A company’s single biggest asset is not its building or inventory or loans, but the employees, the people who work there. This applies for large and small companies alike, and a business with motivated, skilled, and cooperative employees will go further than one whose employees are under-qualified, frustrated, or uncomfortable the office. Therefore, it is vital that a manager hire the best possible candidates for the job, ranging from finding temp workers to middle managers to executive mangers alike, not to mention HR managers. Hiring new HR personnel can be very helpful, and new employees may have fresh ideas on HR structure models to try out. Having new HR structure models can make in-house HR work more streamlined and efficient, after all. So, how can HR consultants help, or executive search firms? What do they do?
The Work of Talent Acquisition Companies
This is a form of outsourced labor, and even the best HR structure models for a company may only do so much good for hiring new managers. Wherever in-house talent falls short, the company manager can contact executive search firms and other job placement agencies to find strong candidates for a job opening, and this can make or break a company. When a company’s manager is looking for a new HR manager or other executive figures, the right candidate can help improve the company (such as with innovative HR structure models), or they might be a bad match and end up doing more harm than good. An executive manager will have many responsibilities and a lot of power, after all.
Speaking broadly, a job placement agency will collect many job seeker profiles, and each candidate’s personal information is logged, ranging from their educational background to work experience to notable skills and accomplishments, not to mention references. With this information on hand, the job placement company’s computers and staff alike can carefully match job seekers to open positions that suit them well, and the hiring company can take over from there, such as interviewing the candidate and performing background checks. It’s a sort of professional matchmaking service, and this can work for any candidate ranging from a college-aged temp worker to a senior executive manager, and anything in between.
On the lower end of things, a temp worker may use a temp agency to find work, and this is vital so this young employee can build up much-needed work experience, skills, and personal connections to launch their career. Many employers are happy to hire them, and as a bonus for them, temp workers are paid less than regular workers are. Still, many temps get their jobs for the experience first, and the pay second.
Meanwhile, many job placement firms are designed to find high-end candidates for a job opening, such as HR managers and senior executives. These firms are known as headhunters, and they are used when an upper-management position needs to be filled by someone who fits the job very closely. Often, such candidates (when found) go through multiple rounds of interviews.
In any case, a job seeker of any experience level may enjoy the benefits of a job placement agency like this, but they should be careful. Why? Many job placement agencies now check a candidate’s online activity, including on social media, and some employers may not like what they see. A candidate may sabotage themselves if, for example, videos or photos exist of them performing criminal or shady acts, or if they openly speak ill of previous employers or co-workers. In short, a job seeker must make sure that their online life will not raise any red flags.
Keeping New Hires
On a side note, using a headhunter or temp agency doesn’t guarantee that the new hire will stay on board. All employees want not just good pay, but also opportunities for personal and professional growth, and a warm and nurturing (and harassment-free) work environment. Employees often quit not due to low pay, but harassment or a lack of growth or promotion opportunities. So, managers should conduct regular interviews with their staff to check in on them, and publicly praise them and voice support. New managers, meanwhile, can hire executive coaches to rapidly learn the ropes of proper management.
