Gorilla Says No
Gorilla Headhunter, David Perry, makes an interesting point on Recruiting.com.
The largest recruiting firms have the most hands-off relationships.
They can't recruit from their clients so their sources for candidates are limited by their large number of customers.
They might be forced to lay a "don't recruit here" ban on some of the largest companies in the field.
But, are the big dogs any better? (asks the Gorilla).
I mean, honestly, do you really thing the KF guys are any better at their job than most recruiters? Absolutely not.They just have a bigger database and because they perform 5000 searches a year they understand who's in play.
I know that's true to some extent because some high profile firms will sub-contract work to no-name free-lancers like me.
New Technology Ends Advantage
Perry believes that new technology like LinkedIn and ZoomInfo has levelled the playing field by giving small recruiting firms access to large databases that were formerly the big guys' preserve.
Will Sourcing Become Insignificant?
Together with the job boards, however, they might put the recruiting industry out of business altogether.
Actually, if they make sourcing easier the focus might shift to the enticement and qualification of candidates which would make sales and interviewing skills (supported by a strong background in the candidate's own profession) the key service recruiters have to offer.
Note on Process
It's possible that some big firms have a better in-house process than I do. I did work for a Korn Ferry alumnus and he told me that their in-house screeners have to qualify a candidate in under seven minutes.
With unqualified candidates, that's surely possible. But when someone is in the ballpark, I often have to really dig into her background to see how close she is to my target. However, maybe that's me. I am a bit slow.
Also, it's possible that the big firms can attract more highly qualified professionals into recruiting than are willing to work on their own, without in-house support, in sole practice recruiting firms.
And, some of them -- but, definitely, not all -- could be better at qualifying suitable candidates than other recruiters.
