This is the latest expert opinions and analysis of the future of recruitment.

Whether you love them, hate them or want to put all of them on a rocket and launch it into the sun, we can all agree that recruiters are a mixed bunch but I guess that's the same as most industries.

But what about the industry as a whole? What’s it doing? Where’s it going? Is it even doing anything?

How much exciting change can happen in an age old industry that revolves around throwing piles of resumes at hiring managers I hear you ask.

Well as much it may surprise you, the answer is a fair lot.

I was very fortunate enough to attend a Future of Recruitment panel hosted by Linkedin and hear from some very engaged and intelligent individuals from within the space.

Here are some of the Interesting tidbits and insights from my collections of hastily scribbled notes that I would love to share:

“From 2008 until 2018 the amount of recruitment agencies and recruiters has doubled. However the expectations of clients as well as the level of intensity in the industry is increasing”

That’s a good sign on the growth of the industry. But more competition also means increased client expectations and intensity. There is evidence of this as counter offers and other barriers to the recruitment process are at a peak since 2008 according to the speakers.

“Approximately 60% of recruiters had changed jobs in the last 12 months so the industry attrition rate is quite high.”

Fair enough, recruiting has traditionally always had a high attrition rate.

“Industry leaders anticipate the stagnation or decline of large recruitment firms and the rise of specialized boutique agencies.”

To prove my point, the organizers did an exercise. It was revealed that out of 60 recruiters at the event, only 1 of them was from a recruitment agency with more than 50 recruiters. Bye bye big brands recruiters, hello Boutique agencies!

“Industry leaders also emphasize the rise of marketing driven recruiting and the decline of sales driven recruitment. Whether your candidates trust you is the number one deciding factor in the success of your placement”

Addressing the candidate experience is now a huge factor, e.g. how are you and your brand perceived in the space? We’ve all had poor candidate experiences but imagine the horror stories from poor recruiter experiences. Managing your brand and image is more important than ever and a huge part of that is to being authentic.

“Branding effectively through authenticity as well as becoming thought leaders in the your respective space is now the proven method of dominating your niche e.g providing quality content and insights to clients without expecting anything in return.”

One panel spokesperson cited an example where he provides value to his clients by sending emails with quality industry insights and information without always insisting on a call to action or something in return. This is a great example of the value recruiters can can enhance your brand by building trust. How do you build trust? Consistent value is the answer.

“Increasing automation software will reduce the mundane workload of recruiters but the “human touch” will always be needed. Experts foresee a shift in the responsibilities of recruiters decreasing in mundane tasks like CV reading and more towards creative tasks like marketing, branding and content creation that software is unable to create.”

One expert cited a story where they found a unicorn candidate perfect for a role with no indication or hints from their resume. This example is a perfect indicator of why I believe ai/automation/technology with its current capabilities will never replace recruitment, you simply can’t replicate that “human touch”. Until the day we have algorithms and code able to quantify sentiments and the accompanying emotions that comes from connecting with humans, we will always need recruiters.

If you are interested in joining this fun, dynamic and rewarding industry we would love to hear from you. Contact us through any of our channels.