Recruiter as a Business Partner in an IT Company
Introduction
In our previous articles, we explained in detail what the role of a Recruiter in a company is and how her/his duties differ from those of a Sourcer (also worth checking out). However, we did not mention a very important issue, which is the partnership of the Recruiter and the IT company in the development of business goals. Nowadays, Recruiters are also increasingly becoming people who can identify solutions they think are best for the company. What does this look like and why does it happen? We will describe this issue trying to approach it as precisely as possible.
Recruiters have the most up-to-date information from the hiring market because they talk to candidates almost every day. Their position is also a support for the business until the employee’s induction into the company is completed.
Wider responsibilities of the Recruiter
One of the biggest challenges for a Recruiter is to constantly consider the expectations of two parties — both the company and the candidates — when searching for specific talent. It is worth noting that very often an experienced Recruiter also acts as some kind of an advisor to Hiring Managers, sharing insights about the market, informing them of potential risks, and offering solutions or trade-offs when necessary, so this role is not just about talking to candidates. It’s also rare that a Recruiter gets all the information about a position — exceptional communication skills and curiosity are very helpful in learning not only the requirements of the role itself, but also the company or team culture, the non-financial benefits of joining the company, opportunities for growth, the personality traits needed to succeed in the new role and many other factors.
Among the areas of responsibility that a Recruiter takes on, from a business perspective, the following can be mentioned, for example:
- candidate profile
- making appointments
- resume preselection
- background screening (checking and confirming the information provided by the candidate in his or her submitted resume)
- calendar matching
- onboarding
- rescheduling meetings
- conducting meetings
- taking care of the first day of work
- explaining the formalities of employment
- advising on candidate selection
- objective evaluation of the candidate
- building commitment
- reports and statistics
- keeping information updated
- recruitment system
- attracting customers and business partners
- educating managers
These are only examples of areas and tasks. Depending on the particular Recruiter and the company they work for, these responsibilities may vary, and as they continue to expand, they cannot be locked into an unchangeable set.
When talking about the breadth of a Recruiter’s responsibilities, it is also appropriate to mention those that can be seen from the candidate’s point of view:
- positive candidate experience
- employer branding
- communication plan (emails, messages, phone calls, video calls)
- polls at various stages of recruitment
- atmosphere building
- job fairs and other events
- application forms
- availability to the candidate (time and channels)
- process standards
- feedbacks
- online recruitment
- social media marketing activities
- candidate journey map
So, as you can see, you can freely list many examples of the scope of a Recruiter’s duties, and there are bound to be new ones.
Recruiter as a business card of the company
Recruiters are the flagship of the company in which they work or for which they conduct recruitment processes. Thus, they are often a candidate’s first contact with a company, and it is through their behavior that candidates make first judgement of their potential future employer and determine whether it will realistically be worth working with them, so the Recruiter is responsible not only for the effectiveness of recruitment, but also for building the image of the company as an employer.
Another important fact is that the work of especially Recruiters is most often discussed on employer evaluation portals, hence the quality work of Recruiters results in the ability to meet the needs of the company in terms of hiring the best candidates.
Recruiter confronting company growth
The role of a Recruiting Partner or Senior Recruiter is even more important when a company is planning to expand and enter new markets — it is extremely beneficial to include Recruiters in discussions on the subject to ensure that high management is aware of potential risks in the region and country, specific habits and customes in the area, as well as salary expectations from potential candidates, desired working conditions (remote/onsite work, etc.) and other relevant issues.
In an outsourcing environment, it also happens that the Recruiter has direct contact with the client to educate, build a transparent and solid relationship, and above all, gain information about the demand and details of the role, while communicating the customs of the original area where the company is hiring (e.g., what is the average time of employment in one job for a particular country — this allows the client to better understand what situations are unusual and a plan of action is required on the part of the supplier, as well as what events it needs to be prepared for, given the country it is working with).
Summary
In conlsusion, professional Recruiters are people who have a wide range of responsibilities, check new information every day and take care of the company’s image with its business goals in mind.
They are also partners for the company on the way to find the best team member, who will help achieve goals and improve the system, and allow candidates to succeed.
It is also important to remember that this specialty is constantly growing and evolving, with new tools arriving every day, which in turn lead to the development of the skills already acquired and their role as partners in the business.
Words by Kinga Kuśnierz, Content Writer at Altimetrik Poland
Big thanks to Nina Kozłowska — TA Leader at Altimetrik Poland, who came up with the idea for this article and provided me with valuable tips and resources.
