Staffing Companies–What Will They Think of Next?

Originally posted 2006-06-14 14:00:56

As someone who manages a growing team of people, I often have positions to fill. To assist with finding excellent, highly-qualified, motivated, high-energy people, I work with several staffing firms. When I have an opening, I send them the position description, they send me resumes, I and my team review the resumes, and we interview the people who pass the resume sieve. We hire people based on how they do in the interviews, how well we think they’ll fit on the team, and all the other criteria you’d expect. One item that has no bearing on whether or not we try to bring someone in is the staffing company from whom we received the resume. I don’t play favorites, and I expect that few people do. I have to count on the people I bring in to do the work and make me look good. Making me look good requires talented people!

I understand, however, why staffing companies like to maintain relationships with hiring managers. After all, I send out any openings to a certain number of companies–if you’re not on the list, I don’t send you the position. I also might happen to tip off one company a little early about an opening–perhaps they call right when I get the opening, and I mention it to them before I make the time to put together an email and send it out to the vendors we work with. This gives them a head start on sending me resumes, and once I find someone I want I stop interviewing. That head start might mean the difference between placing someone and not. Keeping their name and their company’s name in my mind might not guarantee that they get more bodies placed, but they at least get to play on the same level, or perhaps a notch or two higher, as the other companies.

A couple of days ago, a package arrived for me (an identical package arrived for the manager who sits beside me). I opened it up to find a remote control helicopter, sent from one of the staffing companies I work with:

(Note that I’ve painted over the staffing company’s name)

Here’s the catch: The FREE REMOTE CONTROL the box extols doesn’t come in the package. Instead, you have to call or email to have a representative come give you the remote control–along with a presentation on why you should do business with them. I feel like I’ve been offered a free weekend at a resort, that I’ve already won one of a TV set, BMW Z4, or a manual food processor that requires the strength of 10 men to dice an onion. I just have to listen to a day-long spiel on why I should plunder my life’s savings to buy a time share.

It’s a nice try, and I’m sure they’ll get some takers. Not me, though–I passed the helicopter on to one of my developers. I’ll have to ask him if he calls to get the remote control.