A hiring process for recruitment firms that finds people who stay

An agency owner hires a recruiter who interviews brilliantly. He talks fast, knows every portal and tells a story of three placements in his last month. Three weeks into the job, the same man cannot sit through a morning of cold calls and misses the daily submission count. The interview tested charm. The job tests stamina.

A hiring process for a placement firm should test the work the person will actually do, check how they cope with long dry stretches, and match their expectations to the incentive model. This guide sets out the steps. The service behind it is recruitment process consulting, and the sector page for placement firms gives the wider picture.

Write down what the new person will do each day. A permanent desk recruiter sources from portals, calls candidates, screens against a job description, submits to the client and chases feedback. A search researcher maps companies, builds long lists and makes first discreet calls. An overseas coordinator manages candidate documents, trade tests and departure dates. The three jobs need different temperaments, so a single generic advertisement attracts the wrong people.

Desk / vertical: ________   Reports to: ________   Mandates held: ________
Daily rhythm: calls ____  submissions ____  client touchpoints ____
Must have: clear speaking voice, patience with rejection, notes habit, honesty with candidates
Helpful: sector knowledge, ATS or CRM familiarity, boolean search skill
First 30 days: shadow calls, own 3 live requisitions, first submissions
First 90 days: first interview scheduled by own sourcing, first offer in progress
Pay shape: base ____  incentive trigger ____  credit rule shared on (date) ____

1. 1

   Screen by call

   A ten-minute call, from the desk lead, that tests voice, clarity and willingness to be rejected. This is the same call the recruiter will make to candidates.

2. 2

   Work sample

   Give a mock requisition and ask for a sourcing plan, a boolean string and a short screening call script. Review it with the candidate, asking why they chose each step.

3. 3

   Role-play a hard call

   A candidate who accepts and then wavers, or a client who rejects three profiles in a row. Watch how they respond and what they ask.

4. 4

   Structured interview

   Same questions for each candidate: a slow quarter they survived, how they handled a dispute over credit, how they keep notes on candidates.

5. 5

   Explain the pay shape

   Walk through base, incentive, credit sharing and the timing of payment. Ask how they feel about it. Hidden expectations are a main cause of early exits.

6. 6

   Reference and offer

   Speak to one previous lead about work habits. Make the offer with the first-quarter plan attached.

• Specifics: names of portals, ATS tools, call volumes, requisition types, drop-off reasons.
• Honesty about a failed search or a candidate who withdrew.
• Curiosity about the client and role, not only about the incentive.
• A habit of writing things down after calls.
• Comfort with a slow start, shown by past examples.

The permanent recruitment page goes through the mix of screening steps, and the learning and development page covers what to teach once the person joins.

• Permanent desk recruiter: a mock screening call against a live-style job description, then a submission note to a client.
• Researcher at a search firm: a market map with a stated method and a discreet first call opening.
• Overseas coordinator: a document checklist exercise with a deliberately missing page, to see who notices.
• Interview coordinator: a diary puzzle with three candidates, two clients and one panel member on leave.
• Finance and invoicing executive: a billing sheet with a mismatched joining date.

The point of each test is to see the person at work, not at interview. Keep the test short, tell the candidate its purpose and pay for any longer assignment. A fair test is a sign of how the firm treats its people.

Three mistakes recur. The first is hiring a talker who has never had to sit through a dry fortnight. Ask the candidate to describe the longest stretch without an offer and how they spent it. The second is hiring a former desk lead for a coordinator seat, then watching them redo everyone's work. The third is promising a pay shape in the interview that the credit rule does not deliver. Put the one-page incentive summary in front of the candidate before the offer, and let them take it home.

Hand the joiner a first-quarter plan: week-by-week calls and submissions, a buddy, a weekly chat with the lead and the credit rule in writing. Review at day 30, day 60 and day 90, and note what the candidate said in the interview that did or did not hold up. That record improves the next hiring round.

• Boolean string: the search line typed into a job portal to find profiles.
• Long list and short list: the two stages of a search shortlist.
• Screening call script: the questions asked before submission.
• ATS or CRM: the tracker where every candidate touch is logged.

Tell us your desks and vacancies through the requirements page, and the scorecard can be built to fit.