For any partnership to work, there must be some level of mutual trust and understanding. This is as true of the recruiter-client relationship as it is of any other. Indeed, the positive and beneficial relationships that recruiters build with companies in their industries are crucial to ensure that the search process goes smoothly and ends successfully, with the placement of qualified candidates in suitable job roles.
Sometimes, however, companies may fail to treat recruiters with the respect that their position warrants. This may be due to the client’s lack of experience in working with a recruiter. It may also be the result of hostility between human resources departments and recruiters. During the recruitment process, both recruiters and clients bear responsibility for ensuring that things go smoothly.
For example, clients need to know in advance the type of person that they have in mind for a position and stick with that vision throughout the process. Clients are also responsible for being up front with recruiters about the reasons a position may be difficult to fill. Additionally, companies must be forthcoming with quality feedback on candidates so that recruiters can fine tune the search for the ideal candidate for a position.
More problems can arise between companies and recruiters when the search is being conducted on a contingency basis. Companies conducting an employee search in this manner may not be as eager to fill the position as those who conduct the search on a retainer. After all, there is no need to pay the recruiter a dime until the position has been filled, so what’s the rush? In some cases, companies searching for candidates on a contingency basis may not even have a legitimate job opening at present. These companies just want to use the recruiter’s expertise to collect a pile of resumes to be used in the future when a job finally does open up.
Recruiters may experience additional difficulties with HR departments, many of which view the recruiter’s very existence as an infringement upon their own self-proclaimed territory. There can often be a power play between HR and recruiters which can result in additional hostilities. Conversely, some HR departments rely heavily upon recruiters and respect the hard work that they do.
Sometimes problems arise because of the recruiter’s own actions. For example, a recruiter who accepts a search that is beyond his or her expertise is not being up front with the client. Similarly, when a recruiter who already has a full workload takes on additional searches problems can result. Whatever the nature of the difficulties between a recruiter and the client, open communication and a dedication to fairness can go a long way to make the search run smoothly on both sides.
