The role of any manager is to ensure that the team or department they manage, regardless of what it does or the industry it is in, can operate and run efficiently. The manager must be able to understand both the need of their team and also the requirements of the client and ensure that, where possible, every party is given the necessary tools and assistance.
A competent, thoughtful and considered manager will often be able to switch between sectors without much difficulty, especially if the role involves similar tasks – motivating colleagues, providing training, designing campaigns and keeping an eye on KPIs, for example.
But what exactly does it take to become a recruitment manager within a recruitment agency? In this article, we’ll take a look at what the job tends to entail, the skills required to be a success, and the challenges that one is likely to face.
The role’s summary
The role of the recruitment manager is an incredibly important one and also one that comes with a lot of inherent responsibility. It is also worth noting that there are two different types of recruitment manager roles that tend to be seen within recruitment agencies – the billing manager, and the non-billing manager.
The difference between these two is relatively easy to understand – the billing manager tends to focus more on actively pursuing recruitment (while also managing a dedicated team), while the non-billing manager tends to have more of an ‘air controller role’, meaning they keep a bird’s eye view of how the team is operating and performing, and alter approaches or methods when required. However, in essence, both of these roles are somewhat similar, with the pair of them involving many of the same obligations.
Responsibilities of a recruitment manager
- Reviewing ongoing activities, planning for the days/weeks ahead, assessing KPIs and looking at where there are specific opportunities that should be targeted
- Day-to-day management of staff
- Keeping tabs on weekly/monthly/quarterly targets and designing staff
appraisals that will take these into account
- Assessing and analysing sales figures
- Providing training for team members and ensuring all members of staff have exactly what they require to improve
Attributes and characteristics
There are several key qualities that all good recruitment managers tend to have. They include a willingness to work hard, a desire to strive and succeed, an ability to remain positive even when under pressure, the capacity to inspire others even when they are struggling to be motivated, the ability to plan strategically and consider what challenges are liable to arise in the coming weeks and months, and also the capacity to effectively manage time (both on an individual level, and also with regard to the team as a whole).
Key challenges
The challenges are, to a certain extent, aligned to the characteristics required to succeed. Recruitment managers will, for example, face a lot of time pressures and will need to constantly be able to assess performance (both personal and the wider team’s) so as to ensure that goals are targets can be hit.
The role of the recruitment manager is, quite simply, to ensure that the team (or department) is doing everything possible to be of benefit to the client and the company at large, and this requires an immense amount of careful planning and consideration, especially with regard to KPIs, employee performance, client satisfaction and billing.
Navado Talent is a Bristol Rec2Rec serving all recruitment markets across the UK and covering both 180 and 360 recruitment jobs right up to leadership roles. Whether you're looking for a Bristol rec2recto help you recruit for your team or looking for your next recruitment job Navado need's to be your first call.