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Recruitment Matters Magazine Article
15th February 2010
Following his recent award of "UK Recruiter of the Year", our Director Jody Marks has recently appeared in the Recruitment Matters magazine, the magazine for recruitment industry leaders:
It's 2nd time lucky for JODY MARKS, - last year a runner up in the Permanent Consultant category, he is now "Recruiter of the Year". Marks has been a recruiter for 9 years and has worked hard to push his recruitment philosophy on to others: To provide a professional service based on long term relationships and quality of service.
"Company fit" is a vital part of the screening process, and that, says Marks, means giving clients "what they want - not what we think they want."
"A lot of recruiters think they know what clients want but they don't listen enough to what they are asking for" says Marks. "They say they can offer you a solution that's cheaper or will save you time, but if, the quality's not there then three months down the line you end up paying double"
"Two years ago recruitment was easy; now you have to fight for jobs" he says. "It's a real chance to show you are different. 2009 has been not just about making as many placements as possible but keeping relationships with clients going while refining and retuning your skills. Often this has meant giving clients market information and other value-added services such as recruitment open evenings free of charge and maintaining contact even when there are no vacancies to discuss".
"We were prepared to go the extra mile and help our clients and so they came and are continuing to come back to us. The guys in my team have an ethos - if you give the customer what they want they will always come back to you; the first time you slip up is the last time you will work for them."
Marks' experiences have given him a strong vision of how the industry can operate and how it needs to change, which is why he won the Recruiter of the Year - the first under the IRP banner:
"The IRP is definitely the way the industry should go," he says. "A recruiter should be seen as more than just a recruiter, as a proper professional. Look at HR, lawyers, accountants - they know where they are from. I want to be part of an industry that's standardised."
Marks has always been an advocate of standardising practices and access to the REC's training resources has helped him work with his team to offer a consistent, quality approach. And clients are listening:
"Word is getting out - two years ago no-one has heard of the REC," he says. "Over the last year, when I went to see a client, I talked first and foremost about my company and then about the IRP and how we work to a code of ethics, and about standards and quality. That gives clients further security and confirms their belief that they are right to be working with a REC member rather than some one man band."
Now Marks is looking forward to the challenges of his reign as "Recruiter of the Year":
"When I won, Kevin Green (REC Chief Exec), said to me 'you're the role model now'. and that really made me think", he says. "It's a challenge to push myself even further and if it means I can help change the industry then i'm excited to be at the forefront of that, It means I have the opportunity to work more closely with the IRP - I can learn more and hopefully they can learn from me and my knowledge of the industry.
