3 Classic Mistakes Made By Trainee Recruitment Consultants

2014 has seen a rise in the number of trainee recruitment consultant vacancies, driven by the expansion of consultancies across the UK.

As a results driven business it is vital that trainee consultants do things the right way from the beginning. Here are three classic rookie recruiter mistakes that all new recruitment consultants should avoid:

Relying too much on the client’s job description

An extremely detailed job description from a client can be enormously useful, as it gives you a real in depth understanding of the intricacies of the role in question. Too many new recruiters however, simply copy and paste the job description onto the job boards.

It’s easy to understand why this is done. Surely the more detailed the job description the better? Not when marketing a role, which is what the new recruiter should be doing.

Simply posting the job description is basically saying to the client ‘You might as well have done this yourself’. What the new recruiter should be doing is adding value by rewriting the job description and optimising it to appeal to the right calibre of candidates.

This is done by highlighting key features about the job using language that encourages suitable applicants to apply.

The client can see that they are getting a professional service, and the new consultant will find themselves with a select group of suitable individuals to consider for the role.

Only searching recently posted CVs on job boards

When searching CVs, many new recruiters presume that it is only worth searching those that have been posted on job boards in the last month. The logic behind such a belief at first seems reasonably sound.

It makes sense that the more recent the CVs, the greater the likelihood that the candidate in question is still actively looking for a job? This is true, but it also precludes over 75% of the CVs on job boards.

Opening up searches to all resumes on the boards regardless of age enables the new recruiter to tap deeper into your industry’s talent pool. It’s true that many of these people may not now be actively searching for a new role, but they may be willing to consider moving if the right opportunity comes along.

Taking candidates on face value

Another common mistake a new recruiter makes is to take candidates on face value. When you’re struggling to fill a difficult vacancy then that exceptional person walks through the door with their CV brimming with the skills and experience needed for the role.

It is easy to get excited and immediately send their CV to the client with a view to arranging an interview and placing the candidate as soon as possible. It’s a situation that most recruiters will have found themselves in at some point, especially as a trainee.

Unfortunately however, it’s necessary for recruitment consultants to check everything about a candidate, because as every experienced recruiter knows, there is nothing worse than sending a candidate to interview to have the client uncover they have lied and deceived in their CV. This reflects poorly on the consultant involved.

Trainee consultants will always make mistakes, but if they can avoid the three discussed above, it will give them a good grounding on which to build their career.

The very best recruiters have all made mistakes, some of them cataclysmic. The reason they are successful however is that they learnt from them.

‘Till next time,

Cheryl