Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Careers in HRThe HR profession

My next move: switching to HR recruitment

by Personnel Today 20 Jun 2006
by Personnel Today 20 Jun 2006

I am a senior HR business partner in a global IT services business, and have recently conducted a review of our HR recruitment suppliers. The senior HR management team has decided to use two companies. I wish to consider working with these businesses as a candidate. Obviously, this is a delicate situation. How should I approach them, and how can I be sure that they will treat my application confidentially?

This is not an unusual situation. HR recruitment by, its very nature, is self-feeding because clients become candidates and vice-versa. We often secure our clients their next opportunity and work with the interims to recruit their permanent replacement, for example. We have also worked with in-house resourcers who have called us looking for work because their contract has ended, or they are relocating.

As long as you approach it in the right way, there is no reason why you should be treated any differently from another candidate. If you are working with a recruiter as a client and you wish to use their services as a candidate, make sure you make a distinction in your dealings between the two. For example, don’t bring up your career aspirations in a business meeting in which you are the client, as it could create a conflict of interest. Arrange a meeting or conversation separately, ideally outside work hours. The one thing you want to avoid is muddying the waters. A throw-away comment such as: ‘I might send you my CV’ during a fee negotiation meeting will confuse both your employer and the supplier.

Reputable recruitment agencies will have an ‘off-limits’ policy that prevents them from proactively headhunting staff from their major clients, but if you approach them directly, this won’t be an issue. As far as confidentiality is concerned, the recruitment company should follow the same data protection and privacy procedures for you as it does for all of its candidates, so your employer won’t know anything about it until you resign.

On the positive side, entering into a recruitment process with one of your suppliers is a great way to assess how they work and treat candidates. Many HR professionals have been through the process of being a candidate with a particular supplier, and then forming a business arrangement with them as a client later on. It would be very shortsighted of a recruitment business not to treat your application with the utmost professionalism. You clearly rate these suppliers, and should feel comfortable in approaching them for your own purposes.

Avatar
Personnel Today

previous post
Agencies warned not to provide Asda with temps in the event of strikes
next post
Sign our Tax Breaks For Carers petition

You may also like

Movers and shakers June 2022: Lloyds, Indeed, Zoom...

24 Jun 2022

CIPD Festival of Work: ‘Use crises as catalysts...

15 Jun 2022

HR Director of the Year: Ruth Busby on...

31 May 2022

‘It’s International HR Day – wait, you didn’t...

20 May 2022

Squishy, flabby, foggy HR? Andrew Bartlow talks to...

20 May 2022

Movers and shakers May 2022: John Lewis and...

20 May 2022

Movers and shakers April 2022: Santander UK appoints...

22 Apr 2022

Time to kill off the HR business partner?...

8 Apr 2022

HR careers survey: three in four confident about...

30 Mar 2022

Movers and shakers March 2022: Appointments at Domino’s,...

14 Mar 2022
  • NSPCC revamps its learning strategy with child wellbeing at its heart PROMOTED | The NSPCC’s mission is to prevent abuse and neglect...Read more
  • Diversity versus inclusion: Why the difference matters PROMOTED | It’s possible for an environment to be diverse, but not inclusive...Read more
  • Five steps for organisations across the globe to become more skills-driven PROMOTED | The shift in the world of work has been felt across the globe...Read more
  • The future of workforce development PROMOTED | Northumbria University and partners share insight...Read more
  • Strathclyde Business School expands its Degree Apprenticeship offer in England PROMOTED | The University of Strathclyde is expanding its programmes...Read more
  • The Search for Talent: Six Major Employer Pitfalls PROMOTED | The Great Resignation continues unabated...Read more
  • Navigating the widening “Skills Confidence Gap” in 2022, and beyond PROMOTED | Cornerstone OnDemand conducted a global study...Read more
  • Apprenticeships are the solution to your recruitment problems PROMOTED | Apprenticeships have the pulling power...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+