As we’re in the month of all things cupid, we thought February would be a great time to talk about our match-making skills.
Reset has always been a little different from the norm… We prioritise intelligent matchmaking between clients and candidates with the aim of creating long-term, genuine partnerships.
Here we’ll be talking about our approach and how it differs to many other recruiters; keeping our client and candidate needs at the forefront of our minds, despite the fast pace of the recruitment world.
Understanding Your Needs
This is always job number one for us. Taking the time to really understand what our clients want from their new hire, and what our candidates are looking for from their next employer, sets us up for excellent matchmaking.
Before we begin the search for our client’s perfect hire, we’ll make sure we comprehend the:
Reasons for the role being available
Experiences you’ve had with previous hires
Expectations of the role
Ideal cultural fit you’re looking for
True limits of the salary on offer
Ideal qualifications and/or experience you require
For candidates, the chat is similar, but from the other side of the coin. We need to understand:
The role you’re leaving and why
The reasons for any gaps in your CV (these could well be a strength, not a weakness- more on this later…)
Any reasons for you being unhappy in previous roles
The ideal company culture you’d love to be a part of
The salary you need, the salary you want and the salary you’d like to work towards
The formal and non-formal qualifications or experiences you have to offer
Without taking the time to ask these questions and truly take note of the answers, it would be very challenging to find the matching puzzle pieces. Yes, these conversations take some time, but it’s time well-spent.
We believe it’s better to put forward a handful of great matches than to flood our clients with less-than-ideal candidates, just to make sure we reach their desk first. That also does no favours for our candidates who may put themselves through the interview process only to find a key element is missing which puts them out of the running.
Speaking of Cultural Fit…
We mentioned “company culture” and “cultural fit” above, but what does that really mean? For us, it means finding candidates who fulfil the role’s criteria in full, but who will also be happy humans that can thrive in our client’s environment.
Not everyone is after bean bags and pool tables, Friday night drinks and the odd pizza party. For some, that would be a nightmare! When we ask our clients about their company culture, we want the honest truth. That way we can find the right candidate to slot right in with the existing team.
Having been in the industry for years, our team have spoken to thousands and thousands of people about their job requirements and ideal ‘fit’. We understand the nuances and have a great feel for personalities. We value personality-based matching as highly as we do the black and white requirements of the role.
The Importance of Life Experience and Soft Skills
Obviously key requirements of roles may well include certain qualifications and years of experience in certain industries or positions. It’s a given that we keep these solid requirements at the top of our list when searching for the right candidate. However, we also believe that the right life experiences and so called ‘soft skills’ can lead you to the best of a great bunch.
Candidates are often wary of sharing details about any gaps in their CV. Reasons could include redundancy, taking time off to raise children, moving to a new country, taking time to travel- the list goes on. But all these CV ‘gaps’ have given the candidate additional experience.
It could be taking a hard, unexpected knock and gaining the confidence to come back and pursue the right role. It could be getting to grips with parenthood and the multitasking, project management skills and emotional control that brings. It could be having the bravery and organisational skills to uproot and move a family overseas. It could be soaking up another culture, learning a new language and budgeting to the penny.
We are always open to including life experience and soft skills in our presentation of a candidate to a client- it also gives a great insight into the candidate’s personality.
Teamwork
This is another key element that makes Reset very different to work with. Sarah and Rubi work seamlessly together- no competition and no race to the finish line. It’s very common in other (usually larger) agencies, for recruiters to be effectively pitted against each other; battling to get the first candidate in, gunning for the client to say yes to their candidate, even if they’re not the ideal person for the role.
None of that here. Our team work together on every role, sharing ideas for possible matches from our great pool of candidates and making sure the right person is put forward, no matter who ‘found them first’.
To summarise: we do it a little differently around here. We view our candidates and clients with the same level of respect and treat everyone we work with as human beings who deserve to find the employee or role they are looking for. That’s vital- for the sake of company success, a happy work-life and a fulfilling relationship that works for all parties.
If you’d like to be treated as more than just a CV or a list of qualifications, or find the right personality as well as skillset for your job opening, drop us a line.