5 Ways To Use Recruitment Agencies To Your Advantage

By Perminus Wainaina

There are several reasons why Kenyan employers are increasingly outsourcing their recruitment function to third parties. One of the reasons is the need to professionalize their business.

After getting tired of hiring relatives and friends who might not be qualified or committed, business owners are now opting for candidates who don’t have personal ties with them.

For established companies, they will outsource for efficiency and therefore save on time and money. They would rather have someone else handle all the paperwork as processing 5,000 CV’s is not an easy job. That way they are able to concentrate on their core business.

Doing business in Kenya has become very competitive and one way to stay afloat is by attracting and retaining top talent.

Companies routinely contact us to head-hunt candidates from competitors, while some employers use recruitment agencies to maintain privacy. They don’t want competitors to know what they are up to. 

So, how then can you position yourself to reap the most benefits from working with recruiters?

1. Know Yourself & The Recruiters. The first step is by analysis your skills and level of experience.

By doing this, you will be more confident when approaching recruiters because you will have an idea of the kind of employer that can make best use of your talents.

That way, a recruiter will not be calling you for jobs that don’t suit you. The recruiters will also be at a position to share market information like salary range and new companies setting up. By researching on different recruiters, you’ll identify their strengths, value proposition and how best you can partner.

For example, it doesn’t make sense to send your CV to a recruitment agency that only deals with unskilled labor i.e. casuals. They are also recruiters who specialize with Middle East jobs. Start by visiting recruiter’s website to learn more about their target clients, professionals they place and their success rates.

2. Go An Extra Mile. It takes little or no effort to email me your CV asking whether there are job opportunities that suit you. It is also easy to upload your CV to a website and hope for the best. I call this the lazy job seekers guide to getting a job. Does this work? It does but the success rate is less than 5%.

The reason why you will keep sending emails and uploading CVs and yet not hear from a recruiter is because you are doing what everyone else is doing. You haven’t taken time to differentiate yourself. 

3. Establish a relationship. Between Monday and Friday, I usually receive on a daily basis at least 100 email requests for a job. On LinkedIn, I get 50 invites to connect and my phone will ring at least 30 times in a day.

I don’t mind because jobseekers are integral part of our business. However, this is overwhelming and there’s no way I can get back to everyone who contacts me.

I wouldn’t be left with time to deal with employers and get you that job! Having said that, it is your responsibility to cultivate a business relationship with a recruiter. Just like you don’t get married after the first date, it is no different when it comes to jobseeker/recruiter relationship.

Give the relationship time and get to know one another. And a relationship does not mean calling daily or on weekends. Once in a while drop an email or text. Make it personal. Your conversation should not always be about whether there’s a job.

Would you take it well if I only called when I am need of a soft loan? Would you accept a marriage proposal from an individual who after the first date is always nagging you to marry them?

4. Patience Is A Virtue. It takes six months to one year to get a decent job. If you are a desperate jobseeker, it is possible to get a job say in a week’s time but I am sure that would not be a job you love or plan to stick. You’ll be working to meet your basic needs of food and shelter.

With recruiters, do not approach them when desperate. I meet many candidates who’ve just been laid off, retrenched or fresh from campus and I always wonder why they didn’t make a move a year ago. Last week a finance manager who lost his job in 2015 last year came to see me on Monday.

Funny thing is, I had a perfect job for a candidate with his level of skills two weeks ago. He would have been the chosen candidate but there was another candidate who came before him. Now he has to wait for the next opportunity and there are no guarantees. 

5. Recruitment is a relationship business. Recruitment firms have to know their clients (employers) well by studying their industry, knowing the salary market rate, identifying gaps and acting as trusted advisors. The relationship with candidates is not different.

Those that have benefited most from recruitment firms is because they took time to understand their processes, decision makers, their strengths and sometime by being a resource.

Industries all over the world are moving to outsourcing and recruitment is not being left behind. You need to know how to work with recruiters. And for more on the services we offer as a recruitment firm, watch this video here.

Perminus Wainaina is the Managing Partner & Head of Recruitment at Corporate Staffing Services Ltd.

62 Comments

  1. That’s superb. I like the way you’re passionate about helping people get fulfilling jobs. I must visit you soonest.
    Thank you Mr Wainaina

  2. Hello Mr Wainaina. This article is a real eye opener especially for those who didn’t know how to relate to recruiters such as your firm.Looking forward to visiting your offices for more information .
    Thanks and Kind Regards
    Esther Onjala

  3. Hello Mr. Wainaina. I love your article. It is very insightful. I have one question: how do I start building this relationship with you, as my chosen recruiter? I once came to your offices at Mayfair Suites in Westlands but I was told I was better if I started by looking at your website and subscribing to email and job alerts. I already did that. I would like to know the next step towards building this relationship that will ultimately get me a good job. I am a job seeker, without a permanent or dependable job for more than two years now.

    Thanks and Warm Regards,

    Charles G. Waruhiu.

  4. thank you for the insight, now l know how to include recruiters in my job hunt. thanks

  5. Getting a job isn’t an easy thing.I have been going through your advise on how to get a job,how to write a cv and so many but no positive feedback.atleast you have to consider some of us when there are vacancies please.

  6. I really wish to get a job…..i have looked for it and almost giving up.
    can I get your contacts please.

  7. Great advice. A great firm it is. I am one of your clients closely following on your advises and practicing them.Still looking forward to getting a surprise call offering a job opportunity.

  8. Woow, this is a great advice, it has already opened up my mind. Thank you now i have to book an appointment to your offices. I am inspired.

  9. Great advice Mr. Wainaina.
    I love the write ups and the high level of professionalism in Corporate Staffing.

  10. Good worthwhile advice from a professional HR person like you Mr. Wainaina. You have touched me deeply and have to make an effort to pay you a visit for more interactive relationship.

  11. I APPRECIATE YOU IN A SPECIAL WAY FOR THOSE HEART BUILDING WORDS.THEY LAY A GOOD FOUNDATION FOR MANY YOUNG TALENTED INDIVIDUALS IN THE COMPETITIVE JOB MARKET.

  12. Woooow.What a substanciuos advice.Thank you Mr.Perminus sir.It adds me motive to search on and informed.Cant thank you enough sir.

  13. I have read and understood the five shades of using my recruiter to my advantage.Great advice.

  14. Good advice sir..wish that yu call me for an interview. Have applied many in your company.

  15. Hello Mr. Perminus.

    I must admit the above article is an eye opening to all who wish to benefit from recruiters. It’s very informative.

    Thanks,
    Good work.

  16. That’s a great and encouraging word there. Sometimes back I visited your offices for familiarization and advised but got a quick response of “check our website, apply and wait for our call”.

    Have to admit I hadn’t booked for an appointment though.

  17. Reading through these pieces of advice is so addictive… Nice and right information I must say.

  18. nice words for those who need to be professionals later. thanks Mr. Wainaina. i dropped my old CV and your staff members did it professionally. eager to be a proffessional accountant at the end of the day.

  19. Hi Gerald,

    We are located on 4th Floor, Mayfair Suites Building along Parklands Road, Westlands. (Next to M.P Shah Hospital) You can visit us any day between 8.30 and 5.30. We are also open on Saturdays from 9.00 to 1.00 PM.

  20. Im very much motivated,i hold HND in Entrepreneurship development, diploma personell mgt. what do i do so that you can help get employed

  21. wow..this is true,got my first job through a recruiter…i would like to see u for career advise and talk,please confirm availability

  22. Great advice Mr Perminus,have been sending my CV to recruiter for more than year ,I have to go mile higher ..

  23. Wonderful advice Mr. Wainaina. Most of us job seekers ignore most of these simple but vital techniques. Bravo for opening my eyes in 2016.

  24. Good advice would like to visit your office,I did community health and hiv/AIDS currently I don’t have a job,kindly send me the location.

  25. Good advice as usual Mr Wainaina.I have benefited from your organization imensely.I had my cv done and received interview coaching which made me more confident and probably played a big role in my securing the current job.

  26. Thanks a lot for your good advice. Many of us do not understand the role of recruiters and each day we keep repeating the mistakes you have highlighted here. I hope many will learn from this site.
    Thank you

  27. i have been having the same problem of uploading CV and hopping things will work for me without success.advice me what I should do differently to catch recruiters eye.my CV is already in your system

  28. This is great advice. Goes a long way in changing my perspective on dealing with recruiters. Much appreciated.

  29. That was awesomely informative, Mr Wainaina. I must call in at your office one of these days. kindly send me the location. I am an environmental Science graduand, majored in Forestry. Currently I have no stable job and would love to be employed in a conservation firm or company to help me develop and advance my carrier.

    Where are your offices located and do I need to book an appointment before I come have an audience with you?

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