Thinking Differently about your staffing needs
According to a recent study by one of the national newspapers* the average salary in the UK is £26,500. What does this mean for recruitment agency fees?
Traditionally the recruitment industry has charged for its services by applying a percentage rate to the salary on offer for a job they are working with rates that range from 10% all the way through to 30%. Experience tells me that the average is around the 15% mark.
So a £26,500 salary at 15% would mean a fee of £3975+VAT to your business. No problem, as long as you are getting a return by way of efficiency, sales revenue, added value to your team…. Or, ideally, some combination of all these things.
If a recruiter sends you a number of candidates to consider and you just can’t decide between 2 (or more) of them, then you would be able to hire multiple candidates as long as you are prepared to pay multiple fees.
For many employers this is no problem. Large companies like, banks, pharmaceuticals, FTSE 100’s and the like often have plenty of cash sloshing around and the desire and requirement for talent, along with the value they know a good candidate will add to their business, far outweighing the costs that may be associated with recruiting through an agency. A good agency partner has the advantage that they are already well connected to the kinds of people you may need, or have the systems, resources and tools in place to go and find them quickly.
Our own business, Adam Butler Consultancy, still offers this percentage of salary charging model as an option for our clients, not because we are hooked on it, but simply because it’s what so many of our larger clients insist on. That’s how the preferred supplier list (PSL) is designed, and that’s fine with us if it is with you. However we engage commercially we always pride ourselves on delivering a quality service and quality talent as quickly, efficiently and cost effectively as possible. Quick, Efficient and Cost Effective are of course in the eye of the beholder. £3975+VAT is an enormous amount to some, and small fry to many others.
A requirement for something different…..
There is often a requirement for something a little different though, and this is where our “Thinking Differently” approach really comes into its own. It’s allowed us to achieve industry excellence – filling 87% of all jobs within 5 weeks.
Some larger clients may take note of their large recruitment spend and decide to do something about it, and often smaller or fast growing companies will need staff quickly but won’t have the budget or desire to tie up valuable cash from their cash flow. This is usually when their thoughts and strategy turns to “DIY” or “In House” recruitment.
Regardless of whether companies do it themselves or get someone to do it for them there will be a number of key steps that need to be taken. Training of staff. Recruitment of dedicated recruiters internally. Job boards sourced and prices negotiated. Applicant Tracking Systems evaluated and implemented…. This list, as is so often the case, is endless and can be complex and daunting.
So a few years ago we turned things on its head (well for the recruitment industry) and came up with a solution that would allow these businesses (SME’s who are growing or Larger businesses who are rationalising costs) to adopt what we have come to know as “Pay As You Go RPO” – RPO for anyone wondering stands for Recruitment Process Outsourcing.
For one simple low cost, agreed and committed to in advance, we can run a campaign that will source candidates from an extremely wide pool, and take care of all the administration burden you would otherwise have to subject your business to. Should a business stick to what it does best and outsource the rest? I would say that would be a good idea, as long as you have the right partner.
There are RPO providers out there, some of them very large businesses in their own right, who would offer you an annual contract, or an outsourced solution contracted for a number of years (7 is the longest I’ve come across!), but so many clients are just not keen to commit to such a long period. I don’t blame them.
Our “PAYG RPO” model can therefore be a brilliant alternative. Solutions range from £599 – £1499 – with the really great news that you are able to hire MULTIPLE candidates at no extra cost! Every campaign also comes with a unique GUARANTEE… If we don’t fill your role for any reason within the campaign timeline we will run it again for free or offer you a campaign credit that can be used against any other role within the next 12 months.
Here are some of the steps we will take when working with you on an assignment in this manner, all for one fixed cost with a unique guarantee:
- Full consultation to understand your vacancy, skills required and the company culture that is so important to identifying and engaging with top talent
- Salary review and advice on industry average and remuneration package
- Review any existing job specification you may have to see if still relevant
- Write an optimised advert for you vacancy
- Seek approval on the advert wording
- Distribute your vacancy to all the UK leading job boards – we use all the best and have great relationships with them all, ensuring you have the best advert and the best wording managed by your own dedicated account manager. For a full list of the boards we use please contact adamb@adambutlerltd.co.uk
- Give you access to your own branded Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to review the candidates that apply or that we headhunt and submit to you for consideration
- Depending on the package you choose (We have a range of solutions available) we will then either inform you of your applications / candidates, OR sift CV’s and make contact with a full pre screen telephone interview
- Conduct a CV search across all the databases we subscribe to (all the main ones including our own) – this identifies the “passive talent” not otherwise seeing adverts or applying for jobs
- Account Management – One of our dedicated Account Managers (they are recruitment specialists, NOT sales people!) will contact you throughout your campaign with updates and suggestions on how to improve and progress your campaign towards a successful and quick hire
- Your Account Manager will be available throughout your campaign. If they are on holiday, off sick or unavailable for any reason you will have a substitute that knows all about your requirements
- Depending on your campaign type we will send your pre screened candidate CV’s with Account Managers comments for your consideration (remember you can hire multiple candidates at NO EXTRA COST)
- Depending on your campaign type we will arrange all interviews for you to meet / speak with candidates you have selected from those introduced. This step alone can save hundreds of hours every year
- We will arrange all second / third stage interviews or assessments
- Deliver constructive feedback to all parties following meetings, calls or interviews
- Offers made and negotiations undertaken with your instructions and guidance
- Send our offer / contracts and assist with a compliant template if required
- Assist with references
As I am sure you can see it is a comprehensive solution and when you consider you can hire multiple candidates then it can quickly become fast, adaptable and very cost effective for your business. Our knowledge and experience extends to most industry sectors across the entire mainland UK. The full details are available in our literature.
To find out more about any of our solutions, and our unique “Thinking Differently” approach to your own recruitment needs, please request our brochure pack, or arrange a call with either myself or one of my team.
Adam Butler
Managing Director
Adam Butler Consultancy – Thinking Differently About Recruitment
01244 752 459