Guidelines for Hiring A Contract Recruiter

Reprinted with permission from Personnel Journal Magazine, October 1988, Reprint # 1777

GUIDELINES FOR HIRING A CONTRACT RECRUITER
Ed Lawrence, Contract Recruiter

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the subject positions to an organization (any organization), or ask him or her to explain the impact of a vacant position on the company. Further, ask for an explanation of the business necessity of the recruiter's work.

     Although the answers to these questions and their interpretation will vary in complexity and style, the bottom line should be that the contractor's views and values demonstrate a mature management level understanding of how and where an employment program fits in a company's pursuit of sales, product development, administration, manufacturing and profitability. Once sifted, the common thread throughout the answers should be that the responses are centered on mature business thought and principles.

     It's equally important that the contractor's customer satisfaction orientation and commitment be easily evidenced and in full practice. Today's employment programs are overwhelmingly service driven and a contract recruiter must understand and apply successful methods when servicing the company, the candidates, the company's vendors and the hiring managers.

     More than one-third of the initial interview should be devoted to determining the contractor's commitment to this area. Ask about his or her sense of urgency when responding to inquiries. Does he or she prefer not to accept telephone calls from applicants? How would he or she handle impatient hiring managers whose expectations are unrealistic? Is it permissible to release his or her home telephone number to all hiring managers for possible night and weekend calls?

     If the answers to these and similar questions are consistently negative, or affirmative with repeated qualification, the contractor might view his or her role more as an administrator versus the provider of a time-sensitive service. On the other hand, if the contractor is willing to be all things to all people and situations, the potential for an improper balance exists. There's a difference between providing a service and being servile. The latter can wreak havoc in an employment program with difficult hiring managers, and demanding and willful third-party vendors.

     Once these two essential attributes are determined, confirm their practice during the reference investigation. Obtain at least two references from each of the contractor's most recent assignments. One reference should be the person who hired the contractor and the other should be a hiring manager who

received direct recruitment services.

     If necessary, go back during the past two to three years (some contractors spend a year or more on one assignment, while others complete four or five jobs in one year). In either case, get as many references as practical and make no decision until each has been contacted. If problems are encountered getting through to the reference, put the onus back on the contractor and ask him or her to intercede and help make the contact.

     Once connected, the inquiry should take the flavor of a standard employment reference. Do some rapport building to improve the person's comfort level. Then, confirm the period and nature of the assignment, verify all performance claims and accomplishments, confirm or deny any assumptions regarding interpersonal relations skills and recruiting abilities, and ask whether the reference would rehire the contractor.

     In addition, ask straightforward questions about the contractor's work habits, attention to detail, timeliness, treatment of candidates and third-party vendors, record keeping and willingness to travel and follow (or change) directions quickly. This is important because the assignment currently under consideration probably requires a fast starter who can quickly assess the situation, begin performing to expectation immediately and maintain that level throughout the course of the assignment.

     The final part of each reference inquiry should be devoted to confirming the contractor's business maturity and commitment to customer satisfaction. Following the suggestions mentioned earlier, ask open-ended questions that allow the reference to go into some detail about the contractor's business maturity and customer service practices.

Clearly define the objectives of the engagement.

List and candidly discuss the expectations for travel, on-site work hours, dress, decorum, applicant handling, AAP goals, difficult hiring managers, placing advertisements, invoicing and other issues.