Reasons Why Agency Recruiters Need Perfect Candidates

Let’s face it. Many job seekers have a prevailing mistrust in recruiters, especially those that work for agencies. When they reach out to recruiters, they often will not hear anything back. If they talk with a recruiter about an opportunity, they will not get moved forward in the process, and often, without any feedback. Many job seekers throw up their hands and decide they do not want to pursue this avenue for potentially finding work.

It is a shame. Recruiters can be helpful, but I understand the frustration.

I am a big believer that knowledge is power. Most people do not understand how third-party recruiters (non-hiring-company-based) work in the marketplace. You may not have ever worked with one before. If you understand their business model (especially how they get paid), you will better understand how they operate and how to best work with them. This will, in turn, take some of the charged emotions out of the relationship.

Definition of terms in the industry

You may hear the term “agency recruiter” and wonder what that means. Let’s break down the recruiter types; this will be important when knowing which type you are working within your job search.

Retained

The employer pays retained search firms a fee to conduct a search for a job opening. They are the sole agency that is used on the search. The agency will get paid a set fee for their work when they find a slate of qualified candidates. Retained search firms often will be engaged for C-Suite or  Board of Director openings.

Contingency

Contingency search firms get paid only when the employer hires a candidate found by that firm and presented to the employer. If a candidate they have found is not selected, they get nothing. Employers may have multiple agencies working on one opening, so there is a competition between them to see who can get qualified candidates first to the employer. In this model, the agency gets paid a percentage of the first year’s compensation.

Temporary Staffing

These are agencies that focus on temporary staffing. Their business is focused on helping employers by staffing for short-term assignments. If hired, you are an employee of the staffing agency and are paid through them in this arrangement. The employer will pay the temporary staffing agency a set hourly rate higher than what you make. The higher rate will include a markup so the temporary staffing agency can make a profit. Some temporary staffing agencies also have contingency searches as part of their business.

Whichever business model an agency follows, they will not get paid unless they are engaged by an employer that has a need. Some people are under the mistaken impression that these agencies are there to find them a job. Instead, they are in business to find workers for an employer.

How Do Recruiters Get Their Business

Relationships and reputation are vital to building business in this industry. Many agency recruiters have long-standing relationships with hiring managers and HR professionals to be the go-to place when they need someone outside the company to help with hiring. Referrals are crucial. When someone, especially a high-level executive within the organization, has had a previous positive experience, that can help get a referral to other organizations.

The critical thing to understand is that agency recruiters DO NOT work for you.

While it certainly does not make sense to anger candidates, the ability to get new business will rest on how well the agency has performed in the past and how well the agency recruiters have built strong relationships, often with an understanding of how that business operates.

Note: Cost can also be a factor. In the contingency world, those that offer a lower percentage of the first-year salary as a placement fee may find they can get new business by underselling their competition. This may be a tactic to get their "foot in the door." 

How Agencies Work With Companies

When an opening needs to be filled by an agency, the first thing a recruiter will do is have a meeting with someone at the organization. That can be someone in HR or the hiring manager, or both. The purpose of this meeting is to understand the organization's needs and clarify the process of working together. 

Many agencies, especially those with niche specialties, can advise the client on the feasibility of finding candidates with the combination of education, experience, and desired skills. A good agency recruiter will understand the business goals to know how the hire might address them and the expected deliverables. Based on feedback from the recruiter, a company may alter their requirements or at least prioritize them for the search, but many will stick with their original requirements and ask that the agency only send them people that meet what they feel they need. How much leeway a recruiter will have in the search can be influenced by the relationship already established.

Therefore, the employer may ask only for candidates that meet all of the high priority requirements.

Agencies Having to Deal with an Employers Unreasonable Wish Lists of Requirements

Let's be honest. Sometimes companies come up with a laundry list of requirements that frankly are a wish list of an individual that may only exist in fantasy. Agency recruiters know this. Yet sometimes, their hands are tied in trying to convince a hiring manager to think more broadly. That is because the employer is paying for the service. And many times, this is tens of thousands of dollars. That is a significant investment in a hire. Therefore, the employer feels if that is what they need to pay, they want to get what they think will make a successful hire. Taking chances on a candidate when so much money is at stake is not in the interest of risk-averse hiring managers. Even when an agency may come back and tell the company that what they are looking for does not exist, they may be told to try harder because another agency is also looking and will find what they need.

That is why if you do not meet all of the requirements, even if you and the recruiter know that you could be successful at the job, you still might not be presented.

Agencies Having to Deal with Biases

One of the tricky areas that agency recruiters have to navigate is how to deal with hiring manager biases. This can be overt discrimination (I don't want to hire a woman for this position) or other preferences (I do not want someone with a long commute) that are not illegal, just dumb. Both can be tricky to handle. 

Most agencies that I have worked with are clear that they will not be a party to employment discrimination. If they are asked to participate in it, they will refuse the assignment. While there may be agencies that will discriminate against candidates based on gender, religion, etc., I would say this is not common. Besides being morally indefensible, it is bad business.

The other type of bias is more challenging. Many hiring managers have strong feelings about hiring and think their way is the best. It can be difficult to persuade them otherwise, especially if the recruiter can find candidates without the areas of bias. Recruits will often advise their client why hiring from a particular university or radius from the office excludes otherwise qualified candidates. Sometimes, if they have a strong relationship built on trust, they can sway the hiring manager to see candidates outside of their desired profile. Sometimes, though, they cannot.

That is why if you fall into one of these biases, even if you and the recruiter know that you could be successful at the job, you still might not be presented.

Agencies Also Have to Deal with a Lack of Feedback

When agency recruiters submit candidates, they want to hear feedback, just like you do as a candidate. They have invested time in the search, so it is important to hear whether the candidates submitted match the employer's expectations or not. Unfortunately, sometimes feedback gets delayed, they get minimal feedback or even none at all. When and what they hear back from the employer will impact what you hear back from them.

Ideally, if a candidate is not selected, the employer will provide specific information that is helpful to the agency and candidate-feedback, like lacking specific experience or industry knowledge. The reality is while some employers are good at volunteering that information, for others, it might be extremely challenging to get more than a "pass" on the candidate. Most recruiters will try to get more actionable feedback, but they may be stonewalled. Either they find the team unable to email them back or get on the phone for a more in-depth conversation, or the feedback they do get is very generic-such as she just wasn't a good fit.

That is why you might not get much feedback from the presentation of your resume or even an interview.

What You Should Know as a Candidate When Working with an Agency

If you are not the perfect candidate that meets all the employer's requirements, you often will not be presented, even if you could do the job well. The agency recruiter will decide that it is not worth their time to do so, and they will move on to other candidates. It isn't because they did not like you; it is because they cannot place you. Their job is to find the candidates that will meet the needs of the employer. Their job is not to find a position for you. 

Also, you may not get much, if any, feedback from an agency recruiter. Sometimes, as earlier noted, they cannot get it from the employer. Sometimes they do not make an effort to let you know the outcome of your conversation with them. While an agency recruiter should be honest with you about whether you would be a good fit for the openings they have, their priority is to find the fit. Providing feedback to someone who cannot make them money is a low priority. And as we know, sometimes actions that are a low priority do not get done at all. Not saying this is right or good business practice. Just saying it is the reality.

If you understand an agency recruiter's business, you will feel less frustrated when working with them. They can be helpful in finding opportunities in the hidden job market, those that are not posted, but they are not a panacea for your job search. Use them and other job search strategies to effectively job search.

Shelley Piedmont is a job search coach. She wants to help job seekers put their best foot forward by providing the tools for a successful job search. If you need career coaching, resume preparation, interview skills assessment, or LinkedIn profile assistance, she can help. Schedule a 15-minute no-obligation consultation.