Why you should work with a smaller recruitment agency
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14/07/2018
Trusting another company to find the right candidate for your business can be a daunting prospect. You have to believe that they know what they’re doing and will take the time to understand the ins and outs of your business – things like its workplace culture.
For this, you might think it best to go to a big recruiting firm. After all, they’re big for a reason – they must be the best, right? While working with the giants of the recruitment world has its benefits, it also has its downsides – downsides that working with a smaller boutique firm can help you avoid. We spoke with our director, Chris Sacco, to hear her take on why you should work with a boutique recruitment agency.
What’s missing when you work with a large recruitment firm?
Chris has been working in the HR and recruitment space for over 30 years. While she started as an HR manager, she has worked in full-time recruitment roles for the last twenty years, the previous nine of which have been in her own firm (our wonderful KLC!). Having worked in both the huge corporate recruitment firms and the smaller ones, Chris has a unique insight into the shortcomings of the former.
“From my experience talking with existing clients and having worked in some of the bigger companies, the thing that can be missed for our clients is that lack of continuity of consultants.”
Part of this, she explains, is due to the different environment large firms have in terms of employment.
“What I find is that individuals will either love or hate consulting as a recruiter. If you love it – and I hope there are a lot out there that do – the key is finding an agency that you can align yourself with. And for a lot of recruiters, that can take a long time, maybe three or four changes on their resume to find the right agency that works for them. So for clients working with larger firms, they have the advantage of working with great consultants, but they’re potential not going to be there the next time they need their services.”
In an environment where consultants are moving on quickly, relationships can become strained and distant.
The result is clients can find themselves working with a new consultant each time – suffice it to say, when your organisation’s needs are complex, the lack of knowledge of your business that results can be a significant downside.
What are the advantages to working with a boutique recruitment firm?
According to Chris, there are two major benefits for organisations working with smaller boutique recruitment agencies like KLC – closer working relationships and a higher degree of flexibility.
Solid relationships
When you work with a smaller recruitment firm like KLC, you’ll be working with one consultant long term, giving you the chance for a better relationship with someone that truly understands your business.
“In a smaller boutique agency, it’s about the client relationship and understanding every role from top to bottom, while being able to add value. So you get your one consultant, the one relationship you can continue to build and foster, as well as having them be an extension of the HR team.”
It’s a model that has paid dividends not only for KLC’s clients and candidates, but the firm itself too.
“Here at KLC, I would say 98 per cent of our clients have come from referrals or current relationships. So it really comes down to understanding what our clients and candidates need, to the point where they’ll always want to come back to work with us.”
Flexibility
The second thing you get when working with a smaller firm is a partner that can be more flexible and creative with their way they find you a candidate.
“Because of our size, we have the opportunity to add some value-adds and to be creative in our thinking for our clients. We can change our HR recruitment menu board – traditionally instead of just charging a fee for a placement, we also can offer solutions to help them find an answer to their candidate needs.”
This ability for novel solutions delivered quickly is especially valuable in a tight candidate market.
“We’re right now in a very tight labour market space and we have the ability to move the direction of our ship fairly swiftly and stay abreast of the environmental things that we’re not in control of.”
The saying “a jack of all trades is a master of none” is well known for a reason – it’s true. At KLC, we’re not all things to all people – but we are one thing to the people we work with: a recruitment partner that gets results.
For more information on how we can find the perfect candidate for your business, get in touch today.
