What are the benefits of using a specialist recruitment partner to find talent?

Sourcing the right talent at the right time can prove a challenge, particularly for a niche industry or sector. In a McKinsey report “The new Tech Talent You need to Achieve Success in Digital” it suggests it can take as much as 6 months to hire some of the most sought-after skills like machine learning and data specialists.

“Time is money” or so the old adage goes, so it’s important to realise the actual cost of time when hiring.

The hiring process, across sourcing and interviewing comes at a hefty time expense.  To optimise the time, here are some key considerations you should account for, including:

• Can I afford the lost productivity of not having someone in that post?
• Do we have the expertise to locate, attract and secure that talent?
• Can we move fast enough for the best talent? – Speed is vital in a competitive market!!!
• Can we afford management distraction for the hiring process?

With this in mind, there are several benefits a specialist recruiter can offer when looking to find niche talent. A specialist recruiter can offer:

• More structure and control to the recruitment process
• An In-depth understanding of the talent available on the market and how to best attract and secure that talent
• Manage your expectations and give you a realistic picture of the market place
• Make sure that the time you spend on recruitment is worthwhile by not wasting your time with inappropriate candidates
• Cut down the time to hire and saving the time cost
• The opportunity to increase the calibre of talent by sourcing candidates who weren’t actively looking for jobs

Specialist recruiters have access to candidates and often have a better overview of the market over an in-house recruitment team.

This is because:

• Recruiters often have long-standing relationships with candidates and can leverage their extensive networks and can connect with a wider range of talent
• Expert recruiters spend 80/90% of their time building a network of candidates for future opportunities
• Recruiters can be brand ambassadors and help to “sell” your company to the candidate by understanding your benefits and company culture.

It’s worth investing the time in finding a real ‘star’ recruiter or working with no more than three. I’d also advise meeting with them to make sure they understand you, your team, the business, the culture, benefits, and the role.

Working with a dedicated recruiter is an integral part of your value proposition, working hard on your behalf to attract the best talent to your organisation. Investing in them and their skills & expertise will pay dividends for you and your business.