We don't like saying no...

Debbie Amankwa

As human beings, it’s in our nature to want to help and as Recruiters we want to help everyone, however this is not always possible.

Why is this you may ask?

Industries – we work for a lot of Industries here however we don’t work for them all which means we can’t cover everything. There are some Industries that we don’t or can’t work for – often this is a decision made not by ourselves.

Skills – we often receive CVs from Candidates where they have skills that we don’t work with. The reason for this is our clients don’t have those vacancies.

Outdated skills – in the majority of cases, our Clients will ask us for current skills in their particular industry as they often do not have time or the budget to train. When reviewing CVs and skill sets, if skill sets are very dated, this is another reason for saying no. In the busy worlds our clients operate in they always want someone to be quickly up to speed.

Job Search covered already – recruitment agencies are engaged with to add value. If a Candidate is registered with a number of agencies, it is likely that their CV will have been sent to a number of employers and therefore to send the CV again is duplicating effort and creating extra work for the employers. Often Candidates will have also applied for roles directly and again, a recruitment agency knowing this should not be sending the CV again as it creates additional work for all parties. Sending CVs to employers that you know have already been covered will not add value for anyone.

Work Permits and Work Visas – where local skills are available, employers will give priority to Candidates who do not require these. Obviously, if this is the case, we find ourselves saying no.

We don’t like being told no, however if we do say no it is based on our knowledge of the Industries, the Clients, their requirements and the local market.

We don’t like saying no as much as you do not hearing this. However our role is to be honest and not to make promises that we can’t deliver. Where we are not able to help, we will always offer suggestions and guidance on the best routes for you to secure work yourselves.

However, clients requirements change, markets changes and peoples skills evolve so it may not be ‘no’ forever but we have to make the decision at that given time. Life would be so much easier if the answer could be ‘yes’ to everything!

Author: Debbie Amankwa

This top notch mid-level recruitment expert is also slightly obsessed with rugby and Formula 1. Did we mention beer? Debbie loves a cold beer.