Guest post: The downturn is bringing out the recruitment cowboys
Janet Blunden, who handles media agency recruitment for ICUR, warns that the downturn is also affecting ethical standards.
Yes, times are tough, but must everything go? You would expect a few things to be chopped – interest rates, advertising spend, fee structures. But has the economic downturn also claimed a new casualty: ethical standards of business?
Sadly in recruitment land, we regularly see our fair share of shady dealings – candidates deceiving about their backgrounds or intentions; clients directly approaching candidates after introduction; cowboy recruiters tainting the reputation of the whole recruitment industry.
But in the last few months we have noticed a marked increase in the frequency and intensity of – (and there’s only one word for it) – DODGINESS!
Old-fashioned dodginess. It’s from all angles – from candidates, clients, competitors. Are tough times bringing out a latent unethical streak in the media industry? Was it so latent to begin with? And more importantly: is cutting corners for short-term gain ever worth it in the long term?
Here are a few true stories from within the last six months:
- Client interviewed candidate three times, claimed there were ‘no jobs’ then hired them directly a month later;
- Client offered candidate the role during interview then threatened to revoke offer unless rates were halved;
- Candidate approached an agency three times through different recruiters, claiming to each that he hadn’t been represented yet;
- Recruiters have posted ads for roles they are not working on to secure candidates, then withhold candidates from the original advertiser and ‘sell them in’. Poor candidate has no idea the recruiter was not officially working the role.
All of the above instances have dubious potential for short-term gain, but all have the certainty of destroying a relationship with a business partner and tarnishing a professional reputation – in a tiny media industry where reputation is everything. Although desperate times traditionally call for desperate measures, it’s surprising how many panic and throw proper business ethics out the window in pursuit of a short-term profit.
Recruitment is a service-based industry where those who play by the rules can often lose out to those who cut corners. However in the same way that America doesn’t negotiate with terrorists, it’s worth considering a simple policy of refusing to work with unethical people and that includes clients, candidates, recruiters or business partners – regardless of how tremendously important any of these think they are.
Most recruiters are trying to make an honest living in an industry that has been one of the hardest hit by the GFC. Around 25% of all recruitment consultants have been retrenched over the past six months, with a further 25% predicted to go before the downturn is over.
One day soon the Australian media industry will emerge from the economic thunder storm. Then we will dry ourselves out, check who survived and start thinking about who we’d like to do business with in the sunny, glorious, profitable future.
Anyone who nicked anyone’s umbrella during the storm is unlikely to be contacted.
- Janet Blunden is Client Services Manager – Media Agency for recruitment agency ICUR based in Surry Hills, Sydney
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Doesn’t this applies to the recruitment industry as a whole? Not just media related jobs?
I didn’t know about the first three DODGY techniques but I have definitely heard of the 4th point about withholding candidates and then selling them in.
You can tell which ads are dodgy because some are just copy / paste jobs without consent from the actual client.
For example, usually a company say, CBA would post a job ad directly onto an online job site.
A recruiter comes along, copies WORD-FOR-WORD the job description by CBA and then reposts a new job ad under the agency’s name with the details.
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I’ve had almost entirely underwhelming experiences with recruitment consultants.
In fact, so much that for a recent position I was approached for I politely suggested to the consultant that he come over to meet me in my office, to demonstrate that he was seriously considering me for the role and not just wasting my time/boosting his agency’s books.
He flatly and repeatedly refused.
He said he was far too busy (never mind me, eh?!). And then when I withdrew my interest in the role – as I said I would if he was not willing to make the effort to come over to me – he got all nasty and threatening (“I’ll have to tell the client about this y’know”). Then … he hung-up on me!
Doesn’t this dickhead realise I also hire people from time to time. He’s not just pissing off a potentially good candidate, but also a potential client.
Anyone else been treated like a door-to-door salesmen by a Rec Cons?!
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Nothing new here, other than who has the umbrella and who is stealing the umbrella.
Prior to the down turn:
Candidate interviewed three times, then RC who sent them, hired them. Thanks for wasting my time.
% hire rate re-negotiated, after offering a role to candidate during interview. “if you don’t take the rate increase I’ll place them elsewhere”.
Candidate cv sent. RC not doing a good job. Candidate finds new RC. Candidate interviews successfully via new RC 5 months after CV sent. Original RC then sues for fee, 5 months on, no interview conducted, no acknowledgement of receipt of CV, due to T&C’s being signed 5 years ago by a person who left our business 3 years ago, they win the case. No value added but we want the fee.
Give me your business. No. OK I’ll head hunt your team then.
Phonetically RC states the tone of the original post and my reply. I agree the market has got tougher and I agree that you reap what you sow. That cuts both ways.
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Everyone has war stories about bad recruiters; that’s nothing new and I was aware when writing this piece that ensuing comments could turn into a neverending blog of rants.
I am NOT defending anyone who works unethically – if you read carefully, that is the entire point of my article.
Every company and every individual has the power to choose between operating ethically and unethically, and my point is that this applies to recruiters AND employers AND candidates. We are all in this recession together and it would be nice if we could maintain ethical standards of business, that’s all.
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Everyone has war stories about bad clients; that’s nothing new and I was aware when writing this comment that the previous piece could turn into a neverending article of rants.
I am NOT defending anyone who works unethically – if you read carefully, that is the entire point of my comment.
Every RC and every individual has the power to choose between operating ethically and unethically, and my point is that this applies to recruiters AND employers AND candidates. We are all in this recession together and it would be nice if we could maintain ethical standards of business, that’s all.
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http://www.linkedin.com/in/jadezavatkay
Best local Recruiter in MN that I know of.
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In over 10 years using recruiters in 3 cities I haven’t really ever seen a truly impressive recruiter in all facets of the role. Over the years I have sadly been forced to conclude that, as a group, they do more harm to the market than good.
Reference checks lack insight and far more effort is made to sign up a candidate than to find the right one for an employer.
Fees based on “successful” placement don’t really help – there is an imperative to place someone in the role even if the candidates available to the recruiter are not suitable.
Others views?
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Anonymous 2 (our parents must have read the same baby name book), I would have to agree with you on this one.
In my opinion, far too many Recruitment Consultants suit the Devil’s Dictionary definiton of an “Interpreter”:
“One who enables two persons of different languages to understand each other by repeating to each what it would have been to the interpreter’s advantage for the other to have said”.
Or in other words – a good reason to cut out the middleman.
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Well said Janet, however the analogy with terrorists may be a bit strong! As a recruiter our experience has shown that 50% of our work comes from referal, the rest from advertising. The cowboys are going to have to spend a lot more on advertising in the future – if they are to survive.
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i have used different recruitment agencies, and for some of them i would have to agree, but there are some out there that are there to help the candidate and company to get the best possible outcome. i couldn’t be happier with the way it worked out with the last recruitment agency that helped me (the SG group), they placed me in the perfect position with the perfect company, and no funny stuff, if only this could be said for all the other recruitment agencies out there
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Well done Janet for standing loud and proud!!Points that you have raised in this article has been occuring more frequently over the past 6 months. What it is doing to the Industry as a whole is not favourable, its tarnishing and potentially destroying our reputation. Thank you for bringing this to the surface.
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Good article. I operate a specialist consultancy in Brisbane and have consistently seen other consultants run roughshod over both their candidates and clients. The fee is what drives them, no more so than the last 6 months.
Dealing with peoples lives and their businesses we should be licensed and qualified to practice, with an ethics tribunal who can cancel licences for unethical behaviour. Maybe then we’d see some improvement on the part of the owners of recruitment consultants to ensure they and their staff were acting ethically. It’ll never happen, but I can dream……
Of course, any disadvantage can be used to your advantage. My competitors continue to give me marketing opportunities because of candidate and client dissatisfaction with their methods.
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I like what you say about the ethics tribunal Glenda. Whilst the RCSA provide guidelines of practice there is no requirement or more importantly consequences if you don’t follow them. I personally would welcome the initiative as I think whilst most pople try to operate fairly those who don’t make it worse for everybody.
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