Being a Recruitment Consultant is challenging, make no mistakes about that. While you have responsibility for one of the most potentially pivotal moments in someone’s life, you’re also open to criticism, will be expected to hit often challenging targets, and have to put in a considerable amount of hard work. At the same time, the rewards are plentiful, and the most successful Consultants have the opportunity to earn a huge amount of money.

Here at Clayton Recruitment, we’re constantly on the lookout for our next new hires. We like to think our Consultants, and the company as a whole, does things in the right way, which is why we’ve provided our top tips to be a better Recruiter:

Know your clients and candidates inside out

All Recruiters should focus on learning as much information as possible about their clients and candidates. If you have outstanding, deep knowledge of the people and organisations you’re working with, then you’re likely to be able to match the two together more effectively. For example, one individual, who may not initially seem like the perfect fit for a position, may be ideally suited to the culture of the organisation, but the only way of discovering that is to dig deeper and have a full understanding of everyone and every opportunity you’re working with.

Network, network, network

No top tips to be a better Recruiter list would be complete without some advice on networking. It isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but it’s an incredibly effective way of getting to know more people and therefore expand your potential candidate and client base. However, relatively few of us are entirely comfortable with speaking to a room full of strangers so it’s important to ensure you’re fully prepared. Check out our recent guide on effective networking for some top tips, and remember to keep the potential benefits it could bring to your current role in mind. Word of mouth travels fast, and it’s likely that effective networking could exponentially expand both your network and your client and candidate base.

Be clear with job specs

Clarity is also a valuable trait from the candidate’s perspective. Recruitment has developed a bad reputation in some quarters for misrepresenting opportunities, which most commonly occurs within the initial job specification. It’s critical to remember that the job specification is the main way you will attract candidates to roles, so it’s worth spending time on them to ensure you get them right. If you’ve struggled to source candidates it can be tempting to overstate the role somewhat, but don’t fall into the trap. This will only create issues in the long run and could erode any goodwill you’ve spent a considerable amount of time building up. It’s your responsibility to prevent this from happening and you must ensure you get a minimum of five hard and clear performance objectives that clarify real job expectations, rather than just a list of mildly desirable traits.

Don’t stop digging

Not everyone is a good interviewee, in fact, relatively few of us are. That means that a candidate might not always open up and reveal information that could show they’re actually a perfect fit for a role. Even if they are ‘a good skills match’ with the position, you may have concerns about their fit with the company culture, so it’s critical to learn as much you can and to find out as much information as possible. Don’t be afraid to ask probing questions as it may help you to identify characteristics that may not have been immediately obvious, and that could perfectly align the individual with your client.

Follow up everything

Just because a candidate didn’t get a role this time, doesn’t mean they won’t be a good match for one that you may be filling later. If you’ve worked long and hard to bolster your reputation with clients, it makes no sense to throw it all out of the window and forget about the person once the process has been completed. Post interview, a shocking 74% of the feedback candidates receive is little more than a standard template, which doesn’t exactly encourage them to apply for another role with you in the near future. Taking time to inform candidates about the decision and the reasons why it was made will bolster your reputation and is likely to increase referrals.

If you’re looking to join an organisation that can enable you to develop all of these skills, then check out our current vacancies.

Take a look at some our other blogs to gain some more valuable career advice.

Or take a look at our other current roles to find your next game-changing position.