How to Choose the Right Recruiter to Help Your Manufacturing Company Grow

Finding the right people to join your manufacturing company is essential to its growth and success. Experienced recruiters help you identify and hire the right people to grow your team's skill sets. They can provide you with a comprehensive recruitment solution that includes job postings, candidate sourcing, interviewing, reference checks, onboarding, and more.

1. Assess What You Need from Your Recruiter

Confidential? Forward planning for an employee retiring? Brand new role to fill a gap? Sudden receipt of a notice period unexpectidly? There are so many reasons you may be looking to recruit for a role and having someone on hand who can be honest, approachable yet confident enough to challenge you and set realistic expectations is essential in filling the position. Do you already know the role is hard to fill? Have you used recruiters already and finding the same under qualified candidates? Has anyone taken the time to sit down with you and explain the current market? Firstly having an understanding of you, the team and the business needs to happen in order to find the right candidate. You may rule someone unsuitable because they we’re a little reserved in the interview. Once we know you as a person and as a company we know how each candidate will fit. It certainly isnt all about experience for roles, you need to work with this person each day and finding that right FIT is essential. As long as you know what you need from a recruiter and are open to the challenging questions it will go a long way in shortlisting the right type of people.

2. Seek Out an Engineering and Manufacturing Recruitment Specialist
We have all had experiences with what we would consider recruiters who do not understand the role and this is why it is so important that we remain within our specialists. Our candidate’s and clients have always been within Manufacturing, Engineering and Chemical. We know the roles, we know the clients, we know that we wouldn’t go to the vets if we had toothache so why would we go to a recruiter with no industry knowledge? Our confidence in our knowledge is what allows us to present clients with salary benchmarking, interview strategies, honest feedback and ultimately what defines us as a company. We are proud to support such fantastic SME’s within the industry and our candidates go on to become our senior leadership team.

3. Do Your Research on the Best Recruiters in Your Area
Speak to people, network, use Linkedin, search reviews online. A good recruiter will interact with you on a human level and want to intergrate themselves as an extended arm of your own team. A recruiter should become your go to external resource for any upcoming vacancies and should also be able to point you in the direction of someone they would recommend if it is outside of their specialty. Handley James has been in the recruitment business for enough time that people know our consultants and feel they can contact them so ask at networking events who they currently use and what their experience has been like using them. We of course believe our strategies, team and approach give us the leading edge but speak to our clients and get their opinions too.

4. Ask for Recommendations from Your Peers in Engineering and Manufacturing

“Why did you select Handley James? Initially based on meeting Natalie and Peter at a Manufacturers Alliance seminar and also on the recommendation of Gary at the MA. For second and third roles - based on their performance for us.

How well did they get to know your business and what you do/how you work? Both Natalie and Peter have taken the time to understand our business quite well by visiting and asking a lot of questions.

How successful have the placement/’s been?  All three have been in the last 9 months and have been very successful.  The most recent even being closed during the lockdown.

How has the candidate impacted your business?  The more senior roles have helped me build a much more balanced and effective senior leadership team.

What would you say are the top 3 elements of the Handley James service that stood out for you?  All candidates we have interviewed have been thoroughly vetted and ended up with a positive view of both Handley James, and most importantly, of our company. HJ seem to have a good sense of the type of person who will fit into our company culture.  They keep you informed, but without being too pushy.

Would you recommend Handley James?  Yes, with no hesitation. (Indeed I already have!)

With an experienced team of recruiters on board, you can rest assured that you will have access to a pool of qualified individuals who are ready to take up new roles in your manufacturing company.