Busy employers find it difficult to keep up with the changing recruitment market. Hence, they prefer recruitment process outsourcing to fulfil their hiring needs.
There are several good reasons to outsource recruitment. It saves both time and money. And you can focus on your core business operations. Also, there are downsides to recruitment outsourcing. Unlike in-house recruiters, external recruiters have multiple clients. They work to fill the vacancies. On the other hand, the in-house recruitment team dedicates itself to meeting an organisation’s unique needs and building the desired company culture.
What is recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)?
Recruitment process outsourcing is when you hire an external recruiter to take care of your entire recruitment process or part of it. They can be individual recruiters or a company that works to fill your open positions. They already have a network of candidates with whom they have built relationships over the years. Hence, they can hire faster.
When should you go for recruitment process outsourcing?
Recruitment outsourcing is a good choice when you have urgent hiring needs or do not have dedicated HR professionals. Based on your requirements and company size, reach out to recruitment companies or individual recruiters.
1. When you are a startup looking for the first few employees of your core team
Initially, startups lack strong employer branding to attract candidates. Also, they struggle to pitch candidates with leadership qualities to fill prominent positions. In such a scenario, use the expertise of recruitment agencies and their network to source ideal candidates for your organisation.
2. When hiring for senior roles
Generally, inexperienced recruiters do not have the skills to headhunt and hire currently employed people. They rely on hiring people who apply to their job posts. Outsourced recruitment services come with the expertise of reaching out to people currently employed but open to exploring good opportunities. Also, they are experts at sourcing candidates for senior positions using various channels and conducting screening to shortlist qualified candidates.
3. When you are in an intense hiring phase
Hiring good candidates for a handful of vacancies can be tedious. And when you have plenty of positions to hire, it can be intense and troublesome. Recruitment outsourcing works well when you have to hire candidates in a short time so that your work doesn’t get delayed.
When is recruitment process outsourcing a bad choice?
External recruitment agencies can never replace internal recruiters. Also, it will not add any value to your organisation. You will lose the opportunity to learn the hiring process and build a team on your own.
1. When you feel relying on an external recruiter is problematic
Recruitment is a collaborative process. And external recruiters may not always be available to communicate with your company’s hiring manager. The struggle to establish timely communication will negatively impact your search for ideal candidates, slowing the hiring process.
2. When an external recruiter fails to understand your unique needs
External recruiters are not completely familiar with your company culture. Unlike in-house recruiters, they will not be readily available for discussion. Hence, it is hard for them to understand the exact skills you need when hiring for a position.
3. When you witness low retention of hires through recruitment outsourcing
Recruitment agencies that focus on filling the vacancies may overlook if candidates are a good fit. In such a scenario, you will witness a low retention rate. Candidates will resign quickly, creating a vacancy, and you have to go through the recruitment process all over again.
In-house recruitment benefits
In building a great in-house recruitment team, you get to learn the hiring process. It has several benefits in the long term. They are:
1. Brand awareness
When you rely on an external agency to hire for every other job position, you lose the opportunity to strengthen your brand awareness.
By building an in-house recruitment team, you will have the opportunity to master the recruitment process in the changing market. You will improve your messaging and work on recruitment marketing to develop strong employer branding.
2. Centralise recruitment
Recruiters use applicant tracking systems to manage applicants and maintain a consolidated database of their recruitment process so that they don’t have to go through a stack of paper resumes and spreadsheets. Online feedback, automated reminders and self-scheduling features help them save time spent manually communicating with the candidates, hiring managers and the recruitment team.
3. Building your own talent pool
The biggest reason you should have an in-house recruitment process. When you hire an agency, it will source hundreds of candidates to shortlist a few. Your hiring manager will interview those few to hire an ideal candidate. In such a scenario, you lose access to plenty of rejected applications that can be suitable for vacancies in the future.
Thousands of companies having in-house recruitment teams use PyjamaHR ATS to add future-fit candidates to their talent pool. And they use it when vacancies arise in the future. It cuts down the time and money spent on sourcing candidates from scratch.
Ask your RPO agency to visit your workplace and understand the work culture. Ensure they have their communication channel open for timely communication with the hiring manager and other relevant people of your organisation. Or, consider having an in-house recruitment team and training them to understand your unique needs and hire effectively.
