Should a Recruiter Have Knowledge of Your Industry?

When choosing a recruiter to work with, your primary focus is finding someone who understands your industry. Someone who, from the beginning, understands the technology, terms and standards implemented within the niche, as well as the expectations of the market. Would you expect to hire a good candidate if the recruiter you hire doesn’t have knowledge of your industry?

Of course not. So, the obvious answer to the above question is yes.

So, how can you, in this marketing era, find the right recruiter who genuinely knows what your industry is all about?

Let’s discuss.

Importance for the recruiter to have the industry knowledge

An HR professional’s biggest challenge is that many of them don’t always understand the jobs they’re recruiting for. Sourcing top talent entails a deep understanding of a specific industry, the skills of a candidate, and how those candidates’ qualities are the right fit for their role.

Here are two reasons why having industry knowledge should be the number one priority of a recruiter:

Specify industries have specific terms

All industries have their own specialties, terms, and jargon. These nuances carry more weight during recruitment than merely finding one that matches all the requirements on paper. It means that not every industry can hire for all types of niches. Even if the overall hiring procedure is the same, nuances are what differentiate a standard recruiting firm from the ones that know about your niche.

Industry knowledge accelerates the hiring process

“You sent me someone who isn’t even familiar with general ledger,” is something often heard when one is hiring for an accounting firm. Non-specialty recruiters tend to conflate accounting with the use of simple tools. Bearing that belief, these recruiters do only the bare minimum— seeking those who can perform the basics of accounting.

Such debacles end up slowing down the recruitment process, which in the long term, creates more problems. On the other hand, those with industry knowledge will know your requirements right away. Having been constantly updated, they will have a rough but applicable idea of your industry standard, giving them a head start and helping them find the recruits that suit your requirement.

A recruiter who has industry knowledge of your domain is your biggest asset.

Tips for Finding the Right Industry

These tips will help you find a recruiter that has knowledge of your industry:

1. Explain your hiring needs: Clear communication yields better results. It will help you get a head start on finding the right recruiter. Clearly explain the position that you want to be filled. Everything from the candidate’s attributes to the number of posts available should be communicated to the recruitment agency without the fluff. Now, here comes the tricky part. In a bid to expand their clientele, many new recruitment agencies will likely say yes. That’s when you jump to the second tip.
2. Interview the recruitment agency like candidates: You should treat the recruitment agency as if they are your candidates. At this step, you discern whether the recruiter possesses industry knowledge. Start with simple questions related to their recruitment record within your niche. When they provide the numbers, get proof of the same. And if you like the numbers, ask them how much time they would take to find the right candidate. Another query you must ask is the quality check they do to find the right candidate.
3. Choose recruitment agencies per your hiring needs: No two recruitment agencies are the same. Choose a staff recruitment agency if you’re looking for short-term or temporary staff. Conversely, if you’re looking for an agency that delivers you recruits for executive-level positions, an executive recruitment agency is the one you should seek. Executive-level recruitment agencies typically have high-level industry knowledge and can accelerate the hiring process.
4. Make sure the recruitment agency meets your budget: There is a perception that the best recruiters come with a high price tag. While it has been the case for a long time, it is not necessarily true. Possessing industry knowledge and providing high-level recruitment services have become the industry standards. However, looking for a service provider that delivers you services without asking an outlandish price is still important.
5. Look into recruiter experience: If you are close to choosing a recruitment agency, find out more about it through testimonials, client feedback, social media, and other sources. Don’t simply rely on what the recruiter’s official website says. Put your trust in what people are saying about them. It will provide you a wider and clearer picture of the agency.

Conclusion

Finding a recruiter that has your industry knowledge is not an easy task, but it is essential. While most industries have static standards that remain constant, they are also affected by ever changing and fluid technologies that impact every industry. A solid recruiter will have expertise in navigating both.

At ALIGN, we provide customized recruitment services for executive and management positions. Our task is simple: we find the best professionals so your organization can benefit from market-ready expertise. If you have any further queries, reach out to our experts.