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The client side.
With clients, those “moments of truth” we referred to often happen when a recruiter looks beyond the vacancy itself and understands what is really going on in the business.
I think this is what you are paying a recruiter for. This is how they earn their money (well, certainly one of the ways!).
It was one of the first training courses I went on as a recruiter when I first started out – how to consult, challenge and advise a client, not just pick up an order.
They are two very different things.
So, when we look across the client journey, we can start to see just how important those nuanced skills of a human recruiter, in comparison to an AI bot, are when you look at some of the different components of the recruitment process, such as:
No.1: Spotting that the vacancy is not actually the issue
Let’s say the client wants another salesperson for their business.
A few thoughtful questions by a good recruiter reveal that their existing team is struggling with poor management or an unclear proposition and that is the real issue here.
The value a recruiter brings starts with questioning whether hiring will solve the problem at all.
No. 2: Finding candidates who aren’t even looking
Often the best talent are the ones who are in work.
They are performing and so are happy, and maybe too busy to even look outside of the four walls of where they currently work. That’s where a great recruiter comes in.
Finding, engaging, nurturing this pool of amazing talent that would often get missed.
No. 3: Challenging a brief without making the client defensive.
Their expectations, their budgets, their timelines do not line up (sound familiar?!).
Knowing how to say that, with enough evidence and sensitivity to keep them engaged in the process, turns a “supplier” conversation into an “advisory” relationship.
That’s why we built the Pinnacle programme, by the way!
No. 4: Owning the moment when something goes wrong.
A candidate withdraws or your team misses a commitment to review a CV by an agreed deadline.
All it might need is someone to pick up the phone and agreeing a remedial course of action… but that phone needs picking up!
No. 5: Helping a client change their mind without losing face.
They have publicly committed to a particular candidate profile or hiring campaign.
Suddenly, certain factors have changed that requirement and now they no longer can hire. This could be damaging for their brand.
Giving them a credible way to change direction with someone who can manage the narrative for them, on their behalf, can male all the difference.
No. 6: Recommending the decision that may lose you a deal
Advising them to promote internally, redesign the role or delay hiring because it is the right business decision.
A good recruiter will always do this, because it tis the tight thing to do.
No. 7: Selling the employer, not the role
I was always taught to sell the sizzle, not the sausage in recruitment!
The job itself (the sausage!) was important, but in many cases, the company itself and the wider opportunities that were on the table was what I needed to showcase to great talent in order to get their real buy in.
I’m not sure AI is really suited for any of this.
It can help and certainly does in many cases, but it simply can’t replace these people-led nuances that need humans very much in the loop.
Article by James Osborne
Chairman at The Recruitment Network (TRN), Founding Member at The Global Recruitment Alliance (GRA) and CEO of Innergy
