Operating in the recruitment space you must surely have seen the REC’s “Good Recruitment Campaign“. However, it’s possible you’ve missed the detail. That’s why we asked Steve Othen who is Head of Strategic Projects at the REC to give us a full run down.
If you were to ask an REC member what they think should be on our list of priorities, I can assure you that the majority of them would say that they want their clients to know who we are. They want their clients (and potential clients) to know what being a member of the REC means and that we should be making this happen.
Over the years, our awareness amongst the employer network and HR departments (and membership requirements on tender requests) has steadily increased. However, we know we have a long way to go before we get to the stage where the first question a recuiter is asked is ‘Are you a member of the REC?’ or ‘Do you possess an IRP qualification?’. It’s a long road but we have a brand new vehicle to help us get there!
Around 12-18 months ago we brought together a group of professionals from a range of business bodies including CIPD, ILM, CBI, DEA and FSB. This allowed us to involve the voices of HR & leadership as well as from organisations, both large and small. These were joined by talent, HR and resourcing figures from a range of businesses; including Care UK, Penguin Random House, Dixons Retail, G4S, NHS Employers, a local authority and Santander. A range of industries across both the public and private sector.
This group (that we are now calling the Employers’ Advisory Panel) came together to discuss various topics – skill shortages, candidate experience, flexible work, youth employment and much more. The group exchanged different views but all agreed on one thing – as we were coming out of recession, and the employment market had started to take-off, employers of all sizes needed something to guide them with their talent attraction, something for them to benchmark against, something to answer the question – what is good recruitment? And so, the Good Recruitment Campaign was born.
The centrepiece of the campaign is an aspirational charter that contains nine principles, to which we are encouraging employers to commit. Those that sign-up to the charter are then furnished with research and guidance around their recruitment processes. They will be provided with a recruitment process self-assessment document and access to networking opportunities to share knowledge and best practice with peers from other organisations. Employers get all of this, free of charge!
Sounds great for employers, but how does this help members?
For our members this is huge! Our CEO Kevin Green has, on more than one occasion, described the GRC as one of the most important campaigns in REC history. Just a few of the reasons are:
– Making the badge mean more! We are engaging employers around a number of topics and, in turn, educating them on who we are and what being a member of REC means. Helping clients understand good recruitment practice will help them understand how to spot a great agency.
– Adding value! The campaign gives our members a whole new conversation to have with their clients and an opportunity to give them heaps of info for free. A simple “Have you heard about the Good Recruitment Campaign?” can lead to conversations around resource planning, diversity, employer brand, and candidate experience or youth employment. We really see this as a way of promoting a partnership approach rather than employers seeing our industry as a commodity purchase.
– Business Development! We have already have instances where members have won clients off the back of introducing them to the campaign. We can even provide template slides and collateral for members to hold their own GRC networking events.
As I mentioned earlier, it’s not a quick journey but we are taking some big steps in the right direction, and that’s the way we’ll keep moving.
Recruiters, in-house teams and employs that want to find more information about the Good Recruitment Campaign can do so by visiting www.rec.uk.com/Goodrecruitment , by dropping me a line on Twitter @SteveOthenREC or feel free to email me at steve.othen@rec.uk.com
