Making 2023 A Great Year For Your Recruiting Firm

I’ve always found that starting a new year is an unusual time. On the one hand, it can feel like we’ve been granted a magical clean slate when the clock strikes midnight on 12/31. We hope this clean slate will make the new year better than the previous one. Visions of major improvements dance in our heads like the visions of sugar plums on Christmas Eve. There’s a temporary surge of hope and optimism that can lead us to believe our new initiatives will be much quicker and easier than they really are.

On the other hand, if you’re reading this article, you’re probably at an age and stage in life that you know better. All of your challenges loyally followed and remained at your side. Past New Year’s Resolutions that were broken within a few weeks have taught you the reality that nothing suddenly changed from the day before. 

Now that we’ve looked at both hands objectively, let’s combine the optimism and energy that naturally occurs when you hit the reset button with acceptance of how positive change actually works. The truth is that 2023 can be the year you create lasting improvements that help your firm in 2023 and beyond! 

Most recruiting firm owners and leaders have a list (whether in writing or in their heads) of areas in their business they wish to improve in. Some of the most common topics I’m asked about include:

• Business development strategies for recruiting firms
• How to scale recruiting firms
• Candidate recruiting strategy and 
• How to hire and train recruiters 

The above areas are common recruiting firm friction points that cost you money and stress until you properly address them.

A primary challenge in launching successful improvement efforts is identifying the actual causes of the problems you want to fix. For example, if you’re not submitting enough quality candidates in a timely manner, the potential causes of your pain include your process to:

• Source potential candidates
• Reach out to the sourced candidates 
• Interview candidates to determine fit and interest level
• Present opportunities to candidates to maximize their interest
• Utilize your ATS 
• Decide which candidates to submit or reject 

When trying to solve problems, most people quickly jump to conclusions about the cause when in fact, there may be multiple causes. This failure to properly diagnose the causes of problems leads to poor results and frustration. So what’s the solution? The solution is to begin with an objective view of the various steps involved in your process before attempting to fix or improve it. 

Though this may seem obvious, it’s not how most people solve problems. The truth is that when we consider our problems, we see the symptoms. In fact, the word symptom means “something that indicates the existence of something else.” The “something else” you need to identify to solve a problem effectively is the “root causes” which lie in how you do things (your processes). Unfortunately, root causes are rarely obvious, and treating symptoms is rarely effective.

What’s proven most effective for recruiting firms is to start with an objective 360° inventory of your firm’s operating processes. This allows you to identify the root causes of your pain points or friction areas. Below is a practical step-by-step process to start 2023 off right to make 2023 your best year ever:

STEP 1: Take an objective inventory of all your firm’s operating processes. This is the critical first step to moving you forward!

STEP 2: identify the processes that you believe have the most significant negative impact on your profitability and frustration level.

STEP 3: Rank these “problem processes” in order of priority.

STEP 4: Develop a clear and simple action plan to address your problem areas in order of priority. Most people find they’re more effective when they simultaneously address just one or two efforts. This helps you avoid overwhelm and build momentum.

STEP 5: Set up clear and simple goals for each improvement effort that focuses on the specific actions to take by whom with dates to complete. 

STEP 6: Measure and review the results of each action taken and tweak your approach based on what you learn from your results..

STEP 7: Keep moving forward despite the resistance and setbacks that are a normal part of any improvement effort.

 If you’d like a proven resource to accomplish STEP 1, I’ve created a 360° inventory of all the operating processes that apply to staffing & recruiting firms. I’m making this resource available as a free download. There are two separate downloads: One for recruiting firms with teams, the other for Solopreneurs: Click here to get your free download. 

I’d love to hear your feedback on how this helps your firm. Let’s make 2023 a great year!