5 Tips For Choosing an HR Recruitment Agency

Making the first permanent HR hire is one of the most important hiring decisions a company can make and a specialist HR Recruitment Agency is a good option to consider.

Most business leaders will need a broad range of HR skills and will typically hire either an HR Manager, Head of HR or a Chief People Officer, in the initial instance.

This person will ultimately be responsible for recruiting, training, and developing employees, setting company policies on hiring and firing, compensation, benefits and other HR-related tasks.

Appointing an agency to help you make a permanent HR hire is therefore going to have a deep and long-lasting impact on the performance of your company and will become crucial to your future success. 

Recruitment agencies are a great way for companies to find the right candidates for their open positions. They offer a wide range of services, including sourcing and screening potential candidates, evaluating candidates, conducting interviews, and presenting you with a shortlist of ideal candidates.

There are many benefits that come with hiring through a recruitment agency. They can help you save time by finding qualified candidates, they can help you stay on budget, and they can also help you stay on schedule.

When it comes to selecting an agency, there is a lot to consider. There are many recruitment agencies that claim to offer the best services and can provide you with the best candidates for your job.

But how do you know which agency is best for you?

Choosing an agency can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t know what should be considered in order to find the best one for you. There are many factors that should be taken into account when choosing such as their areas of  specialisation, how long they have been in business and how much experience they have.

The first thing that people usually look at when choosing an agency is the specialisation of the company. The best recruitment agencies are those that have a deep understanding of the industry and are able to match the right candidate with the right company.

You want an HR Recruitment Agency that specialises in the specific field you are recruiting for, because they will be more knowledgeable about your needs and can provide better candidates than an agency who recruit across many fields.

Here are our 5 tips for choosing an HR recruitment agency to make your permanent HR Hire

Tip 1

Choose an agency that has expertise in recruiting the type of HR position you’re hiring. Here are some example:

• Learning and Development
• Redundancies and Restructures
• Cultural Change and Transformation
• Mental Health and Wellbeing
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Employee Engagement and Happiness
• Compensation and Benefits
• People Analytics & Reporting
• Sourcing and Assessment

Tip 2

Do your research. Investigate the recruitment agency’s online presence and reputation. What are their customers saying about them on Google? What similar success stories can they share with you? Will they introduce you to a customer who can vouch on their behalf?

Tip 3

Ask your recruitment agency to break down their services against the fees they’re charging. Do you have visibility of what you’re ACTUALLY paying for?

Tip 4

Listen to your gut. Was it easy to build a rapport with the recruitment agency? Do you see yourselves working effectively together? Do you feel like they would have your business’s best interests at heart?

Tip 5

Just choose one. Do yourself a favour and work with one really good recruitment agency on this hire. Form a partnership and the results will follow.

What steps should you take to take before starting the HR Recruitment Agency selection process?

Before you commence your agency selection process, there are two things you need to consider and have prepared for the agency.

1. Visualise the Ideal Candidate

Visualising the ideal candidate is a crucial step in the hiring process. A good way to do this is to create a profile of an ideal candidate. This can be done by asking yourself questions like:

• What does the perfect candidate look like?
• What are their strengths and weaknesses?
• Do they have any special skills or qualifications?
• What personality traits would they need to have in order to thrive at our company?
• What qualities would they possess that make them a good fit for our company culture?

2. Create an Official Job Description & Specification

This should be a concise, factual, and accurate written statement of the work to be done and the qualifications required. The goal is to clearly communicate the scope of work and requirements for the position to potential applicants.

A well-written job description will include:

• Job title
• Summary
• Job responsibilities
• Qualifications required
• Location (work location)
• Salary range (salary range)
• Benefits offered (benefits offered)