There are indications that the UK is heading for a significant skills shortage post-Brexit. Some sectors are already experiencing difficulties in recruiting new staff. These include IT, engineering and accountancy. There is also considerable nervousness around recruiting care staff and seasonal agricultural workers.
However, employers are also experiencing difficulties with some recruitment agencies. In an industry where not all involved meet satisfactory standards, employers are finding trust to be a sticking point.
Lucy Atkins, co-founder of Trusted Agencies, looks at the issue of trust for both recruiting agencies and the businesses who are looking to use them.
Are Recruitment Agencies Regulated?
“The Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) has a code of professional practice that all its members must adhere to. However, although this is one form of assurance, you do not need to be a member of the REC to start a recruitment agency. In effect, anyone can start their own agency.”
For many recruiters, the uphill struggle they face in working with employers is to do with reputational damage by association.
“There’s an idea that for some recruitment agencies it’s a race to the bottom, where they end up fuelling the gig economy and a culture of zero-hour contracts.”
For businesses, the fear is that using the wrong agency will end up tarnishing their own reputations, and they still won’t be getting the quality of people they need to build their talent.
“A good recruitment agency should be providing value to potential candidates and supporting businesses by partnering with then to help match the right person with the right role.”
“Some agencies are treating recruitment purely as a numbers game, where filling the vacancies comes first, without considering the appropriateness of the placement”
At a time where recruitment is becoming critical to the future of the country’s economy, businesses need to know who they can trust to provide them with the talent they need.
“There are recruitment agencies of all sizes doing great things that we want to help them shout about by putting them clearly in the spotlight, on our platform”
Marketing Trust for Recruitment Agencies
“For recruitment agencies, the competition is fierce, so they must find a way to differentiate themselves and prove they represent a trustworthy brand.”
The Trusted Agencies’ solution is to combine the benefits of search engine for recruitment agencies with digital marketing and brand awareness raising.
“The right online platform can offer recruiters enhanced credibility, providing they meet the right standards that will make them suitable for including their profile on the Trusted Agencies site.”
This approach is designed to help raise the visibility of good recruitment agencies with a third-party platform aligned to their brand values.
“Recruitment agencies need a means of marketing their credibility and demonstrating their trustworthiness. Employers need to know who they can trust when it comes to selecting a recruitment partner. Trusted Agencies are providing a digital solution to answer both sets of needs.”
If you are interested in marketing the trustworthiness of your recruitment agency, and turning your reputation into a brand asset, please call Trusted Agencies on 01254 447050 or register your interest here.
