I couldn’t agree more with the headline ’Stop being psychologists’ of Ben Fletcher’s article (’Bloggers with Bite’, Recruiter 15 June). In fact, I would go further and say that it applies not just to agencies but to employers as well, because all too often neither is very good at it!

However, like many of his recruiting colleagues, Ben is missing a trick. The assessment tools to help him to help his clients truly understand who’s the best person for the job, based on ’soft skills’ (including cultural fit), are already on the market. It wouldn’t be a big leap for recruiters to start offering them as part of the recruitment package but their reasons for not doing so are manifold (we hear them all the time).

The most common reason is that the client won’t pay the extra cost. If that’s the case, they’re not really interested in cultural fit, just a not untypical ’bums on seats’ mentality. But if recruiters want to reduce the level of dissatisfaction (and cost) from placing the wrong people (even the ones with the right skills), it would be worthwhile searching out the right tools and seeing what a difference they make.

Of course, nobody should recruit purely for cultural fit but at a time when there are many potential candidates vying for every position, it’s a very valuable additional filter.

You don’t have to be a psychologist, Ben but you could certainly benefit from some of the tools of the psychologist’s trade!

Martin Goodwill, managing director, Profiles International