Search Assignments

Taking a complete detailed search assignment from the hiring authority is a vital step in the placement process. If you have succeeded in securing a workable search assignment you will know Who to look for to fill this assignment. You will know Where to look and you will know What to say when you find the qualified candidate. Learning the art of asking the hard questions and taking control from the very beginning will be the key to your success as a recruiter. You will need to make an informed business decision on whether or not you will work on the assignment. You can only make that decision after securing all the facts of the search.

Successful recruiters do not work all search assignments. When I say work on what I mean by that is go out and look for qualified candidates. There will be some search assignments that you decide only to look in the computer or files for qualified candidates. Some you will target recruit for and some you will turn down and not work on. When turning down a search assignment use caution as to the wording you use. We will cover that in an up coming paragraph.

Let’s talk about the basics of taking a search assignment first. Hopefully prior to calling the client you will know the industry, products and company information. Who to look for will come to you with questions about the position they are trying to fill. You will need to know the minimum requirements and you will have the person you are talking to outline those requirements based on priority. Listing back what you think they are looking for is very important. Going over what are the most important requirements in their view is essential when looking for the right fit. Besides technical requirements you will hear things like we need a self-starter, independent worker etc. This will be the time to ask the hard question, "What does that mean to you Mr/Ms hiring authority?" You cannot assume in this business. Believe me these words and more like them have complete different meanings depending on whom you are talking to. When you are done with this order you should know the following: Technical requirements, personality traits, years of experience, previous track record, work ethic that they are looking for.

When taking the assignment information from the hiring authority you will find out Where you should look. So questions like where would you like this candidate to come from? Where did your top talent in that same position come from? Who do you consider your top competitors? Is there an individual you know of that you would like to have join your team? These are just a few questions that will help you determine where you should look. There are many more if you allow your creative juices to flow. What to say when you go recruiting is an area that will be crucial to getting results on your target recruiting calls as well as your presentations to candidates you have in your data base and files.

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