Whether you’re a part of a Fortune 100 or a small, tech start-up company, the time will come when you are going to need some help hiring. Hiring is tough, especially for competitive skill sets. So, when is the right time to leverage hiring help?
Just like other IT services, hiring talent should be treated in the same light. If you were tasked with purchasing a new Applicant Tracking System for your company, you wouldn’t just arbitrarily pick one. You would do research, ask for referrals, do price comparisons, make calls to colleagues on successes/failures of ATS’ they have used and more. If you need hire talent, make sure you are prepared and doing your due diligence on the front end.
Many companies struggle hiring talent and most struggle for very similar reasons. Lack of communication top down, hiring managers not being on the same page with HR, not understanding the labor market and/or not having the funds necessary to land the talent they seek.
If your hiring initiatives check the below, you should leverage a staffing agency.
- You needed to hire the person yesterday – if the hiring initiative is urgent and you are either behind or have no time to waste, find a staffing partner who can help.
- You have money – hiring isn’t free, especially when you are going to utilize a service. Having money to spend on hiring and hiring fees is a necessity.
- You know what you are looking for in a candidate – even if you needed to make the hire yesterday and you are swimming in cash, if you don’t know what the person looks like that you are trying to hire, another set of eyes isn’t going to help.
- You are ready to sell – all too often hiring teams have the mentality that the role the person they are hiring needs to exclusively impress them. Of course, the person you ultimately hire is going to impress you and your hiring team, but you need to impress the candidate marketplace as well. Hiring is competitive and selling your company, culture, and opportunity could make or break you getting an acceptance.
- You understand or are willing to learn about the labor market – the labor market is up and down, much like the stock market. You wouldn’t invest 50% of your life savings in the stock market without doing research or seeking out professional advice. Same goes for hiring and understanding the role(s) you are hiring for and how the market is going to affect your hiring process.
- You can act quickly – talent doesn’t wait, nor should you. Part of being ready to hire is being able to act decisively and quickly.
- You believe in transparent communication – if you are leveraging a partner, they need to be in the know with every part of your hiring process. What candidates are going to be valued higher than others, if a candidate isn’t the right fit, the why behind those reasons, and any other pertinent information as it relates to hiring.
In addition to meeting the following criteria, think holistically about your company’s hiring initiatives today and in the future. The best IT services (and any service in general) are ones that you can use again and again. Why reinvent the wheel every time you need to go outside or your company for hiring help? Search for a staffing partner, yes, a partner. One that can help you today and is committed to helping you long term.
How do you know when you have found a true, staffing partner? They should embody the below.
- You are working with the same people – all too often account managers switch over and the new AM knows nothing about you or your company. Find partners with longevity in their account management teams.
- A willingness to learn about your company – if the staffing agency you are talking to exclusively wants to know the “must-haves” for the job and the budget, they are not the right partner.
- They understand the labor market – you should be asking your staffing partner about what they are seeing in the market. They do this every day, so they should know.
- Hard working – your staffing partner should be working hard on your behalf, and you should be able to see that.
- Transparent communication – staffing is a service of representing people. People are unique and fickle, so it’s not always going to be a smooth ride. Find a partner who shoots you straight all the time, no matter the situation.
If you have hiring initiatives and need help finding the right talent, be prepared on the front end and seek out the right talent partner for your company long-term. Hiring is tough, but it can be made a lot easier with the right partner and being prepared for your organization.
Author:
Eric Edelsberg
Vice President & Partner
CultureFit Technology Staffing
