Who’s the weakest link?
Every time I have a board meeting with the recruitment businesses I advise, I look at the gap between the forecast sales and the actual sales.
Sometimes that gap is as big as 25%. That usually has a simple explanation: a culture and reward system that incentivises recruiters to call placements too early and without thorough sign-off from compliance or a manager.
But by the time I’ve worked with them for a few months, that’s not the explanation. We’ve ironed out commission, managerial oversight, and processes. And that old chestnut, the “counter offer conversation (If you want to know how, book a call with me here).
But sometimes a 10% gap persists. And that creates challenges for recruitment business owners, because it messes with spending decisions and profitable growth.
When I get under the bonnet and listen to calls, it’s NOT what goes on at the offer/acceptance stage that seeds the problem. It’s right back to the initial interview of the candidate.
Some recruiters are so delighted to find a potential match in their CRM or inbox that they just concentrate on selling the vacancy.
Not digging into the reasons someone actually wants to move.
Because moving jobs is a big risk. Unless you are doing a complete career change, the PUSH factors are usually more powerful motivators than the PULL factors. Getting away from a toxic boss, or long hours, an inflexible culture is, for most people, a more powerful PUSH than potential career advancement. But candidates will usually say something acceptable, like “I’m looking for a new challenge”.
And mediocre recruiters accept that. At face value.
They don’t ask “What kind of challenge? What happened when you raised this with your line manager?”
They just move on. Eyes on the prize of setting up an interview. So the candidate attends the interview (or doesn’t) or – worst of all – ghosts you when the deal is 9/10 done. They just went along to see if there was something so compellingly brilliant about the vacancy that they couldn’t resist. A 50% pay increase might do it – but it’s not 2022 anymore. Then they might use it to negotiate a pay rise with their current employer.
Or they just want to shop the market before committing, maybe have another process in play with a different employer, and want to take a look at what else is out there. And who can blame them? Again, mediocre recruiters might ask, “Have you got anything else in play?” but these candidates aren’t stupid. They want to present to you as a really keen candidate. Someone you will prioritise.
So, mediocre recruiters lose. They have to restart processes, or have offers declined or no-shows at interviews. And in today’s market, clients can find candidates like that themselves. What they need from a specialist recruiter is a real network of pre-qualified candidates, well-briefed and reliably managed through the process.
What do the best do? They start with a good old acronym. CLAMPS stands for
- Challenge/Culture
- Location
- Advancement
- Money
- Prestige
- Security
And they probe for specifics.
And when they have found credible PUSH factors, they check how much these really matter to the candidate. Maybe they do have a toxic boss at the moment. BUT that role does offer flexible working and private health. That’s why they’ve stayed for 5 years.
The best recruiters relate the new role to PUSH factors. Not just PULL factors.
And they make sure the client understands what the PUSH factors are for that candidate, too.
All the data says that increased candidate availability and lower job vacancies should result in a shift. It is. In this uncertain environment, candidates (unless they have been made redundant or fired) will be more willing to look at possibilities, but more cautious about moving.
This is just one example of a challenge that a recruitment business owner couldn’t see. Because all her staff were doing the “counter-offer” conversation, she couldn’t see what else was missing, and how candidate behaviours have changed.
Would you benefit from an external expert in your business? Through Recruitment Leadership Ltd, Alison has helped hundreds of agencies improve performance, expand and prepare for sale. She is also a speaker, podcast host and co-founder of Women in Recruitment Leadership. Get in touch with Alison to tap into her expertise today.
