Expedite Your Job Search with a Staffing Agency in 2022
If you’re thinking about looking for a new job in 2022, you’re not alone. Many people are ready to find something new, especially if they have been reluctant to make a change during uncertain times. But after more than two years, workers are tired of settling for good enough, and why should they? Employers are hiring, pay rates are rising and the economy hasn’t been this strong since 1962. The question is, what is the best way to conduct your job search to ensure you find the best job for you in the closest possible time?
For many job seekers, the answer is to work with a staffing agency such as The RPC Company. Choose the right staffing and recruiting partner and they will have strong relationships with dozens or even hundreds of employers. The experts at our Fort Worth, Springfield, Denver, and Dallas staffing agencies know your region, industry or both and can help you polish your resume, optimize your cover letter and shine in the interview. Best of all – their services are free to you. Companies pay the staffing firm to find candidates for their open contract and direct hire positions. As a job seeker, you reap the benefits of this relationship, but you’re not picking up the tab!
How Does a Staffing and Recruitment Agency Work?
Companies may not be able to conduct a comprehensive talent search without assistance. Very small companies may have no HR department to handle it for them. Medium to large companies may fill some jobs independently but rely on staffing and recruitment agencies for specific needs. They may be able to handle their day-to-day staffing needs, for example, hiring maybe one or two new employees per month. But if they need 75 contract employees for their busy season or unexpected demand, they simply won’t have the bandwidth to screen and interview the applicants, so they will bring in a staffing firm to help. Businesses may also bring in a recruiter for high-level positions that may require confidentiality or may attract more candidates than they are willing or able to screen. They may ask a recruiter to narrow the field for them, bringing them only the most highly qualified for their consideration. The staffing agency takes care of a lot of the up-front legwork for the employer. The company pays the agency to find the right people for them.
What does that mean for you as a job seeker? You may get access to unadvertised jobs that staffing firms have exclusive access to. You have an increased chance of connecting with jobs that are a good match for your skills. It’s less likely that you’ll run into a “bait and switch” job posting scenario in which a position is not what it was advertised to be. In almost all cases, the employer pays the staffing company, the applicant does not.
What Are the Advantages of Using a Specialized Recruiter to Find Your Next Job?
If you have specific skills or work in a field where jobs are tough to find or are seldom advertised, partnering with a specialized recruiter can help you find the right job faster. Recruiters often focus on specific regions, industries or specialties. For example, RPC Staffing, with staffing agencies in Dallas, TX, Fort Worth, TX, Springfield, MO and Denver, CO, concentrates their services in several service areas and industry specialties. This allows them to gain experience, build relationships and even become thought leaders within specific niches.
RPC has expertise in accounting & finance, information technology, administrative support, medical & healthcare, banking & mortgage, light industrial, customer service & call center, veteran job placement and government services.
Recruiters with this level of specialization often know the job market in an industry better than a generalist will. They often have networks or colleagues within the field they can introduce you to. They can share competitive compensation data, in-demand skill sets or certifications and other insider information that can give you an edge in landing the job.
Greater Access to Industry Network
Since recruiters are exposed to hundreds of employers and opportunities, they can often provide a heads-up on a job before it’s posted or get you in touch with the right person. When you work with a staffing agency, their network becomes your network. With Dallas, Denver and Springfield employment services available, you’re bound to find the recruiting team and network that’s right for you. Be sure you make note of everyone you meet through your recruiter to expand your career possibilities.
Interview and Resume Assistance (Mentorship)
Recruiters are experts in the interview process and are invested in your success, so they want to share what they know to give you the best chance of landing the job. They can help you polish your resume to make it more attractive to employers and prepare you to perform well at the interview. They’ll examine your resume closely and ask probing questions to ensure they match you with the right job and companies where you are most likely to succeed. Depending on the position or interviewer, there may be parts of your job history specific employers may be most interested in. The recruiter can advise you on what to focus on in the interview and what skills may not be worth spending a lot of time on. After the interview, they will provide feedback so that if you don’t get the offer, you have a better chance of landing the next job.
They can offer other benefits as well. They can make suggestions to ensure your social media reflects positively and give you tips to help you impress the interviewer. Without a staffing agency, you go into each interview with little idea of what to expect. Your recruiter is likely to know some or all of the people you will be interviewing with at the employer. They can share, “Interviewer A is obsessed with employment gaps. Be sure to give them a strong, confident explanation of that two months of unemployment.” Or “Interviewer B always wants specific, relevant examples with your answers. Don’t just say, ‘I’m always willing to pitch in to help the team even if it’s not part of my responsibilities.’ Be ready with a specific example of when you did so and what the result was.” (This is pretty good advice in any interview).
Continued Support Throughout the Search
When you work with a recruiter, you never have to worry what is going on with your search. On top of interview prep and employer feedback, your employer will remain in touch with you throughout the duration. A recruiter can coach you through job search challenges, help you keep your spirits up and provide regular feedback. They can support you if your search is going well, too! If you have multiple offers, they can provide insights about the employer so you can make an informed choice. They may even be able to help you negotiate your compensation and start date once you decide. It’s a good idea to remain in touch even after you start your job. When you are ready for your next role, they can let you know if something suitable becomes available. And who knows, you may soon be the one doing the hiring. You may be able to leverage this trusted relationship to find the right candidate.
Specialized Search Unique to Your Needs
Because your recruiter gets to know you, they can prevent you from wasting time on positions that may not be right for you. You might have preferences that are difficult to meet based on a job posting, but the recruiter will know the employer well. If you want to work for a manager who will give you plenty of feedback, for example, they can warn you if your potential supervisor will be more hands-off than you prefer. If you want a job with growth potential, remote options or multiple offices with the possibility of transfer, they can let you know if your expectations are realistic.
Reduces Your Time and Effort
Staffing agencies can get your resume in front of more employers faster than you could on your own. If you are like most people in the market for a new job, your process is something like:
Find a job posting online.
Fill out the application and/or,
Customize your resume.
Draft a unique cover letter.
Wait for a response.
And wait.
You often have no way of knowing if your information got to the right person or got through at all. Also, you can only respond to one post at a time. There’s not really a good way to bulk mail your resume to employers without it looking like spam.
On the other hand, you can expect your experience with a staffing firm to be much better. In most cases, you can complete one application – the one provided by the staffing agency – to be considered for many jobs. The recruiter assigned to you will analyze your resume to determine if any of their client employers have jobs that match your skills. If so, they will reach out to you to speak in more depth regarding what you are looking for in your next position. Armed with this information, they will send your resume/application to hiring managers at one or more employers.
Receive Quality Feedback
The staffing agency advantage doesn’t end there. The recruiter communicates with the employer and can pass their feedback along to you. So instead of you having no idea if anyone had even seen your resume, now you might hear back, “We have applicants with more than five years of experience, and you have only three.” Better still, the recruiter will go to bat for you, telling the hiring manager, “Yes, they have less experience, but in a more relevant industry and they also have other tough-to-find skills you were looking for. Your recruiter is your career advocate.
Have you ever left an interview feeling confident you’d made a great impression and optimistic about getting the offer only to find out they went with another applicant, or worse yet – hear nothing at all? That’s much less likely when you work with a staffing agency. Sometimes the hiring manager isn’t forthcoming and will tell the recruiter something simple like, “We went with a more qualified candidate.” But if the recruiter has a good relationship with the decision-maker, you might get more detail such as, “We really liked your candidate and thought they would be a great fit for the company, but we couldn’t look past them not having X skill. If they get certified, we would be happy to speak with them when we have another opening.” Interviewers tend to be more cautious when they respond to rejected applicants directly. They don’t want to leave themselves open to misinterpretation, liability or retaliation.
Work with RPC Staffing to Find Your Next Contract or Direct Hire Position Today
Are you ready to find your next contract or direct hire position? The recruiters at The RPC Company can help you find the right job faster. Employers know we are much more than just a temp agency in Dallas, we are a trusted recruiting partner offering Fort Worth, TX and Dallas employment services, as well as Springfield, MO and Denver staffing agencies ready to help you find your next job. Because of our relationships with area employers, we have the resources to connect candidates with the positions along every step of their career path from entry to executive level. Search our available jobs to get started.
Get more career advice and job search tips on the RPC blog.
