy that ensures a great employer brand, a consistent and diverse talent pipeline, and the opportunity to hire strategically and quickly when you need to? Companies that have the latter in place will be in a far better position when the pendulum swings back in the candidates' favour. Partnering with the right recruitment consultancy now, can see you getting one step ahead for the future. Involve them in your plans and have them working in the background for when the time is right to hire.