Is Recruitment a Good Career?

What is that one thing that differentiates one organization from another? It is the Human Resource. Yes! You heard it right. Two enterprises can be similar in terms of their business model, practices, values, objectives, etc. but what makes one better than the other is the human asset. That is why companies spend a lot of their time and cost on hiring the right personnel.

Let us first understand what recruitment is…

Recruitment is the process of filling up a job vacancy in an organization as per their needs. This process can be performed by various members depending upon the size of the company, like managers, recruitment experts, or a human resource consultant. It is considered to be the initial step in acquiring the working capital in an organization.

Recruitment is a tough yet lucrative job where you can grow immensely. Every new opening teaches you something new about businesses, which helps you become a well-informed person. Also, the more you reach out to new people, the more your network grows. That further improves your communication skills.

An organization’s credibility and proficiency are strongly dependent on effective recruitment. Finding the right people for the right position at the right time is a crucial step for an organization. The ideal set of people helps determine and fulfill the job requirements within the organization. Also, it is a highly cost-effective method.

Now let us see some pros and cons of recruitment:

Pros

It has a great earning potential.
New opportunities every day.
A high degree of independence.
Develops relationship-building and negotiation skills.
Helps in career progression.

Cons

It is a highly competitive field.
It can be tiring due to constant phone calls.
Handling rejection as your candidate may not get the role.
Involves working for long hours.

What is the Average Salary of a Recruiter?

I have mentioned above that recruiters have great earning potential, which is supported by the fact that the median annual salary is $63,490. Half of these who are on the intermediary level earn around $40,582 per year. And the other half, including campus recruiter, talent acquisition, and recruiting manager, has annual earnings of $67,912, $71,918, and $72,685, respectively.

Skills Required to Become a Successful Recruiter

Communication Skills: The first and foremost skill required for a recruiter is to have excellent communication skills. Candidates are enticed towards the company if the recruiter deals with them appropriately. Be it communicating via phone, face to face, or email, the language must be professional and precise.
Selling Skills: Discovering the best talent in the present growing market is a tough job. It involves finding the right prospects from a huge pool of applicants and trying to sell them the position in the company. Recruiters, therefore, should be aware of the selling strategies.
Relationship Building: Recruiters have to deal with different people on a daily basis. With great relationship-building skills, they can develop and build the relationship between the candidate and the company. Establishing a reliable relationship with your candidates also strengthens your network.
Multitasking: Hiring is a lot more than just posting a job and filling a position; it consists of screening, background checks, ads, interviews, etc. A recruiter should be able to do multiple tasks at the same time and remember their details so that they can work on new projects effectively.
Time Management: Since recruitment requires a lot of multitasking, one needs to be good with time management. A good recruiter is able to perform his duties within the expected time. Otherwise, it will become difficult to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Steps in Recruitment Process

Identifying Hiring Needs of the Organisation – The first step in recruitment is to identify the vacancies in your organization. For the smooth functioning of the business, it is very important to have adequate staff. Understaffing can result in poor work management and increased work pressure on the existing employees. To recognize the hiring needs, you will need to find gaps in your current team. Check if there is something that is not getting fulfilled or if you require a new person to handle a specific task. You must also pay attention to the people leaving the organization.
Prepare a Job Description – Once you have figured out what you need in terms of the skills, personality & knowledge, the next step is to prepare a JD (Job Description). A JD contains precise information about the duties and responsibilities of the job and the skills needed to perform those tasks. It gives a clear idea to the prospects about the job objectives and expectations.

A JD usually covers the below points:

Job Title
Job Location
Company’s Description
Department
Reporting Manager
Job Objective
Duties and Responsibilities
Required Skills, Knowledge & Experience
Minimum Qualification Needed
Compensation for the Role

Talent Search – After successfully preparing a Job Description, the third step is where the actual work of a recruiter begins – searching for the right candidate. There are several ways of finding the desired candidate. One way is to check internally i.e within the organization – if any existing employee is fit to be transferred to the new job role. Another way is to ask for referrals from current employees or search for talent outside the organization. You can advertise the openings on job portals and social media sites. There are various online job portals where you can post your requirement, such as – Naukri.com, Indeed, Shine.com, Timesjob, etc. These platforms receive a high number of applications every day. Linkedin has emerged to be one of the best online platforms to find professionals as it allows you directly reach out to them.
Screening and Shortlisting Profiles – Once you have received a sufficient number of CVs, the next step is to screen them and then shortlist the ones that best match the job criteria. Screening has to be done very carefully as it forms the base for the right selection. A good screening requires you to read the CVs thoroughly, make a checklist of all the mandatory requirements/educational qualifications, candidate’s location, and other such information. It is important that you do not reject candidates by way of discrimination in any manner. Discrimination based on race, color, caste, gender, sexual orientation, background, etc is strictly discouraged.
Arranging and Conducting the Interviews – The shortlisted candidates are then given a call to invite them for the interview. You can take a brief telephonic interview on the initial phone call itself. If you find them suitable, you can arrange a face-to-face or virtual interview via Skype or any similar online space. The main interview could either be conducted by you or any other designated person. It should be a two-way discussion. You need to see whether the candidate fulfills the requirement based on the answers he gives. At the same time, you should also be able to answer the questions posed by him. It is advised that you remain as transparent as possible about the job expectations. Avoid asking questions that do not concern with the job role. Most interviews last anywhere between 30 – 40 minutes. If you want to know about the candidate in greater detail, you can divide the interview process into a few rounds. One could be a basic HR round that will tell you about the candidate’s personality, others could be more on the technical side of the job.
Evaluation and Sending Offer of Employment – This is the last step in the recruitment process. After conducting the interviews of a good number of candidates, you must evaluate the performance of each of them. There would be a fair chance that you might not find all the qualities in a single candidate. So you will need to measure their skills and strengths against each other and figure out the one that best meets your requirements. When you have made your selection, it’s time to send them the offer of employment. The offer will be a contract containing all the terms and agreements of the job. It will include detailed information about the job, salary, perks, future promotions, etc. Make sure you do proper background verification of the candidate before making the offer. Once he or she accepts it, you can go ahead with the joining formalities.

Education Qualification Requirement

A bachelor’s degree in human resources or business or any related field is required to qualify for a recruitment job. It includes subjects like psychology, industrial relations, HR management, and communication. You can either start your career from the beginners level with the help of on-the-job training, or you can gain some prior experience through college internships. However, you must note that the education and experience level varies by position. For example, small businesses may require their employees to swing into the action, whereas large businesses usually provide training programs to their new employees. That includes data analytics, job shadowing, recruiting methods, etc.

Top Recruitment Companies in the USA

Robert Half – Robert Half is one of the leading companies in human resource consulting. It was established in 1948 and is located in California. It has an annual revenue of $6.1B.
Kelly – Kelly Services is a workforce provider and was founded in 1946. Its services include IT, finance, engineering, and marketing. Its estimated annual revenue is $5.4B.
Aerotek – This recruiting firm was founded in 1983 and is located in Hanover, Maryland. It provides services to the technical, professional, and industrial sectors. It generates annual revenue of $1.9B.
Adecco – Adecco is a recruitment firm which was established in 1996. It provides staffing services to different countries like North America, New Zealand, UK, Australia, etc. Its annual revenue is $9.8B.
Manpower Group – Manpower is one of the top employment firms in the USA. It offers workplace solutions and recruitment services since 1948. This public company has a revenue of $20.9B per annum.
Randstad – Randstad is another best HR consulting firm established in 1960. It offers recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) and managed service provider (MSP) services to technology, finance and accounting, and engineering sectors. It has an annual revenue of $26B.
Brilliant – Brilliant is a well-established staffing and recruiting firm for the accounting, finance, and IT sectors since 2009. Its headquarters is located in Chicago and it generates an estimated annual revenue of $42.8M.

What are the job prospects in Recruitment?

The recruitment industry has grown manifolds in the past decade and is expected to grow by a further 7% by 2029. This percentage is higher than many other occupations. As a result, there will be increased diversity in the recruitment field, which calls for a greater demand for recruiters. As a recruiter, you can either become a specialist in a particular domain and grow in your respective line. Or you can be a general recruiter who is responsible for handling different entry-level recruiters under you.

How does Recruitment help in Your Personal Growth?

The benefits of recruitment are not just limited to the job. It can help in your personal growth as well. Since recruitment is all about interaction and communication, it can dramatically improve your interpersonal skills. It can also raise your confidence levels in dealing with people and make you a master of negotiation. All these qualities come in handy in your personal life too. Recruitment can also teach you emotion management and the ability to handle pressure. As you will be interacting with people from all walks of life, it will broaden your mind and give you one-of-a-kind exposure.

Final Thoughts

Recruitment can be one of the most fulfilling career options. If you have a zeal for learning about different businesses and love talking to people, this is the perfect choice for you. It is also thought of as a noble profession as you are the source of someone’s employment. The road to becoming a successful recruiter might not be very smooth, but it is worth it if you have it in you.