CANDIDATE TIPS AND ADVICE

There is never a dull moment in recruitment, and this seems to be a universal fact. While there are different agencies recruiting for different roles in different industries, this is the one thing that seems to be a constant in whatever type of recruitment you do.

The ability to manage a busy workload is as important as all other facets of this job because quite frankly without managing this you won’t achieve the results you want. Being organised can make the difference in making that extra call to a client or candidate per day, writing that extra advert, or giving yourself that extra time to have a deserved break. By giving yourself the opportunity to maximise the use of your time can only help snowball your activity into results, and when I say results I am really talking about revenue!

I have read so many posts recently and to be honest they all seem to be the same. Wishy washy posts that offer advice about how to do well in sales or any job for that matter. Usually these suggest things like ‘organise your day better’, ‘get up earlier’, ‘be nice all the time’, ‘listen to the customer’. While these are all valid suggestions, they are also very obvious and seldom do they come with any more information about what the author suggests on how to do this. I am probably setting myself up here for failure by highlighting this third rail issue but organisation is something I have been trying to master and I would like to share my opinions on things that are working for me.

Stick to the task – If you are in a busy office with a thousand things going on at once it is very easy to get distracted. For example, when someone picks up a live role which needs candidates, or when 20 new CVs arrive in your inbox. The temptation to stop what you are doing can be very strong. However, stick to what you are doing. Block out that hour in your diary and purely focus on that task. Those emails can wait, your phone has a voice mail, and your colleagues will still be there in an hour.

Allocate time to tasks - This really goes hand in hand with the point above. Imagine your working week and all the activity that goes into it. What do you think is best – working on 10 roles across the whole week, jumping in and out of them as you please? Or, focusing on two roles per day, splitting the time between both during the afternoon? In my experience your work productivity will be significantly greater by allocating time and focusing on it rather than trying to juggle everything at once. There can be other variables at play, as some roles will have greater priority over others, but all this means is you prioritise those roles.

Make Lists – Simple but very effective. Plan your day. I always refer to the Abraham Lincoln quote about how he would spend 6 hours chopping down a tree. He would spend 4 hours sharpening his axe! Write down what needs to be done and tick them off when you have done it. It streamlines your work, gives you the confidence and removes any panic you may get. Plus there is a certain degree of satisfaction by crossing something off a list!

Put it back – CVs, hit lists, notes etc. Put them back where you found them. You will find your desk becoming cluttered with paper and before you know it things are not where you think they are. Make sure when you use something, spend 10 seconds putting it back. When your colleague asks you if you have any candidates you will spend much less time finding them.

Organise your work space – I tend to have my live roles visible on my desk. Doing this means you can see your pipeline and it reminds you of what you are looking for. File away old job specs, organise those roles that need greater priority, and use dividers to file away all other documents and paperwork that is on your desk such as your consultants’ reports and meeting notes, training manuals etc.

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