Your success will go as your hiring goes. If you hire well, you will be profitable, and you will thrive. If you hire poorly, the company will be adversely affected. As the saying goes, you're only as strong as your weakest link. Or, to quote another cliché, one bad apple spoils the lot.
That said, let's look at a few ways the hiring landscape has changed since the pandemic:
The best candidates are more empowered than ever to start their own businesses or to conduct freelance work.
The best candidates value a work/life balance, company culture, and diversity.
The best candidates won't hesitate to quit – often without much notice – if they aren't happy.
What hasn't changed?
Many employers think they can find candidates by just posting an ad.
Most employers believe paying an outside recruiter for help is unnecessary.
When you combine everything that has or hasn't changed, it's no wonder why many employers loudly proclaim, "People just don't want to work anymore." Instead, you could say, "Is my next great hire working somewhere right now?" And you know the answer. The best candidates are too busy to look through job postings, so full-time recruiters spend their time wading through the pool of passive candidates. Unless you're actively networking and building a talent pool 10+ hours a day, your ideal candidate doesn't know you're hiring.
Let's explore hiring an outside expert as an active option. Do you hire experts for other parts of your business? Accounting? Payroll? Marketing? Maintenance? Mowing the lawn? Cleaning the office? So, what makes recruiting different?
In addition, what is the cost of having the wrong person in the wrong role or having no person at all? Are you turning away business? Are you putting customer relationships at risk by being understaffed or poorly staffed?
As a full-time recruiter, I can almost guarantee that your cost of not hiring someone right now is often less than my fee. Working with a recruiter provides other benefits as well:
A guarantee if your new hire doesn't work out.
Peace of mind that you and your team can focus on core competencies while someone else focuses on recruiting. If you already have an in-house recruiter, admitting they sometimes need help is okay.
Focus on diversity. Most employers complain they want to hire a diverse workforce but aren't getting diverse applicants. Attracting diverse talent is hard if you're relying on a job board posting.
I know what you may be thinking. Is it my intention to write an article promoting my business? Not really. Feel free to call one of my competitors. Regardless of who you use, here's a list of core questions (and expectations) to ask any recruiter you might consider working with:
Do you focus exclusively on legal recruitment? Correct answer: yes!
Do you offer a guarantee? They better!
Is your fee high enough? If the fee is lower than standard market value then they are counting on luck – not experience - to fill your position.
How easy is it to work with you? If they know the legal recruitment space, it shouldn't take much to kick-off a search.
How quickly can you start to find me candidates? Every search should be custom-tailored to your specific needs, but initial efforts should yield results within days or, at most, weeks.
Can you tell me about your screening process? It should include a face-to-face interview and thoroughly vetting and screening a candidate before they waste your time sending over a resume.
It's never been more challenging to retain a winning team. However, if you surround yourself with the right people in the right seats, most of the obstacles to growth disappear. Using an outside recruiter might cost a little more in the short term, but in the long term, it's one of the most effective ways to build a sustainable, healthy, and dynamic firm that will last for the foreseeable future.
Vic is the Director of Staffing at Innovative Driven, where he helps law firms, corporations, and government clients manage what can be their most important assets, as well as their biggest liabilities: data, and people. He has worked as a sales professional and business owner throughout northeast Ohio for over 25 years. He is the author of the #1 best-selling book, Selling Is Easy (if You Know the Rules). He also owns and operates Viking Records, located in Cuyahoga Falls, driven by the mission to “save the music”. You can contact him via LinkedIn, at victor.ing@innovativedriven.com, or by phone at 330-459-9554.