Is Direct Candidate Sourcing Right For You?

Can I set up a direct candidate sourcing strategy? Do I have the tools, skills and time to deliver it?

These are just a couple of questions on the agendas of HR professionals at present. Faced with candidates moving more often and the agency costs associated, tighter budgets and the need to deliver more for less, savvy managers are realising they are in a position to capitalise on their employer brand and rely less on IT recruitment agencies to source tech talent.

But taking the jump into the unknown – a world less reliant on agencies can be daunting. Here are the top questions to ask yourself if you’re considering bringing some of your recruitment in-house;

Why are you considering bringing some of your recruitment in-house?

There’s always scope to refine the way a business approaches its talent attraction operations. By doing so, you allow the business to attract the best IT professionals, remain competitive, and identify ways to see if you’re getting the best return from your current suppliers and providers.

You could say it’s a fluid process, dictated by the changing trends in job seeker behaviour and the needs of the business.

Typically, we see businesses considering direct sourcing for reasons such as:

• The need to know which resources will deliver the best IT talent
• They have a strong employer brand and would like to capitalise on it
• Increased capability and investment in LinkedIn recruiter licences
• Investment in people with the right technical skillsets
• The need to centralise processes, and increase collaboration between multi-site operations

It’s a long term win…

Setting up a direct sourcing strategy involves a transition period. You will need to audit your current processes, see where you are strong and can absorb responsibility and more importantly, know when to ask for help. Remember investment is needed from the start, and you may not start to see the fruit of your efforts until month five.

Agree a quota of jobs you want to fill directly. VIQU have helped, professional staffing companies achieve 33% direct sourcing within one year.

Which people will be needed to deliver the strategy?

And how big will your team be? What specialisms will they have? There are many ways to set up a direct resourcing team. You may wish to hire ex-IT recruiters as they are savvy about the online tech recruitment market and have the ability to manage the process. Perhaps you may wish to have a specialist resource aimed at generating candidates to make up your shortfall?

You’ll also need to be mindful that you will need an extra resource to carry out the tasks you previously delegated to recruiters – fielding calls, processing applications etc.

Either way, you’ll need to map out your resource requirements against the long term objectives of both the direct sourcing strategy, and what your business wants to achieve in terms of IT talent attraction.

Interested in learning if you’re ready to set up a direct IT recruitment strategy? VIQU would like to support you in writing the right strategy and accessing the right tool to fill those jobs. Contact us today.