Maximising Success in Talent Acquisition – Discover the Top 9 Benefits of Retained Partnerships with a Engineering Recruitment Specialist
The last few years have seen the skills shortage in engineering and many other markets increase.
In a recent research report, Korn Ferry, the global consulting firm, forecasts talent shortages of 85.2 million skilled workers by 2030. This will potentially result in US$8.452 trillion in unrealised revenue across twenty of the world’s major economies.
The report continued to share that 84% of leaders were concerned for the survival of their organisations as the continued need to hire more skilled workers becomes more challenging.
The hiring process can no longer be left to chance or knee-jerk hiring when a vacancy occurs.
The world of work and, consequently, recruitment has shifted in the last few years, and the strategic importance of a recruitment process to ensure the right person is in the right role at the right time is vital for any organisation that wants to grow.
This is why a retained recruitment is fast becoming the preferred hiring option for many leadership teams.
What are the advantages of working on a retained basis with a specific recruitment partner/firm, and is this service right for you?
This report answers the most common questions about the retained process.
We share the different recruitment services and dissect and discuss the distinctive attributes that set a retained search instruction apart from other recruitment offers while underlining the benefits it brings to your company’s bottom line.
We explore how a more personalised approach can uncover passive candidates and the unique advantages of partnering with an industry-specialised retained executive search company/firm.
We also examine how a retained search can bolster diversity and inclusion in your candidate pool and assist in navigating common recruitment challenges.
We shed light on how this process can enhance confidentiality, negotiate compensation packages effectively, and support succession planning.
Lastly, we share the fee structure and payment process associated with retained search services that you may encounter.
All the best
Steve
At Coalesce we have been partnering with engineering businesses and candidates for over 27 years; if you want to find out how we can help, call us on 07512 821708 or email us here.
What is The Difference Between a Retained Search Instruction and Other Recruiting Services?
The most common recruiting options in the current permanent recruiting market are retained search and contingency-based recruitment with or without exclusivity.
Let’s share more detail about each.
Contingency Recruitment
Contingency recruitment, sometimes called non-retained recruitment, is a common method companies use to hire employees across many different sectors and roles.
As the name implies, contingency is a possible future event or circumstance that cannot be predicted with certainty.
In the context of recruitment, contingency recruitment refers to a situation where a recruitment partner only gets paid if they successfully fill a position.
The payment (fee) is contingent, or dependent, upon the successful placement of a candidate. This could be a set fee though more usually a percentage of the role’s salary.
The fee varies depending on the individual recruiter and sector and can be anywhere from 10-25% of the salary of the role in question.
Contingency recruiters typically work on multiple job vacancies at a time. It is logical when you consider that a recruiter puts in time and effort to source candidates who may or may not be hired; consequently, they may not be paid for the work involved in sourcing candidates.
In addition, recruiters often compete with other recruitment companies to find the right candidate for the role.
While contingency recruitment can be more cost-effective and quicker than other methods, it may not always deliver the highest quality candidates since the process might prioritise speed and competition between companies, which in the case of recruiting rarely ends well.
Contingency With Exclusivity
Contingent recruitment can also be delivered on an exclusive basis. This refers to the fact that the recruiting process is still contingent on paying the fee; however, the recruitment company will work the role exclusively, not competing with other recruitment companies.
Many recruitment companies with experience and expertise in a market will only work a role contingent if they have exclusivity on working the role.
Retained Search
A retained search, also known as executive search or headhunting, relates to the fact that the recruitment company works exclusively with your company and has much more involvement and responsibility throughout the recruiting process.
I’ll share more detail about the fee structure later in the report, and as the name retained implies, the recruitment company is always paid a percentage of the fee on engagement.
In a retained search, the recruiting company is exclusively contracted to complete the recruitment process from start to finish. This typically includes defining and consulting around the job role, market mapping, and sourcing, with exclusive access to candidates the recruiter has access to that others don’t.
A retained search involves a different level of ongoing marketing of the role; video interviewing and behavioural profiling will occur.
This method is typically used for senior, high-level roles and focuses on delivering highly qualified engineering candidates. A retained search is a high touch point, high-level service, and an exclusive partnership between the hiring company and its recruiting partner.
This is a strategic partnership about the desire to increase the probability of finding the right person who stays with the company and continually contributes to the bottom line.
In the current skill-short market, where business-critical roles must be filled promptly, this recruiting process is becoming the preferred option for many companies.
What Are The Upsides of Using a Retained Search Process?
There are several benefits of using a retained process. As in many walks of life, you get what you pay for when purchasing a specialist consulting service.
Working with the best specialist engineering recruiters in the market and having access to their time is priceless.
A retained search instruction has another benefit many companies don’t appreciate: the impact on candidates.
It demonstrates to the candidate that the client is serious about hiring. It’s not a company CV shuffling to see if anyone is worth hiring.
Candidates understand that the client has already invested in the process, which elevates the entire candidate, client, and recruiter process.
Access to a Skilled and Passive Talent Pool
The current hiring market is challenging. Navigating a tight labour market, skill shortages, hard-to-reach candidates, and happy employees who aren’t actively looking, though they are listening, are all in the day-to-day work and skill set of experienced recruiters that offer retained search.
The fact is; experienced recruitment and search firms have extensive networks and resources to identify and attract high-quality candidates into their personal talent pools that they are constantly building for their engineering clients.
Certain specialisms have highly developed skills in key areas vital to their success. When it comes to recruiters, they are exceptional networkers who are talking to key players in a market daily. An experienced engineering specialist will have mapped the market and roles identifying candidates’ skills, wants, and needs should the ideal position become available.
This means they have established relationships with potential candidates that are both passive and active (not a skill every recruiter has) that will fit your expectations for the role and are also an ideal cultural fit.
This benefit alone is worth weeks and months of your or your internal recruitment team’s time.
Deep Sector and Subject Matter Expertise and Market Insight
A team will deliver retained search through a recruitment firm of experienced professionals with deep industry subject knowledge and expertise.
They have a finger on the pulse of the engineering job market, including salary trends, talent availability, and industry-specific challenges.
An additional plus point here is that certain recruitment companies are known for their sector knowledge and expertise, and by default, that will attract a certain level of candidates.
This insight enables them to provide valuable guidance to the hiring organisation throughout the recruitment process, giving you the confidence to attract and engage the talent you want.
Targeted and Customised Approach
Retained search firms work closely with the hiring organisation to understand its specific vision and values and its hiring goals and requirements.
The process is extremely detailed and delivers the creation of a unique approach and tailored strategy for each company.
This often involves using the latest technology, sourcing tools, and marketing campaigns designed specifically for each role.
Depending on the role and skill set required, a recruitment company that offers retained search will often be able to identify an ideal candidate from another sector with transferable skills that would be a great hire that other recruiters wouldn’t have the knowledge or connections to deliver.
Time and Resource Efficiency and Support for an Inhouse Team
Hiring for executive-level positions is both time-consuming and resource-intensive. Engaging a retained search firm transfers the burden of sourcing, screening, and shortlisting candidates to the recruiting company you work with, which naturally frees up often stretched internal resources.
A retained search is delivered so comprehensively that no stone is left unturned.
In-house teams, of course, have a place. However, when considering a confidential and senior role, an internal team won’t have the networks, connections, or capacity to deliver a shortlist of candidates in the time frames needed.
Confidentiality and Discretion
Hiring will always have a level of confidentiality required during the process, and a retained search instruction will take this to another level.
Your recruiting partner understands the importance of maintaining confidentiality, particularly when recruiting for sensitive or high-level positions.
They follow strict protocols and N.D.A.s to ensure the privacy of both the hiring organisation and the candidates. This can be particularly crucial when filling positions where internal promotion may not be an option or during transitional periods in your organisation.
D.E.I Compliance
Recruitment companies that provide a retained search process operate at an elevated level in all parts of the process.
They will often be fully trained in the D.E.I process aligned to recruitment, with many operating a de-biased approach using the latest software.
They will have cultivated a diverse candidate pool you can access as a client.
Succession Planning and Building Your Talent Pipeline
Depending on the department, roles, and growth plans, many recruitment companies offering retained services will also offer a consultancy package, including helping you develop your employee value proposition and the ongoing steps to build your talent pipeline, including succession planning.
Salary Negotiations and Counteroffer Management
The retained search process is detailed and often at a deeper level than a contingency search. As such, the salary expectations are benchmarked ahead of time with both the candidate and the client.
Selling the role and opportunity to a candidate is a superpower of a skilled and experienced retained search consultant. On the flip side, they also can analyse, within reason, if a candidate might be unpredictable when negotiating an offer or accepting a counteroffer from their current employer.
Bringing the offer and acceptance across the line is the role of a retained search consultant and is part of their process and guarantee.
Successful Placements and an Improved Bottomline
The retained search process is designed to deliver successful placements by presenting the hiring organisation with a shortlist of highly qualified and well-vetted candidates.
Hiring is not an easy business process; however, using a retained search process reduces the company’s risk.
Retained recruitment might have a higher upfront investment, but in the long run, it’s more cost-effective because the shortlist will be highly qualified candidates for the role.
Several costs, such as advertising and screening, will be included in the retained fee.
By leveraging their expertise, resources, and network, retained search firms increase the probability of securing top talent for critical roles. This ultimately contributes to the organisation’s long-term success.
The Investment For a Retained Search
Using a retained search for business-critical roles is a worthwhile investment in the current skill-short-hiring landscape.
It is a well-known phrase in leadership circles that people grow organisations and consistently deliver results to the bottom line.
Therefore, reducing your risk by finding the right people to stay is a sensible use of your time and resources.
The total investment is generally based on the role seniority, timeframes, and any other consultancy requested during the process, for example, creating an E.V.P., Though most companies include all parts of the process, screening, and marketing within the fee.
The percentage fee can be anything from 20-30% will be based on the final offer salary.
Different recruitment companies use other payment structures, and many offer a guarantee.
Some companies will require 50% of the fee upfront and the remainder on the start date. While others will split the fee across different parts of the recruiting process, for example, initiating the first search, delivery of a shortlist, and successful offer.
Utilising a retained search process offers significant benefits regarding access to talent in the engineering sector, customised approaches, market mapping, efficiency, confidentiality, expertise, and successful placement.
These advantages make it an attractive option for organisations looking to fill key engineering positions with exceptional candidates.