Should You Use a Recruiter to Do Your Hires?

Thousands of employers, from large companies to small businesses, use a recruiter to bring in temp work, part-time staff or full timers. Some employers simply want an agency to vet candidates before engaging in a more thorough process at the company. Others hire specialty recruiters who know precisely what an employer needs. No matter what your reason, hiring a recruiter reaps several benefits, but there are also some downsides.

Benefits of a Recruiter

Use a recruiter to save time and money. Instead of HR going through the same vetting process over and over again, staffing agencies can perform background checks, drug tests, reference calls and applicant screens before you even call someone. Even more importantly, you don't have to offer new hires benefits if the staffing agency onboards temp workers. Rather than working for the actual employer, laborers might receive their paychecks through the staffing agency.

As a hiring manager, you already have plenty to do because you have your own department to run. Leave the hiring to the experts at a staffing agency. You save time in your own busy schedule when you use a recruiter.

You don't have to worry whether the people you interview passed the initial gatekeeping process. Use a recruiter to weed out a pool of candidates as the agency passes down the best of the brightest to your staff for interviews. This puts the risk on the staffing agency and not on you. A staffing agency is a third party that can see candidates more objectively than the firm that needs the hire, which reduces risk even more. Vetting talent pools demonstrates you see only the best of the best during interviews.

You gain more flexibility when you use a recruiter. A hiring manager can stipulate that the department needs 10 extra people for two months rather than bringing on full-time or part-time staff. When the two-month period is up, the staffing agency takes care of the people it brought to you, rather than your HR department. A recruiter or staffing agency can handle the administrative work so you or HR don't have to perform these mundane functions of hiring someone.

However, even with all of these benefits, a recruiter may not represent the best option for you.

Downsides of a Recruiter

Downsides of a recruiter include a lack of data privacy. You have to share vital information with a third party, in this case, the recruiter or agency, to make this process work. If the staffing agency has a data breach, your vital information could become compromised.

You have to explain a company culture and a perfect fit to an agency that may not truly understand the type of employee you want. This process takes extra finesse and rapport with the firm. You may have to go through several recruiters or staffing agencies before finding the right one. Much like with a candidate who talks to a recruiter, you must find the most effective company for your needs. Discovering the correct recruiter takes time and effort on your part.

Outsourcing part of your HR process saves money, but use a recruiter wisely. The wrong firm can make hiring top talent even more difficult despite your best intentions.

Photo courtesy of franky242 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net