The role of a recruitment consultant and recruitment agency is often one that is misrepresented in society. Good recruitment consultants change lives, add value to organisations and, just as important, build lasting relationships with candidates and clients alike.
Yes, of course there are those agencies out there that are simply ‘CV Shops’ where little or no consultation with clients and candidates takes place, but in our opinion that is not how this industry should operate. After all, the construction industry is a ‘people’ industry.
Simply forwarding CVs from an inbox to a client will more often than not result in a negative experience for both client and candidate. A lack of thorough needs analysis and consultation results in high staff turnover and prohibits long-term working relationships, particularly in small, close knit communities like The Construction Materials Sector.
Here at SRS we are consultants and by that we mean that we take the time to fully understand the needs and requirements of our clients, including in most cases visits to their offices, detailed questioning regarding the culture of the company, what character traits they look for in their employees, what benefits they offer, what if any career prospects there are within that particular firm and so on. The more we get to know our clients, the better ‘fit’ and ‘match’ our CVs will be to specific vacancies.
Since our inception in 1989 we have built excellent, long-lasting and prosperous relationships with 100s of clients across The Construction Material Sector and we are now at the point with a number of our key clients that, when a job vacancy arises, our consultants know exactly what type of person will thrive and prosper in that particular working environment and shortlists can be sent to clients for review in a matter of hours.
There is without doubt a great deal more to the role of a successful recruiter than meets the eye and it is perhaps those companies who operate in our industry without always having the clients and candidates best intentions at heart that result in some of the negative sentiments towards recruitment agencies.
It is an extremely challenging and often stressful position to do well, but also one that is extremely satisfying and there is nothing quite as rewarding as finding the ideal candidate the perfect position with one of our clients and when that individual goes on to add true value to their organisation!
