Recruiting the right candidates is essential for any business to succeed. However, not every company has the expertise, time or resources to perform this function effectively. 

According to Rinku Thakkar writing on Linkedin, 76% of hiring managers admit attracting the right job candidates is their greatest challenge. 

Many organisations, especially small and medium-sized businesses, struggle to attract the right talent due to a lack of understanding of the recruitment process, overworked HR staff, and limited networks. As a result, they tend to recruit reactively, often leading to inefficiencies in their hiring and lost opportunities with candidates.

We explore the benefits of outsourcing recruitment and how it can help companies find the best talent, reduce costs and increase diversity.

1. Your hiring is costing a lot of money

A common misconception with Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) is that it costs more money than using in-house teams to support recruitment, however “engaging the services of an RPO provider can bring down the hiring time by 40% and cost savings by up to 50%” explains ALP Consulting. 

What’s more, the cost of a bad hire can be much higher than the cost of outsourcing recruitment. The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) found that more than a third of companies think that hiring the wrong employee costs them nothing. 

In fact, the truth is that for a bad hire at a salary of £42,000, it could cost a business as much as £132,000 due to the mounting costs associated with recruiting, training, onboarding, and wasted salary. This also doesn’t factor in the indirect costs that getting hiring wrong can create - a drop in existing employee morale and productivity, for example. 

These bad hires happen where internal teams are overstretched and pressured to fill the job quickly using a relatively small talent pool to hire from.

Using an RPO service allows your internal teams time to focus on their core competencies to drive your business forward, while letting external experts take care of the recruitment process and knowing it is in safe hands.

2. Your hiring pool isn’t diverse enough

One of the ways to eliminate the possibility of bad hires is to increase your talent pool when hiring. 

The evidence for creating a diverse and inclusive workplace grows stronger every day. We know that truly inclusive teams help improve employee engagement, creativity, problem-solving, financial performance and staff retention. 

Glassdoor reports that 76% of jobseekers state a diverse workforce is a crucial factor to them when looking for a new job and reviewing employers.

Using RPO services can provide access to a wider, more diverse pool of candidates and recruiting channels that in-house teams may not have. This means that businesses can tap into the expertise of external recruiters to identify and attract the right talent more effectively and efficiently.

With just 18% of companies using blind hiring (anonymous screening), external RPO providers can also provide unbiased assessments of candidates, reducing any risk of unconscious biases in the recruitment process.

RPO services also work with you to improve your Employer Value Proposition (EVP), “positioning your brand messaging and EVP to highlight your business as one that commits to DE&I, employee satisfaction, and employee well-being” explains LevelUp. 

3. It is taking a long time to get someone into your roles

Outsourcing recruitment can also help businesses find the right candidates much quicker, reducing your time-to-hire process. 

With it reported that the average hiring process takes 36 days, and with the best candidates coming off the market in just 10 days, it is crucial that the process for hiring is kept as short as possible. 

Taking too long can lead to lost opportunities and revenue for businesses that need to fill roles quickly. External recruiters can help reduce time-to-hire by leveraging their networks and expertise to identify and attract the right candidates faster.

With an RPO service, the process is faster with them being able to focus their time and attention solely on finding the right new starter for you.

Why work with an RPO agency?

Outsourcing recruitment is not without its challenges. One of the main concerns businesses may have is losing control over the recruitment process. 

But this can be mitigated by selecting a reputable recruitment agency like IRIS that ensures that it understands the business's needs and values before embarking on sourcing candidates. 

Moreover, outsourcing can provide greater transparency and accountability, as external recruiters can provide regular reports on the progress of the recruitment process.

“Make sure you keep a good flow of communications and schedule regular updates with the team,” Blackcode recommends for ensuring the smooth process of working with an RPO provider.  

With the benefits of outsourcing recruitment far outweighing any risks, it can be a strategic move for businesses looking to improve their recruitment process and find the best talent for their organisation.

Competition for the best talent is fierce and we are currently in a talent-favoured market, meaning there are more jobs available than candidates, so it is more important than ever that your business is propositioned right in the market and your recruitment processes are robust, swift and done right. 

Speak to the experts

Making the decision to work with a talent acquisition agency like IRIS can be a big step for a business.

But, you can rest assured that by engaging with our services, we will be working alongside you, doing what we do best, to find the best candidates for your roles, whilst giving you the capacity to do what you do best as a business. 

You can get in touch with us HERE.