Five Steps to Achieving an Ideal Recruitment Partnership

At Streamline Recruitment, one of our core values is simple: Trust is everything. 

We don’t just say it, we do our absolute best to live by it.

So when it comes to how we look to build relationships with our candidates and clients, the usual buzzwords of honesty, transparency, and clarity are our natural approach.

But these are buzzwords for a reason, open communication is the key to building successful long-term relationships. And when it comes to quality recruitment services, trust has to go both ways.

The more we know, the better we can represent you, whether you’re hiring or looking for your next opportunity.

So, how do you actually build a strong, trust-based relationship with your recruiter? 

Here are five focus points that if we’re honest, also feel simple enough…

1. Let’s shake hands…

Long-term partnerships aren’t built over email.

If you want us as your recruiter to properly understand your business, your goals, and what you’re looking for, there’s no substitute for a face to face conversation.

Whether that’s an in-person meeting or a detailed call, that initial discussion is what sets the foundation for everything that follows. It’s how we get a real feel for your culture, your expectations, and exactly what kind of candidate will be the right fit.

Skipping this key starting point creates blurred lines from the get go, meaning the miscommunication that transpires ultimately wastes your business’s time and money

2. What do you want?

From day one, make it clear what you need.

What’s the biggest challenge you’re facing with hiring? 

What’s the most important trait you’re looking for?

What’s worked well for you in the past, in fact, what hasn’t? 

The more we know, the more we can tailor our search to match exactly what you’re looking for.

If you’re hiring, this means being upfront about the skills, experience, and personality traits you want in a candidate. 

If you’re job searching, it means being honest about what you’re looking for in your next role. So that means; salary expectations, company culture, progression opportunities and everything in between.

3. Great Expectations

The recruitment process runs smoothly when everyone’s on the same page.

When we’re discussing the specifics of a particular role or just general expectations, be clear about timelines, decision-making processes etc. 

We need to know if you need a hire in two weeks or two months. We need to know if your process involves multiple interview stages or just one. The more precise you are, the faster we can deliver candidates who fit the bill.

And if you’re looking for your next role, it’s the same sentiment. Clarity means letting us know about upcoming interviews, notice periods, or any non-negotiables in your next role. Any slight feeling you get during the process is important and should be worked out together.

It stops time being wasted and makes sure every opportunity we bring to you is one you’ll actually consider.

4. Now what do you really think?

We don’t expect every candidate we send over to be hired. But if someone wasn’t quite right, tell us why.

Specific feedback helps us refine and improve the framework for our search for your business. It means the next candidate we put forward is going to be a better fit. A generic “not the right fit” doesn’t give us much to work with but knowing why allows us to both be clearer in the future.

Once again the same can be said to our candidates. If this role doesn’t seem right, no dramas, tell us what’s missing. Maybe the progression opportunities weren’t strong enough, or the salary range didn’t align with expectations. 

Maybe your interviewer scared you, fair enough. Whatever it is, that insight helps us find something better suited to you next time.

5. Keep it up!

So our final point is basically, keep this behaviour consistent, build good habits etc.

Naturally we’ll be striving to maintain the quality relationship that’s been built through open, honest, transparent communication.

We don’t just want to place a candidate and move on. We want to work with businesses for years, helping them scale and refine their hiring strategies. We want to support candidates throughout their careers, not just when they’re actively job-hunting.

That means keeping in touch. Checking in even when you’re not hiring or looking. We’ve built all of our desks through working with people, we don’t plan to change now. 

Naturally we understand that you may have heard many recruiters not practicing what they preach when saying things like this but…

We don’t see it as a transactional business. Now we obviously run our business on placing candidates, but we also know that building a top relationship will make us and our clients more money in the end. 

So even if you wanted to be cynical about it, we still believe this is the only way to be!