Web Comment

17 March 2010

In response to ’Think outside the CV’ (Recruiter, Bloggers with Bite, 3 March)

Having recruited a number of in-house recruiters from agency backgrounds I can identify with a number of points. The key factor for me, however, is the commercial mindset that comes with the agency background in terms of what route to market is most efficient, best price (without compromising quality) and essentially how to run your desk as a business, not just provide an in-house order-filling service! They also tend to have well-honed troubleshooting skills and keep ’customer’ front of mind, irrelevant of their status.
Paul Awcock, Head of recruitment UK, Aviva

In response to ’Recruitment takes too long’ (8 March)
And so the dichotomy continues! If employers truly recognise the importance of recruiting the right people and this is undertaken as a strategic consideration within the broader function of talent management, there is no reason why they should not devote adequate time to the process. If employers are dealing with dozens of agencies, this is because they have not taken time to establish true strategic partnerships with a couple of well-placed organisations, where both sides have invested in the relationship, enhancing the likelihood of a successful hire in less time. Where ’recruitment’ is spread across multiple agencies and contracts etc, the process will be at best transactional, rather than strategic, and agencies competing to be first past the post with the ’killer CV’ are unlikely to contribute added value to what should be a value-rich relationship. It behoves organisations and agencies alike to encourage added-value consultancy to the recruitment function.
Simon Page