Why a recent tweak to our recruitment model means better servicePosted over 3 years ago by Nick Boulton

At Client Server, we are furiously proud of our split-desk model.

We’ve separated our business into separate Business Development, Account Management, Advertising, Administration and Marketing & Brand departments, with specialists operating in each. Rather than tasking a consultant to drum up new business, write job ads, market those jobs, and place candidates, we’ve asked them to focus on delivery. It gives our team flexibility to be experts in their field, offering a truly consultative experience to candidates and clients alike.

The last few months have been a hard slog, to say the least. With many businesses left decimated by COVID, we’ve been forced to look at how we operate, revenue sources, and the bar we set for our team.

Internally, we call this bar CSQ: Client Server Quality.

Inadvertently, some of our success has lowered this bar in respect of:

• Expanding our network within existing clients
• Mining for new business opportunities
• Generating fresh revenue
• Networking with our senior connections

In short, I think we had become complacent and slightly lazy. There had been an assumption that we would have a free-flow of new jobs coming in, rather than valuing each relationship and appreciating the work gone into bringing new clients on board. It’s something I should have picked up on sooner.

In the recruitment world, we call consultants who tackle all aspects of the hiring process a “360 Recruiter”. Getting our consultants to ‘think’ more 360 is what we have started to re-implement. I’m not talking about the old adage of a recruitment ‘power hour’ or morning of purely BD. I’m talking about networking with good people on a consistent basis. We are in the people and relationship business so why not expand those relationships?

At Client Server, we are lucky enough to have a database with more than 500,000 candidates. There are many we have found jobs for or worked with as clients. At the very least, these are people we have had good conversations with, potentially helping them with their career or business.

So why not phone them up and find out how lockdown has impacted them, their families or their businesses?

To me this isn’t BD or cold calling, this is building relationships and something all good consultants should be doing on a regular basis. This is the “360” approach we are re-implementing, nothing anyone should see as daunting or difficult, but something we are now going to insist our team does going forward.

Our model hasn’t changed, our approach isn’t different. What I want is consultants going back to doing what we do best – consulting. Adding value, advising people, guiding them on how to navigate their way through one of the trickiest times in our economic history.

Nothing’s changed at Client Server, we have just had a long overdue tweak!