Recruiters serve a vital role in most industries – including the legal profession – by helping clients land talented candidates. As a viable part of the hiring process, being a successful recruiter requires specific skills and traits that go above and beyond simply being a “people person.” If you’re wondering what makes a good recruiter stand out from the pack or are interested in making it your career, here’s what it takes to succeed in the highly competitive world of recruiting.
Attention to Detail
When assessing recruiter strengths and weaknesses, being detail-oriented is one of the main qualities that all good recruiters possess. While working with numerous people in a typical day, recruiters must mentally collate countless essential details and reams of detailed information.
Missing out on a specific detail or two during the recruitment process can result in a bad hire, wasted resources, and even hard feelings that could permanently damage a recruiter’s reputation. As the first featured characteristic on our list, successful recruiters must have a laser-focused eye for detail.
A Methodical Way of Working
The ability to methodically work under pressure in a fast-paced environment while weathering good economic markets and bad is another attribute of a successful recruiter. Most recruiters work on a performance basis, which means their commissions and incentive bonuses rely on hitting specific recruiting targets.
Recruiters who are unwilling to put forth the extra time and effort to achieve those recruitment goals typically see their earnings drop as a result.
Experience with Recruitment Analytics
Technological advancements have had a major impact on the talent acquisition process, as recruiters become more tech-savvy. Taking advantage of data-driven tools like recruitment analytics is one of the most sought-after qualities of a good technical recruiter.
Recruiters with expertise in developing analytics-based recruitment strategies are very much in demand as companies seek innovative ways to boost profits, reduce costs, and retain both new hires and existing employees.
Onboarding New Hires
In most cases, a positive onboarding experience is a real morale booster that makes the average employee more productive and less likely to leave. Conversely, a poor onboarding experience greatly increases the likelihood that a new hire will seek “greener pastures” elsewhere within the first year.
Although it’s not one of their primary responsibilities, helping recent hires smoothly transition into their new positions is a value-added service that most good recruiters offer. Oftentimes, hearing from a recruiter that they’ve gotten to know on their first day of work can be a much-needed source of comfort and encouragement for a new hire.
Strong Sales Skills
Sales and recruiting have a lot in common. Much like sales representatives, recruiters that are personable tend to do better than those who aren’t. A talented recruiter must also learn the art of cold calling to acquire new clients and build their business. To be successful, a recruiter must market their services and experience to the client and then sell the opportunity to the candidate.
It often takes creativity and persistence – along with the right recruiter personality – to convince a candidate that the job is the right fit for them. As one of the most important recruiter tips for beginners, honing one’s sales skills will help ensure success while “swimming with the sharks” in the highly competitive recruiting industry.
Experience in Using Applicant Tracking Systems
Although legacy recruiting practices like emails, phone calls, and spreadsheets are still somewhat effective, today’s top-tier recruiters know that modern tools – spearheaded by applicant tracking systems (ATS) – are the wave of the future.
Talent acquisition specialists must be proficient at utilizing ATS software to scan, sort, and rank candidates, as well as perform other job-related functions such as posting to job boards, candidate tracking, reviewing stacks of resumes, and updating career pages.
Improving the Candidate Experience
One of the qualities of a good HR recruiter is knowing how to make the candidate experience as efficient and confidential as possible. The more positive the experience is for the candidate, the more likely they will be to accept an offer and stay longer once they are hired.
As a hiring facilitator, a successful recruiter knows how to enhance the job search experience by streamlining the communication process while respecting the candidate’s time and confidentiality. Matching a candidate to a company culture that aligns with their beliefs and values is another impactful way to create a positive candidate experience.
Time Management
Since time is the most precious commodity for most people, being able to efficiently manage every minute of the day is yet another characteristic that a good recruiter must possess. Recruiting is a job that requires one to juggle numerous tasks and people simultaneously, which can be overwhelming for someone who lacks good time management skills.
To rise to the top of their profession, a talent acquisition specialist must be able to prioritize tasks and candidates while juggling numerous deadlines and facilitating daily meetings – all in a way that allows them to achieve their recruiting goals.
Good Communication Skills
In addition to being likable, a recruiter must be highly proficient in the art of communication so they can deal with different client and candidate personalities. Top-notch recruiters are active listeners that read candidates well, inform key decision-makers about the candidate’s qualifications, effectively relay information about the open position, and encourage candidates to move forward in the hiring process.
Recruiters that have honed their communication skills not only make the process more productive for employers, but also enhance the candidate experience and end up being highly respected as a result.
Planning
Any checklist of good recruiter skills must also include planning. Better recruiters know how to plan-ahead and effectively strategize no matter what clients or candidates throw at them – all while keeping the “big picture” in mind. Sometimes, that means revising a recruiting strategy mid-stream to accommodate changing client or candidate needs so that both sides get what they want in the end.
Good at Multi-Tasking
Working on several tasks at once while juggling numerous clients is an everyday occurrence for most seasoned recruiters. Prioritizing certain roles based on the client’s level of urgency to fill the position sometimes becomes necessary depending on the day.
In laymen’s terms, multi-tasking is the ability to efficiently manage more than one task at the same time, a characteristic that both companies and candidates highly value when looking to work with a recruiter they can trust.
Online Support that Streamlines the Talent Acquisition Process
No matter what role you find yourself playing, seamlessly navigating the talent acquisition process takes planning, patience, and perseverance. At Deep Footprint, the agency behind the Legal Recruiter Directory, we specialize in results-driven digital marketing solutions for legal headhunters, law firms, and legal placement firms.
Helping those we serve to realize higher client engagement and conversion rates is something we excel at every day. The Legal Recruiter Directory also provides online aid that allows legal recruiters to place active or passive attorney candidates with law firms and corporations in the most timely and efficient way possible. To learn more about our services, contact one of our marketing specialists today.
