Change is a constant in the recruitment industry — and you can’t afford to stand still. Re-examine every aspect of your business to see where you can make improvements

Award-winning author Elizabeth Moss Kanter once said: “If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got.”

However, while it is a useful dictum in some areas, it doesn’t apply to business.

Management and behavioural commentator Charles Handy uses the analogy of the boiling frog to illustrate our response to a changing environment.

If you place a frog in a pan of cold water, the frog will feel comfortable. Place the pan on a hotplate, and if the water is heated gradually, the frog will never notice the change and so remain in the pan and die.

In the recruitment industry, change is a constant — yet many recruiters carry on doing their jobs in exactly the same way. It’s important to ‘feel the temperature’ regularly.

Define your terms

In a competitive industry, we rarely get direct feedback from direct competitors. So take a rational look at the changes you could make to your cost base and strategy, and agree the conditions when you will implement them. Document your crisis plan to avoid panic decisions or delays caused by over optimism.

Talk service

When a client has no current requirements, re-engineer your conversation. You will need to develop a compelling proposition that picks your service, capabilities and innovation out from the crowd. Consider incentives to turn that “I’ll call you first” promise from a client into a reality. Also make sure you have reliable records of the key skills your clients look for, so when you see exceptional candidates you can demonstrate a targeted, proactive approach.

Retaining those accounts

In a tighter market, recruiters have a tendency to look for new business, sometimes even in new sectors. Even accounts in which you have a record of success can become vulnerable to sustained attack.

Develop a plan to protect each of these accounts, offering additional value, setting up networking opportunities with decision makers and presenting success stories.

Don’t be tempted to rush into new markets. Not only are returns likely to be slow, but you will dilute your reputation inyour existing markets.

Evaluate marketing and training

Some managers slice away at marketing and training budgets when fees degenerate.

Financial services information group McGraw Hill analysed the performance of 600 business-tobusiness firms during, and after, the 1980s recession. It found that companies which reduced advertising spend during the recession increased sales by only 19% post-recession. In contrast, companies which maintained or expanded their marketing
increased sales by 275%.

Be sure that the training you use is tailored to your precise needs. Does it reflect market conditions? Is it all relevant, or are delegates just meant to pick out a couple of nuggets? And above all, is it being reinforced by management?

Candidates matter

When energies are focused on assignments, it’s easy to neglect candidates.

Make sure that you have systems to capture employer data
from every candidate, and that these are followed up without fail. The best recruiters don’t put clients and candidates into separate silos: they manage one big basket of opportunity.

Alison Humphries is director of Amelius Consulting, an in-house training, and coaching consultancy to the recruitment industry



TOP TIPS

• Calmly consider your definition of a crisis in performance and agree what specific actions you will take should it occur
• Change the tune; talk service to clients, rather than just pitching candidates
• Be proactive to secure your most significant accounts
• Don’t give up on training and marketing — think return-oninvestment, not cost
• Spot opportunities in every CV and convert candidates to clients