So you want to be a recruiter? Here's what you need to know!
23 Oct 2017
Barbara McGrath
When you work in recruitment, you do get a lot of criticism. “Sure, how hard is it to send a CV over?” is one of the most popular (or unpopular depending on your viewpoint) comments. And in some respects, they’re right. Recruitment isn’t a hard job. But it is a tough one.
You’re going to face knock-backs, rejections and unreturned calls but recruitment can be the best and most rewarding (both career wise and financially) career move you can make. But only if you have the perfect mixture of all of the following skills:
Persistence: Recruitment is definitely one area where things don’t necessarily always go according to plan, simply because you’re dealing with people. You need to be able to take the knock-backs and keep going.
Empathy: A good recruiter needs to be able to listen to their clients / candidates’ requirements and respond to those needs. You need to be able to understand what isn’t said as well as what is.
Attitude: People can be trained in just about everything except attitude. Attitude covers motivation to learn skills, think in an innovative way, cope with set-backs, collaborate with colleagues and assimilate constructive feedback. You can change skillsets but attitude comes from the person within.
Relationship building skills: Recruitment is all about people. Having great relationship building skills is therefore crucial. It will allow you to build trust with your clients who will come back again and again to you for their requirements. Don’t underestimate the value of a great relationship with your candidates either; not only can they recommend you to their friends and introduce you to a whole new pool of suitable candidates, they are also your clients of tomorrow
Networking skills: A good recruiter knows how to work a room or an event without being too “in your face”. Every event matters to get that connection! You can’t be a shrinking violet in this profession. Get involved in your local Chamber of Commerce, attend events within your sector and get meeting people!
Multitasking: You’re going to be juggling multiple recruitment assignments simultaneously and having to remember various clients’ requirements and candidates’ skillsets. Keeping track of all the various jobs, companies and candidates is not just important but a necessity! You’ll be on other people’s deadlines and schedules so multi-tasking is definitely a skill in demand within recruitment.
Patience: If you want to be a successful recruiter, you really need the patience of Job (we know, ironic!!!) Clients who desperately want the right candidate yesterday will interview them, gush admiringly about them and then simply disappear off the radar when you’re trying to close the deal. Candidates say they’ll only move for X, Y and Z and then decide that A, B and C are really the important deciding factors when you’ve worked tirelessly to secure them the offer.
IT / Social Media skills: Recruiters need to be familiar with various social media recruitment strategies and IT technologies in order to gain access to a wider pool of candidates. It also means that you can develop your own personal brand online and establish yourself as a credible expert in the market.
To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling,
“If you can do all this, Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a recruiter!
If you think that this type of role sounds exciting, you’d be right! If you think this sounds like something you’d like to do or would like more information about it, please give me a call on (01) 6621000 or email me on [email protected] I’d love to hear from you!