Is the Agency Recruiter a dying breed?

24 Sep Is the Agency Recruiter a dying breed?

“Internal roles are more secure”

“There are less sales and cold calls involved in Internal Recruitment”

“I don’t have to deal with Clients”

This is the feedback we are constantly being faced with from our candidates and peers in the industry. As a Rec 2 Rec agency, we are finding that we are losing good quality, experienced recruiters to internal recruitment roles. In a job market full of fantastic Agency roles, why are we finding it increasingly harder to fill them?

This is not about putting down those Internal Recruitment opportunities; but about trying to put them on an even footing. Why not compare the actual roles that are being put to you rather than ruling out external agencies entirely?

A good recruitment role, on either side of the fence, will have the same offerings: A good Client base, a great working culture and incentives for good work, along with the opportunity for career progression and mentoring. So what are the main reasons Recruiters are leaving Agency roles behind?

Some recruiters can be misled to believe that Internal Recruitment is less demanding than agency positions. But is this really the case, or just how it might appear from the outside? You certainly have less “Clients” when working internally, however within your company walls are possibly many different hiring managers, all of which have access to your desk at any time without prior notification. And working internally, you no longer have the option to just walk away from any Clients or roles you may feel you cannot meet the expectations for.

In relation to the idea of there being less sales and cold calls involved in internal recruitment, it is somewhat a misconception. With the need to directly source your candidates you will essentially be cold calling prospective employees and having to sell the company brand and the role. When working in an external agency position, business development will be a requirement, however you are seen as more of an advocate for a candidate, as you can provide them with unbiased advice about both the role and the Client. Internal recruiters are also faced with the added pressure of being associated with the candidate’s ongoing performance well past the first few months of their appointment.

As for Internal roles being less target driven, once again this is a huge misconception. You may not be measured on meeting KPI’s, however you will certainly be measured on the time it takes you to fill the roles and whether the candidates that you are bringing in have a high turnover.

Is this is a trend that will eventually swing back in favour of agency roles, or is the agency recruiter a dying breed?