If you work in a human resources department, you’ve probably been a part of this debate: should we do the hiring for this role internally or turn to a recruiting company? There’s a lot of debate about the advantages and disadvantages on both sides. Here’s why working together might just be the best hiring strategy.
1. claim back HR’s time
When you work with a recruiter, they take on time-consuming hiring tasks like sourcing candidates, reviewing resumes and completing first-round interviews. This allows your HR team to focus on other important internal HR tasks, but step in before any final hiring decisions are made. You still have a say in choosing who is hired, but bypass all the work of sourcing and narrowing down the pool of candidates.
2. tap into a huge network
As part of an internal HR team, you likely source candidates for roles as needed. Unless you work in an industry where you hire for the same roles frequently, you probably don’t have a huge rolodex of potential candidates with the particular skills needed when a new role pops up. Recruiters, on the other hand, specialize in hiring a large volume of candidates for a variety of different roles. Recruiters have prior relationships with thousands of highly skilled, pre-screened candidates in order to fill clients’ diverse orders. This is a resource your HR team can tap into.
3. recruiters are a third party negotiator
When you’re ready to make an offer, recruiters mediate between your company and potential candidates, ensuring fair negotiation of salaries, benefits and other terms of the job. Recruiters ensure that everyone is satisfied with the final offer. Additionally, recruiting agencies have baseline salaries to work with. Due to their large hiring volume, recruitment agencies are aware of average going rate for different roles, skills and experience levels. They’re also aware of hiring trends – such as a shortage of workers in a particular field – that will require you to adjust your offer to acquire the best candidates.
4. make hiring a priority
Internal HR teams often have competing responsibilities. Depending on the size of your company and where you work, you may also take on responsibilities such as payroll, benefits administration or other HR tasks that serve current employees. Recruiters, on the other hand, are 100% committed to hiring talent. Working with a recruiter, you can ensure open roles at your company are filled in a timely manner. If you’re looking to hire for a particular role by a certain date, your recruiter will ensure that you receive the screened candidates you need to meet your deadline, while you focus on your other urgent tasks that would have otherwise pushed back your hiring timeline.
5. find talent in specific industries
Internal HR teams are often expected to fill a variety of jobs in different departments throughout their company. The hiring strategy for someone in the marketing department will be very different from someone in the IT department. Working with recruiters who specialize in each field will help you locate qualified talent with the precise skills needed for success. At a recruiting agency, your request is processed by someone with expertise in the field, ensuring the candidates that land on your desk are highly qualified for the job.
