A monthly online publication designed to help employers recruit, recognize, reward, and retain their workforce.

The Four C’s of a Quality Recruiter
(By Mike Zarnek )

We recently discussed the “WOW!” factor when offering a prospective employee a position with your company and drew the analogy between a diamond engagement ring and the sign-on bonus. Clearly, when you’re out to acquire the “ring,” you’re going to go to the most reputable jeweler in the area and will no doubt discuss the four “Cs” of a diamond: carat, color, clarity, and cut. Easy enough!

However, where do you go to find that prospective employee? After you’ve exhausted your internal and traditional external resources and decide to engage a recruiter—how do you decide which one to use? Consider the four “Cs” of a quality recruiter: character, connections, communication, and commitment.

Let’s take a moment and discuss each one of these attributes and why they are important to you.

Character
By this, we don’t mean are they a character – but do they possess the attributes that you look for in people you prefer to deal with? Do they present themselves with integrity? Do they subscribe to professional standards and an ethical code of conduct? In other words, when they tell you they won’t recruit out of your company, do you believe them? Character is important because you need to be able to trust the information that is given, the judgment of the person giving it, and the motivation behind it.

Connections
Do they have the resources to provide the services they offer? If working in a tight niche area, are they familiar with your competitors and the people who work within that niche? Do you discuss with them the competitors from which you would like to acquire people, or do you leave it up to them to acquire the appropriate applicants? If working in a more generalist role, do they have contacts throughout your industry that will allow them to be responsive to your varying demands? If not, is your recruiter connected with a large national network with which to partner, so you don’t have to? Recruiters who have significant network connections complete assignments more quickly than those who do not.

Communication
In my opinion, this is the key to effective relationships. Does your recruiter not only communicate with you, but do they communicate effectively? Are they getting you the information you require in the way that is most conducive with your operating procedures? And are you effectively communicating with them? Are you both emailing when you should be talking? Email is a great way to transmit data, but relationships and rapport are built through talking to one another. How well do you know the people you are dealing with and how well do they really know you? Face-to-face meetings are the most effective way to communicate. Is it time to invite your recruiter in for a meeting? Recruiters who listen and communicate effectively provide candidates who are both technically and culturally a fit.

Commitment
How willing are they to “complete” the search? Do you get the feeling that once a recruiter has searched their database and found nothing, their search efforts have concluded? How much time do they spend trying to get to know not only about the particular search assignment you may have, but also about your organization, its culture, and philosophy? Are they asking the kinds of questions that will help them to sell a prospective candidate on coming to work for your company? Are they providing meaningful feedback about the progress of the search—or is it once you give them the assignment, you never hear from them again? You should have a high level of confidence in your recruiting partner that regardless of whether or not they’re currently working on an assignment for you, they should be making you aware of top performers in your industry.

Given the nature of the ever-tightening availability of qualified candidates, the need for a solid recruiting professional is going to become even more necessary than in previous years. After years in the recruiting business, I can offer this advice: you want to deal with a recruiter who demonstrates a high level of character; who instills trust; who has the connections to find the people you need; who listens and effectively communicates that information to you; and who is committed to not only finishing the assignment, but to continually building a long-term relationship by keeping you apprised of appropriate talent.

If you have any questions about this issue, please contact me

(A diamond ring—or signing bonus—is a great way to “Wow!” a star candidate and ensure that they accept your offer of employment. But what about those hidden candidate “gems”? If you don’t know about them, you can’t make them an offer. In next month’s issue, we’ll discuss the ways in which a quality recruiter, just like the one described in the above article, makes sure that the very best and brightest candidates are given the exposure they deserve to the companies that covet them the most.)