A situation came up the other day that seems to repeat itself over and over again in this industry. Executives who are (correctly) worried about their bottom-line will work feverishly with their internal staff to source, screen, interview and place candidates for positions–all on their own.
This is all to avoid our service fees as recruiters and direct-placement specialists.
Now, I am guilty of it, too. I am the first one to snip a few dollars off my expense list if it makes sense. Our new home was a For Sale By Owner. We’re using a Credit Union for our new car-loan to save on bank fees and interest. We’ve switched to VoIP to snub the old-school telco industry’s fees. I don’t necessarilly want the cheapest price, just a price that seems equal to the service I am expecting.
But, this is why I pay mechanics instead of trying to service my car on my own–it would be counter-productive for me to do that even though I could do the work. It is cheaper for me overall to let the specialists handle it so I can get on with my life.
I don’t think I want to know how many piles of resumes these executives and their staff are going through in order to save some cash. The unintended consequences surely include headache, frustration, stress, and eventually, losing productivity to the point that the money being saved is being lost somewhere else.
Of course, the whole point of recruiting and placement is results. That being said, if a company can produce their own results cheaper, better, faster than through a search company like mine–GREAT. But beware the extra stress on you, your team, and your bottom-line from lost production.
My standard is to attempt to provide all new job orders with the resumes of two to three screened, quality candidates by the end of the next business day. More complicated positions requiring extra skills or certifications may take a little longer, but that makes sense. Further, about 10% of the candidates we screen actually make it to your desk. That means I have spoken to about 40 people to find to you four resumes worth your time.
There is no cost for my service to a company, unless I find the candidate that you want to hire or contract with. I run that risk (of working for free) because I believe our service is that valuable.
P.S. And, if you can do it cheaper, better, faster, please give me a ring and let me know!
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