This is what UK recruiters should focus on in June 2022Posted almost 2 years ago by Nick Boulton

As markets talk about an impending recession, I want to focus more on what we in the recruitment market should be talking about instead. 

The recruitment world is cyclical. Like any other industry, you have good times, bad times, and periods of 'normal'. 

Recruitment is the first to feel any slow down and then to see the green shoots of recovery. We ebb and flow in popularity; one day, we're a hiring manager's best friend, and the next, we're getting screamed at. 

When we find a client that one candidate, they think we're magicians, but when the well dries up, they think we're hiding a plethora of top talent under our desks. It's all part of the game.

Recruiting in technology is extremely challenging. Unfortunately, not enough consultants specialise in the tech they recruit, which means they lack the knowledge to keep up with the market. On the other hand, the recruitment businesses and consultants that can weather all needs are masters of their specialism. It's what separates the good from the bad. 

I do not believe you can provide a top-class service if you profess to be an expert recruiter in ALL technology verticals. You are simply a CV shifter, in my opinion, recruiting by numbers and tick boxes and not worth the fees you charge. 

Now is a great time to be in recruitment, and now is when we as an industry should be talking ourselves up, not predicting doom and gloom.

People still recruit in recessions and downturns. Technology doesn't stand still for anyone, and in this market of data warfare, tech businesses can't afford to stay still – they will simply fall behind the competition. 

Having done this job for a long time, I've found that there is always room for the help of a specialist recruitment consultancy to find the best people, no matter how many internal recruiters a company hires.

Now is the time for technology recruitment consultancies to stand up and talk about how good we are, how much businesses rely on us and not be embarrassed to do so. 

We have built numerous world-class engineering teams for household names at Client Server, but they weren't when we started with them. 

Finding jobs for hundreds of engineers at the top of their field in such a short space of time is no mean feat. It's something we've been perfecting over the last 22 years.

I fully expect that the rest of 2022 will bring more challenges, and if you think recruitment will be as easy as the previous 12 months, you are sorely mistaken. 

Those businesses and consultants best placed to adapt to their client's needs will be the ones who recognise the changing market quickest. They will see that they will have to work harder and smarter and try innovative ways to source clients and candidates, all while focusing their minds on delivering to every role you have, taking nothing for granted.

It's time to let the real recruiters stand up!