6 Habits of Successful Recruiters

Sam Hodgett -

When you work in recruiting, it’s your job to recruit the brightest and most talented candidates. However, in order to achieve this, you need to also be on top of your game. Here is our list of the habits and practices that can help you become an even better recruiter.

1. Be proactive

Think of recruiting in the following way: it is almost a bit like dating. Make sure your recruitment process is engaging and that it is smooth and expedient, and that you never let candidates go cold. It’s important to always make sure that you respond to them in a timely manner, as you will come across as more empathetic and understanding of their situation, and can also generate positive word of mouth for you.

It’s also easy to not fully consider the candidate experience as a result of the technology that’s available now: for example, platforms like LinkedIn let you connect with candidates through the click of a button. However, if you don’t personalise the candidate experience and make it engaging to everyone, then you may potentially miss out on attracting some top talents.

2. Stay up to date and knowledgeable about your industry

People will be more comfortable and confident working with you if you know what you’re doing in any role, and this applies especially to recruiting. Make sure you attend or read up on important industry events: for example, if you focus on recruiting in Asia Pacific, a good event to stay up to date on is the Australasian Talent Conference. Researching trends and finding out what’s relevant in the future can also help engage and attract candidates.

3. Establish an online and offline presence

Be active online on social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook. You can expand your network and meet potential candidates by simply posting recruiting tips or career opportunities online, or better yet, you can take it a step further and attend relevant meetups and events in your area and join online groups to access passive talent markets.

4. Stay organized

When you’re managing a large number of candidates, you’ll have a lot of meetings, phone calls and interviews to keep up with, on top of your personal day-to-day tasks. That’s why you should get into the habit of making a calendar if you haven’t already to better visualise your day. There are also other applications you can use to organise your workload and remind you of upcoming deadlines, such as Trello.

Another good practice to adopt is making a to-do list each day. You can take 10 minutes at the start of the day to write down a list of things you want to accomplish, and as you complete each task throughout the day, check them off. This not only helps you understand what you have left to achieve in your day, but more importantly, ticking off an item releases dopamine in your brain, which motivates you to check off your next goal, therefore encouraging more of this productive behaviour.

5. Take control of your reputation

Getting feedback from your candidates is a great tool to self-improve and better the candidate experience to attract even more people. Throughout the recruitment process, take some time to talk to your candidates about how they feel about the experience so far, and use this feedback to tailor your services accordingly. You can also encourage candidates to write you an email or leave a review on your LinkedIn page. This way, you can learn from the past and provide the best possible experience for your candidates.

If your recruitment company or agency has an online review page, such as on Glassdoor, make sure to stay updated on potential problems and comments your company may face, and take action to resolve these even if they are not directly related to you. Ensuring you work for a strong and reliable business helps boost customer confidence in your services.

6. Build relationships with other recruiters

One overlooked aspect of being a recruiter is that you should also develop and maintain relationships with other recruiters, rather than limiting them to candidates. When you build relationships with recruiters and keep them warm, especially if you’re working in the same industry, they may inform you when other vacancies arise.

Likewise, if there is a vacancy you cannot manage and you think another recruiter would be best suited for, reach out and let them know about this. According to one of the Principles of Persuasion, which are the factors that impact the way people behave particularly in sales and purchasing, reciprocity will encourage others to help you in return for your help to them, making your relationship mutually beneficial.

Conclusion

We’ve gone through 6 habits that can help you become a more successful recruiter. These include:

  • Being proactive
  • Staying up to date and knowledgeable about your industry
  • Establishing a presence both online and offline
  • Staying organised
  • Taking control of your reputation
  • Building relationships with other recruiters

Of course, you should nonetheless make sure that you make your recruiting experience unique as well. Take these habits into consideration and use these as guidelines, but also take the time to develop your own style when it comes to recruiting so you stand out from the rest of the crowd.