THEY SAY THAT VARIETY is the spice of life. Variety means you have several different choices one of which is bound to be right for you. Recruiting is no different as there are no less than three methods a company can pick to assist with their hiring needs. In this article I will introduce the three options in addition to giving some pros & cons of each. I will also touch on the issue of ethics as it relates to each form.
Option #1-RPO which is Business Continuity Planning. It is also a process by which an outside agency is hired to handle many HR function such as payroll, benefits and so on. In many cases the RPO can effectively be empowered to run your entire organization.
Pros: Your operation is centralized reducing payroll expenditures while freeing up time spent on HR matters so attention can be focused elsewhere. A more streamlined operation is in place.
Cons: Many of these RPO’s are located outside of the USA making oversight difficult. The quality of their work and their decision making process including how their whole operation works is subject to question while adding a layer of risk. The ethics of the individuals come into play as you have no way of verifying their credentials.
Option #2-Retained Search where you pay a large pre-negotiated sum of money to the Search Firm prior to the commencement of any recruiting activity. The amount of money that must be paid is determined by the number of jobs you need to have filled as well as the anticipated time it will take to locate the candidates the hiring entity is looking for plus the difficulty of the search assignment(s).
Pros: By virtue of handing over that check with the condition that if the requirements are not met by a certain time a refund must be provided. The client (hiring organization) is secure with the knowledge that their needs are given top priority with a sense of urgency. You have bought the services of somebody who now works for you and you alone.
Cons: How much bang are you really getting for your buck? In other words you have paid all this money thinking this firm you hired can produce candidates for you that nobody else can. The fact of the matter is while there are different ways of sourcing candidates there is no way to know if your job order is simply being posted on job boards or you are seeing job board candidates.
Option #3-Contingency Search. As the title suggests the agency getting paid is contingent on making a successful placement with the organization they are recruiting for. Since no money is paid upfront you can enlist the services (bad idea) of multiple search firms to see which one performs the best by way of the speed they deliver resumes along with the quality thereof.
Pros: Once again you are not paying any money upfront so you have no real risk. A guarantee is routinely provided giving you extra protection. The Contingency while taking on additional assignments will not rest until they place somebody in your office. Often they will offer discounts for multiple placements and fight the compensation to give you the best deal on fees.
Cons: Contingency Firms work on many job orders. Typically their attention is focused on those job orders with highest salary figures with the higher fees. Many of these firms do not have actual or experienced recruiters on staff. The quickest route from job order intake to fulfillment is often taken.
In terms of who is the most ethical of three is I can only say that probably the least ethical is the RPO since so much control is given to them. As for the other two I would lean more to the Contingency Firm as being more ethical as they have to sweat every deal thusly forcing them to do the very best job for whomever hired them. Retained Search Firms have your money. Even if they fail to perform (contract or no contract) getting your money back is not a sure thing.
Recruiters have to have ethics without question. They must strive to have the best interests in mind of not only the client but the job candidate as well. High billing recruiters can be suspect as in their lust for the money they will do whatever they need to do to keep that income stream coming in. keep that in mind.
If 1+1=2+1=3=Which way should you go for your hiring needs. The best solution is to have multiple people in on the decision with one person having the final say. You carefully examine each firm and once a consensus is reached (if it is reached) the decision is made.
Best of luck whichever route you decide to take.
