Professionalism and Ethical Standards in the Recruitment Industry

We urge our own recruiters, and the industry as a whole, to let go of outdated methods, and to take the time to build trust and deep knowledge of your relationships.

It’s no secret that the recruitment industry has a bad reputation. For lacking ethics, having little care about clients or talent, and only concentrating on the bottom line, the preconceptions of recruiters can often be dismal. I’ve experienced the negative side of recruitment first-hand, and I’m sure you have too. I’ve also experienced that wonderful sense of joy when you find a recruiter who truly understands your needs, the perfect role that you aspire to achieve, and introduces you to a brand that matches the culture you want to work in.

Myself, and many of the clients I work with believe things can operate differently, and to these standards, instead of an outdated recruitment model. We believe it’s all about changing the mindset of businesses, talent, and agencies by empowering them to achieve a higher professionalism and ethical standard. It shouldn’t just be an aspiration to be kind, professional, and ethical. Instead, these qualities should be at the core of recruitment if we want the industry to change.

We all know that it takes time to get to know our talent pool and our clients by working closely with them, but how many of us put this into practice on a daily basis? Often recruiters are typically KPI driven and fail to view themselves as an extension of the client’s team. Shifting the mindset of each and every recruiter, would drive enhanced candidate and client experience, both in the talent attraction and the successful fulfilment of roles.

A recent study by SME Loans found 8.3m employees in the UK feel they have been discriminated against on the grounds of their gender. This is shocking to us as recruiters, and something that needs to be brought to the forefront of discussions within the industry. A diverse workforce is a more effective workforce. People of different backgrounds, education and ways of thinking allow for a more robust source of ideas, innovation, management styles, and capabilities. The right candidate for a role should be just that, the right candidate.

We aspire to be more proactive in upholding higher professional and ethical standards than the recruitment industry has done in the past. For us, taking the time and effort to truly understand our client’s needs and desires, and the talent pool’s drive, motivation, and real personality, is the most important aspect of the service we provide.

Bringing in the start of a new year, and a new decade, many people are seeking a change of direction. We urge our own recruiters, and the industry as a whole, to let go of outdated methods, and to take the time to build trust and deep knowledge of your relationships. Integrity, embodying your brand, and proactively seeking deep insight into the client’s challenges will help you grow your business more effectively than solely focusing on KPI’s and profit alone.

Recruitment firms, consultancy’s, and talent introduction providers should add value to a client’s process, not add more time, stress and work. Taking ownership and responsibility for aspirations is HARD, but genuinely working each day for small incremental improvements in check lists, process, and service, will only bring about more positive change in yourself, others, and the industry.