What Do The Best Recruiters Have in Common?

Recruitment agencies can be great for helping candidates land the role they’ve always wanted while simultaneously filling a highly specialised role for an employer.

There’s no shortage of recruiters out there, however, so finding the most compatible one is not always easy. Every recruiter has their own unique skillsets and way of doing business, but the best recruiters all share common characteristics, four of which are listed below.

An ability to manage expectations

Would-be employers and their new recruits both come to the table with a list of prerequisites, or at least strong ideas about what they want before the whole hiring process starts, so a good recruiter, who is effectively the middleman between the two, has to manage expectations from both sides. For a job candidate, the recruiter is the first point of contact and the way they present you will determine whether or not you get your foot in the door, while for those hiring they are relying on the recruiter to find the candidate that ticks what is often a large number of boxes.

Managing expectations also means having great negotiating skills. Acting as an intermediary over sticky issues such as salary and a range of other conditions is not easy and requires considerable skill to achieve a happy outcome for both parties.

Constant re-evaluation and learning

Like any profession, recruitment is constantly evolving and the best recruiters understand the importance of technology in helping them do their jobs. This is especially true in the digital age where social media, online bulletin boards, job alerts and weekly emails will have such a big impact on the way recruitment is conducted in the year 2023.

Recruiting is a constantly evolving profession and the best recruiters understand the importance of self-evaluation so they can improve their interaction with employers and job candidates alike.

Knowing where to find candidates and a record of success

Understanding where your ideal candidates are is essential for effective recruiters, who can’t rely solely on LinkedIn and other social media sites or would-be candidates that may have registered with them to receive regular job alerts. An effective strategy should also involve attending industry events and networking with colleagues, both inside and outside of your agency if possible, who may know someone you weren’t previously aware of who is suitable for a role you are seeking to fill.

At the same time, a record of success is always a good thing because hirers and job candidates will know about you by word of mouth and will come knocking on your door.

Reliability and patience

Being a reliable recruiter means keeping both sides informed regularly about what is going on in the hiring process. For job candidates that means letting them know when the hirer is going to shortlist for interview, for example, and keeping the hirer aware of the candidate’s ongoing availability.

Additionally, they say patience is a virtue and the most effective recruiters understand that finding the ideal candidate can be a painstaking process. Just because someone looks right on paper doesn’t mean they will be fully compatible with the culture of the hiring organisation, and sometimes they may need to nominate several people before one is deemed acceptable.

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