Tips for Finding the Right Recruiter

Manufacturing Recruiting: As an operating company you should do a little homework before you begin to work with a staffing firm or a recruiter to fill your engineering or manufacturing job openings. You should seek an established firm. One with years of experience, preferably in your industry, but that should not be a limiting factor.

Good staffing firms have contacts across the globe and established firms have a large database of candidates and contacts to discuss the opportunity you have available. These candidates and points of contact cross all industries and help a staffing firm build a network of potential individuals to communicate the job requirements and discuss in detail the wonderful opportunity your company has to offer.

When you first make contact with a staffing firm or a recruiter to discuss your engineering or manufacturing recruiting needs be prepared to discuss in some detail what you want. Your communication in this initial call will set a tone and create the atmosphere for every subsequent contact either via the phone or email or text message.

This is important because communication should be an open channel to share information. And ultimately lead to your needs being fulfilled efficiently and quickly.

Partnering

As your rapport develops and is established a company should want to partner with their staffing firm or recruiter. You want an agency who has a wealth of information and knowledge about engineering and manufacturing recruiting that can help you define your role, manage your expectations, educate you about the hiring process and the best way to get the most qualified candidate on board. Your chosen engineering staffing firm or agent/recruiter should know your values and fully understand your needs.  Your recruiter knows you want the best candidate…so do he/she!

Listening

Throughout the hiring process a company should keep open channels of communication with their recruiter.  Listening is a vital part to this communication.  Have your recruiter explain what he needs to begin his sourcing for potential candidates. Give him or her the opportunity to speak with the hiring manager and Human Resources to access a company’s technical requirements, company history and culture, reasons for the opening and the growth opportunity for this position. This is all crucial information that helps to match a company’s needs with the needs of its potential next employee.  In turn, the staffing company can provide critical information about the marketplace, such as price points with the skills the client requires and the supply and demand for their needs. A company needs to know that if there is a shortage of candidates for a certain skill set, they may have to pay more for it.

Engaging 

engineering and manufacturing recruiters

To fully engage with your recruiter there has to be more than just an exchange of emails.  Recruiters/agents and staffing firms value the relationship that is forged with their client companies. They want to know you, your style of communicating, critical interpersonal skills that you seek, and, the personality that is the perfect match for your culture. The relationship you develop must work efficiently for both parties and give both parties the results they are looking for.  In doing this, you lay the foundation for a future relationship.

Communication

The last tip for manufacturing recruiting is to communicate throughout the entire process.  This allows the agency to provide the company with valuable information to get the candidate on board.  The agency can also bring insight about the candidate’s needs. What is motivating the candidate to seek a new role?  In turn, the agency can also help the client company to negotiate the best terms to make both parties happy.  A happy client + a happy candidate = a happy recruiter!