07 Nov Recruitment Agency Etiquette

What is appropriate recruitment agency etiquette? 

Why should you even be thinking about recruitment agency etiquette? It’s no secret that competition for roles is fierce right now. There is a huge pool of unemployed people who have been made redundant due to the pandemic. Many are now working with recruitment agencies for the first time in order to give them that extra boost of confidence and to be put in front of the best roles for their skills.

It is important to bear etiquette in mind during this process. It is a two way street – you want to get a job quickly and the agency wants to make sure you’re a great fit for their clients. Recruitment experts at Four Recruitment have rounded up their top tips to keep in mind when working with an agency.

Understand each other

Do your research about different recruitment agencies. Note if they specialise in any particular sectors. If you are looking for employment in a niche field, it may be worth specifically seeking out those recruitment specialists. They will have clients who have also approached them for that reason. 

Once you have approached an agency, it’s also important that they understand you, too. What are your skills and how can they fit with the roles you are looking for? Do they have any roles open in that area right now? What are your salary requirements? A two-way understanding can really ease the process, which leads us onto the next point.

Be honest

Being honest about your needs from the get-go will benefit both yourself and the agency. Make sure to tell them about all of your experience as the recruiter will know which areas of your experience are the strongest and therefore what to highlight to an employer. 

If the agency comes to you with a role and you’re not really interested, don’t lead them on and pretend you are. This will only irritate the agency and the hiring business and will lead them to see you as unreliable, which could make them lose trust in you and be less likely to put you forward in the future. 

If you are applying for other roles outside the agency, it’s important to make them aware of this in case they put you up for a role you applied for independently! Do not use more than one agency just to see who can get you a better deal, they do not appreciate this at all and it can lead to some awkward conversations.

Do what you say you will do

When you will say you’ll do something verbally, make sure you actually follow up on it. For example, if you say you’ll send documentation over to the recruiter before a certain deadline, make sure you keep your promise. If you verbally accept an offer, make sure you actually do this and do not renegotiate further down the line. The last thing you want is to send the message that you are unreliable.

Be careful when providing references

If you are providing references, make sure to ask them for permission before actually providing them. If you think you will need extra time to get an updated email or phone number from them, be honest and tell your recruiter this. Also, don’t lie and say someone was your manager when they were actually just a friend or relative – you will get caught out and perceived as dishonest!

You can find Four Recruitment here. If you think you could benefit from some career coaching, visit our career coaching page.