“Recruiters are like garden weeds”

I was once told by a prospective client, that recruiters are a bit like garden weeds.

Well, in the current climate, it feels like we’ve all become recruiters. Welcome to my world.

The majority of people you speak to seem to think they know what an agency recruiter does. The chances are, it’s probably very different from their expectations.

“It’s easy, I can do it myself. Why would I pay a fee to do something I can do myself?”.

And that’s why a lot of people get into recruitment, right.

“Easy work, good money. All I’ve got to do is speak on the phone.”

Sounds like the dream. We’ve all heard the rumours – all expenses trips to Ibiza, a £250,000 salary, Ferrari’s, Rolex’s.

Unfortunately, that’s why so many don’t last.

The majority of those that enter recruitment last less than a year.

That equates to (roughly) three times as long as Drakes song ‘One Dance’ lasted at Number One (which admittedly did feel like an eternity).

Any good recruiter knows the importance of business development. If you don’t have any jobs to work, even without a maths degree I can tell you that the chances of filling any, are preeeeetty slim.

So what does business development look like?

I can tell you now, it ain’t always pretty.

Networking is a big part of it. Getting to know people. Staying connected. Adding value to them both as a client or a candidate.

You also need to speak to the right people – hiring managers, heads of talent, founders, CEO’s. If you ain’t speaking to the right person, you’re probably wasting your time.

The purpose of speaking to them directly is to stand out. To show them that you’re better than the competition.

Sound familiar?

Right now, it seems we’re all recruiters.

The job market has become so candidate led, I’m speaking with candidates on a daily basis, some very senior with a great career history.

They’re asking me for few tips n tricks. “what’s the secret to getting through to the right people?”

They’re now recording videos to introduce themselves, searching the World Wide Web to find an aol email address that may just be the right personal address for the hiring manager that posted a role that half matches their experiences.

They’re scouting LinkedIn on a daily basis for new jobs, posting regular content, building their personal branding via socials, blogging, and attempting to introduce themselves via telephone, email, direct mail, pigeon.

It’s tough out there.

I’m here to tell you that it’s going to settle – hopefully sooner than later, but it will settle. There will be an increased number of jobs (this is already happening) meaning less competition = a statistically a higher chance of success for you. Job searching will go back to how it once was.

When this all blows over, you will probably look back and think “god, that was a tough time – I’m so pleased that was over”.

When this thought crosses your mind, spare a thought for me.

You’re no longer operating like “a recruiter”. But I am!