When you’re running a business, it might be difficult to spare a lot of time for hiring new people. You always have so much to do that it’s hard to make time for perusing resumes, shortlisting people, interviewing them, calling their references etc. So you might end up hiring someone after interviewing only two people. Or you might hire someone and forget to call their references. This can have a disastrous effect.
Sure, there’s something to be said for following your gut feeling or your instincts about someone. But it would be even better to do the work needed to make sure that that person has all the qualities you need for someone in that position.
Why Work with a Headhunter?
Working with a headhunter saves you time which you can devote towards doing something else. Plus, the headhunter will go into all the little details which you might forget or not have the time to do.
Also, keep in mind that a headhunter has been in the business for a long time. So their instincts about matching candidates with businesses are pretty strong. They’ll understand what you need, given your company culture, and they’ll bring you the candidates who will be suitable for your business.
How Do You Work with a Headhunter?
When you’re working with a headhunter, you should also remember to communicate what you need to them. A headhunter will be able to find you the right candidate, but only if they are clear about what you want. So make sure you sit down with the headhunter and go through the job description.
Give them as many details as you can think of about what kind of person you are looking for.
- What are the educational qualifications you think the candidate should have?
- What kind of work experience should they have?
- Do you need someone with good people/computer/language skills?
Additionally, tell the headhunter a little bit about the type of company culture you have.
- Are you trying to keep things casual?
- Are you trying to help everyone maintain a work-life balance?
- Do you have fixed or flexible timings?
- Do you encourage innovation?
Make sure the headhunter knows your budget.
- How much are you willing to pay the candidate?
- What benefits will you be able to give them?
- How flexible are you willing to be when it comes to salary?
The headhunter will probably have a number of questions. And you can also communicate everything that comes to mind when you sit down with them?
How Do You Attract Quality Talent?
The idea behind headhunting is to find a highly qualified candidate for the job. And this can be done for any job, from answering phones at a reception desk to finding a scientist for a research project. You can always find someone who is well-qualified for the job and comfortable doing it.
- Salary and Benefits: In order to attract talent of this sort, you’re going to have to be willing to give them a good salary and benefits package. Your headhunter should be able to tell you how much other firms are paying people in that position. Then it’s up to you to make sure that you also do the same.
- Create a Welcoming Atmosphere: It helps if you can do something to make the person feel welcome. People are not only looking for more money and benefits. They’re also looking for a good place to work. So if you can have someone show them around, give them the timings they are looking for, give them some flexibility in case they have other obligations or even just welcome them with a smile and a mug that says “welcome,” you’ll find that they’re going to be a lot more likely to stick around in the long term.
Contact us for more great tips on working with your headhunter.
