With your next career move
Financial and accounting employees are some of the most important hires a business owner will make, so who do you trust with the task of recruitment?
Let’s think about this from the point of view of buying a bottle of wine. When searching for the perfect wine accompaniment for your meal, you have two options:
Searching for the right employee is a similar process.
You could approach a multinational recruitment company, that has hundreds of CVs lining its shelves but, ultimately, just wants to get you to the checkout.
Or you could work in partnership with a specialist boutique recruitment agency, who will take the time to understand exactly what you’re looking for and work in partnership with you until you find it.
It’s no surprise that I’m going to recommend you take the same thoughtful approach to recruitment as you would with finding the perfect wine.
So, why are boutique recruitment consultancies the perfect choice for businesses of any size?
Boutique agencies pride themselves on building strong and long-lasting relationships with their clients in a way that many large recruitment companies struggle with, due to their strict financial targets, high turnover of consultants, and rigid processes.
Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, boutique agencies go beyond the surface level and take the time to understand your firm’s specific requirements – your company culture, your team dynamics, and the nuances of your industry.
By building a deeper understanding of your requirements, boutique recruitment companies will present you with candidates who not only meet your technical requirements but also align with your firm’s values. This hiring process is more efficient and effective, resulting in candidates who seamlessly integrate into your team for years to come.
With a boutique recruitment partner, your consultant often becomes a trusted partner and extension of your team. Some of my clients at Perrott Partners Recruitment have worked with me for over twenty years. I know their businesses so well that I can intuitively tell which candidates are right for them… and which aren’t.
Many businesses assume that partnering with a large and well-known recruitment company will make the placements happen faster.
The truth is that larger recruitment agencies place pressure on their recruiters to send candidates within 24 hours of receiving the job details, resulting in candidates being shared with you for the sake of it.
This is a huge waste of time for you, and you’ll find yourself shifting through lots of irrelevant CVs that haven’t been properly vetted by the recruiter.
A boutique recruitment partner saves you time in the long run by taking a quality-over-quantity approach. With fewer clients, they have more time to dedicate to carefully screening candidates before they discuss them with you.
A boutique recruiter’s priority is not to flood clients with CVs in order to look impressive but to meticulously curate a select group of candidates who align not only with the necessary qualifications but also with the specific culture and values of the client’s business.
This meticulousness ensures that every candidate presented is a potential asset, capable of seamlessly integrating into your team and contributing to your long-term success.
Businesses that are looking to hire finance and accounting professionals require the candidate to have a very specific set of technical skills and knowledge.
Boutique recruitment companies that have niched in this area understand the diverse range of roles within the sector, the range of qualifications, and the type of candidates best suited for the role.
In comparison, larger recruitment firms, while offering a wider spectrum of services, often resort to more generalised recruitment approaches. They can lack the specialised insight needed to discern the exceptional from the ordinary in the finance and accounting world.
This could result in candidates who may tick certain boxes on paper, but fail to align with the specific demands of your firm or the intricacies of the financial landscape.
When you entrust your recruitment needs to a boutique agency with niche expertise, you’re embarking on a journey with a partner who understands your world. This distinction can make all the difference in the success of your hiring endeavors.
The cost of recruitment services can vary widely depending on several factors.
In general, large recruitment companies may have higher overhead costs due to their size, brand recognition, and the breadth of services they offer. This could potentially translate into higher fees for their clients.
Boutique recruitment companies typically operate with lower overheads and may be more focused on specific niches or industries, which can allow them to provide more cost-effective services.
Most recruitment companies (including us at Perrott Partners Recruitment) work on a contingency basis, where you don’t pay anything until the agency or recruiter finds you a candidate that you hire. This allows you to get a high quality of service by incentivising the recruiter to find you the right person.
What you may not realise is that some boutique recruitment companies will also partner up with another agency to maximise your search, at no extra cost to you. This is called a “split” and it essentially gives you two agencies for the price of one. It’s relatively uncommon, but it’s something we often utilise at Perrott Partners Recruitment to ensure great results for our clients.
Ultimately, the cost of recruitment services should be weighed against the value they bring in terms of finding the right candidates for the specific needs of your business.
When it comes to recruiting for specific and niche candidates, it pays to think boutique.
If you’re a business that would like support with your finance and accounting recruitment needs, email me at [email protected].
Image Credit: Edmond Dantès
