Just mentioning outsourcing recruitment typically makes small to midsize business (SMB) leaders cringe as they imagine the cost of recruiting agencies and recruiting platforms. Fortunately, a newer type of recruiting firm is emerging to respond to the needs of SMBs at a fraction of the cost (and without those hidden fees!).
Now that there’s a viable option for SMBs, how do you know when it’s time to outsource your recruitment process? Check out these top 10 reasons to outsource your hiring:
1) The People You Hire are Fired within 6 Months
Employee turnover is a major challenge that can rack up huge costs. The democratization of technology and solutions is giving SMBs more options than ever to address many HR issues, including turnover. Pre-employment assessments, like
Wonscore from Wonderlic, provide a great start to identify the candidates that are least likely to leave (voluntarily or otherwise). Additionally, outsourcing your recruitment to experts who utilize rigorous processes can help you find top talent. The recruitment expert can analyze why you are hiring the wrong people – and can save you a boatload of money in the long run.
2) The People You Hire Quit within 12 Months
Do you find that your employees are quitting within their first year? Even with the current rampant stereotype that
millennials and generation Z are “job jumpers”, studies show that, regardless of age, happy employees will tend to stay with a business longer. If you are losing people to other jobs or to burnout within a year’s time, you should certainly be considering outsourcing recruitment or using an assessment like Wonscore to beef up your hiring process.
3) You are Losing Candidates “To the Process”
Whether you are the only one who can do the actual hiring for your company, or if you have a process that takes a while, if you find you are losing candidates to the length of your process, you should consider recruitment outsourcing or using an assessment like Wonscore. Moving candidates through recruitment at a quicker pace, keeping them engaged, is where an outsourced company or assessment can be helpful as well.
4) You are Hiring for More Than 2 Positions
Does your “HR department” consist of one person? Is someone in a top leadership role also performing HR duties? If either of these is the case, and you are hiring for 2+ roles, you could benefit from recruitment outsourcing. Hiring for multiple roles can be quite time-consuming – a couple of managerial roles can easily eat up over 20 hours a week!
An option to consider: outsource your recruitment by contracting with a company like
4 Point Consulting. When you need 4 Point Consulting’s services, you can turn the switch on… and when you don’t, you can turn it off. You can save money and time, and get the hires you need without overburdening your current HR person or your managers.
5) You are Hiring for Specialized or Technical Role(s)
With talent in technical fields hovering at an estimated
zero to
3% unemployment rate (which some have speculated is voluntary unemployment), if your SMB is looking for technical talent or other specialized roles, outsourcing recruitment makes sense in order to save you time, and in order to find the right people since these are not active job seekers. If you’re nervous about the whopping 20%-40% finders’ fees that many agencies slap you with - don’t be. Look for an SMB-focused agency who charges by the hour with capped maxes or who charges a flat fee that is 10% or less, such as 4 Point Consulting. Or consider hiring a contract recruiter as a temp employee at an hourly rate through a freelancer website like Upwork.
6) You are Spending Over 15 Hours/Week Recruiting
If you are spending over 15 hours/week on recruiting, that’s 15 hours per week or more that you
aren’t spending on your business. In a year, this can add up to around 20 weeks spent on time recruiting! By hiring a professional recruiter, you can get this time back (and then some!). Since a professional recruiter moves faster (about twice your pace!), outsourcing can really shorten your time to hire.
7) Your Time to Hire is Over 60 Days
Unless you are recruiting for a software engineer or a certain strategic member of the C suite, an SMB should be able to capably hire people in 60 days or less for any position. Managerial roles usually should take around 45 days (2-3 weeks to post/find candidates, 2-3 weeks for interview phases, 1 week for the offer to be accepted); lower level roles should take about a month to fill. If you outsource your recruitment process, this time can become even more compressed and you can hire even more quickly.
8) You Lack a Recruiting Message or Employment Brand
What is the message your business sends to applicants? Do you have a brand that candidates will recognize? To attract quality talent, you need to make sure your company has an engaging pitch and a recognizable brand. Is the company a tech startup that allows dogs in the office and has Beer Fridays? Is the client a buttoned up investment firm that has the Rolls Royce version of all benefits known to man (but you are going to sleep at the office)?
If your SMB lacks a clear and concise employer brand or recruiting message, this could be a huge part of why you are missing the mark with candidates – and why you are challenged with attracting and keeping quality employees.
When you outsource recruitment, the recruiter or agency should work with you to determine what your brand message is and what kind of employee you want working for you. They will use this information to create their pitch to candidates… helping you stay focused so that you don’t waste your time on those who don’t fit that pitch!
4 Point Consulting takes it a step further; we are a data-driven company and we A/B test messages to our sourced candidates to make sure we make the most of our time working on your positions.
9) You Only Hire Applicants
Do you only have time to spend on people actively applying for your jobs? A great way to increase the size of your applicant pool is by using a recruiter. Recruiters have access to passive candidates – those who are currently employed and not actively searching for a job. These candidates can make great hires, especially for managerial level roles or above, as they have a strong work history and are choosing to work for you (versus running away from a bad situation).
Outsourcing recruiters can provide sourcing for those clients who prefer to do the outreach and phone screens on their own. You would be amazed what 10, 20, 30 hours of sourcing passive candidates for a profile can do for the quality of your hire and for the cultural match of the candidate to your company!
10) You’re Not Using Technology to Recruit
If you’re still waiting for employee referrals and resumes to arrive in your email inbox, you are missing out. Recruiters use a variety HR technology that can make the hiring process more efficient and effective. From getting your jobs posted on the job boards to collecting a large database of qualified candidates, outsourcing your recruitment can be an easy way to upgrade your hiring process.
Start Recruiting Better Employees Today
At 4 Point Consulting, we know that small to mid-size businesses require dedicated employees with a wide range of experience to be successful. We are committed to helping SMBs like yours hire quality employees with less effort. If you’re looking to outsource recruiting,
click here for a free 1-hour recruitment process consultation with 4 Point Consulting.
