Long, long ago, candidates would skip through summer meadows, hand in hand with recruitment agencies; the agency would find the candidate a wonderful job and they would all live happily ever after…
It’s a charming fairy tale, but a few years ago it wouldn’t have seemed quite so ridiculous - candidates really were more loyal to “their” agency. So, what has changed? Why have candidates seemingly fallen out of love with agencies? Have they changed or have we?
Arguably, we both have, and it is a very different world we both live in today. But, since we can’t turn back time or change our candidates, it’s we, the agencies, who are going to have to change to put the sparkle back into this marriage.
So, how can we improve our relationship? Candidates come to us, essentially, for the best jobs; without those, they won’t come. But good jobs should be a given for any worthwhile agency. Restoring candidate loyalty, to bring them back again and again, will require improvements in the quality of the underlying service we offer.
We can no longer expect candidates to always be there, waiting, like a dutiful husband or wife. If we want loyal candidates then we need to offer them reasons to be loyal. Much of this may seem like common sense, but when was the last time you seriously considered the quality of the service your candidates are being offered?
Because it’s not just the quantity of jobs we offer that matters - candidates want to partner with an agency they can rely upon. To stretch the marriage analogy further: most people prefer a single, trustworthy and well-established partner, rather than keeping an eye on multiple ones (some, unfortunately, will have learned this lesson the hard way, when a small agency went under without paying them).
Candidates want professional recruiters aware of their needs and concerns, who can reassure them with demonstrable knowledge, experience and advice. Candidates come to us because they are unemployed or unhappy at work and we offer a cure for those ills. So, treat them with honesty and integrity now, when they need it most, and when the supply and demand dynamic turns back in their favour (as ManPower’s Human Age research suggests it will) then they’ll help the company that helped them.
Candidates want– they need – to be able to trust us, and when we say we will do something for them then that should be a promise. If we arrange to call a candidate next Tuesday, then we have to call them. On Tuesday. If a candidate emails us for an update then we must email them back, even if we have no news or suitable roles. Don’t make them hope that we’re working on their behalf, make them believe.
Because there’s no shortage of other agencies for them to call next time...
