In our experience, we have found that there are a number of myths associated with the legal recruitment industry. Some - but not all - have their base in reality. We have attempted here to provide some honest and objective advice on the most commonly held assumptions and misunderstandings and invite you to make up your own mind.
- Why use a recruiter - surely I'd be better off going direct?
Some people believe that the fact that recruiters charge a placement fee to their law firm clients means that they will have a better chance of getting the job if they approach the firm directly.
Of course, all law firms given the straight choice would prefer to avoid paying a recruitment fee and a few may even say so on their website pages. Some very small firms may have a slight prejudice against candidates coming through recruitment firms, but for the leading commercial law firms that make up our target market, cost simply does not factor into the recruitment decision. These firms are only interested in hiring the best people for the job and the partners making the ultimate decision have no regard whatsoever to the source of your introduction. You would probably be worried if they did. The vast majority of new lawyers hired by these firms arrive via legal recruiters and law firms are happy to pay for this valuable service.
What people do sometimes forget are the many and real benefits associated with using a specialist legal recruiter. These include:
Hassle factor
It really can be extremely time consuming for an individual to research the market, identify potentially suitable roles, locate the individuals they need to approach, and prepare and send off the appropriate paperwork. This is to say nothing of the time involved in arranging interviews and the difficulty of taking calls from prospective employers whilst at work. Using a good recruiter really does take a lot of the hassle out of the entire recruitment process.
Control
Particularly when you are making multiple applications, it can be hard to stay in control of the process. You will often find that the law firms you are approaching operate to different timescales and it can be difficult to co-ordinate interviews and manage offers without frustrating the very people you're trying to impress. It really can help to have a recruiter acting as the interface between you and the prospective employers. Not only does this reduce the administrative burden, but it can be much more comfortable for you to be one step removed from the front line.
Other options
You may think that you've spotted the perfect job and are anxious to get your CV off to the client and get the ball rolling. But have you considered the other options? Moving jobs is an extremely important decision and most lawyers are keen to make sure that they have covered all their bases, so that they can make a truly informed decision. By using a recruiter, you can be sure that you are aware of all the current opportunities. You then have the choice of pressing ahead with just one or comparing and contrasting several firms as you go through the recruitment process. Sometimes a bit of healthy law firm competition can even strengthen your negotiating hand.
Feedback
Law firms often find it much easier to provide full, frank and constructive feedback to a recruiter intermediary, than to the candidate directly, particularly when there is a pre-existing relationship between the candidate and certain individuals at the prospective employer firm. Similarly, it is much harder for a candidate to chase a firm for feedback or a decision when they have made the approach directly. We, on the other hand, will have a strong and close relationship with the client and, as a consequence, are able to be slightly bolder.
The inside track
Even if you know the firm well or have friends there, a trusted recruiter is often able to give you useful background, hints and tips you might not be able to find elsewhere. For example, a recruiter will be able to give you a good idea as to interview format (and content) and should also be able to give you some indication as to your competition as you progress. Unless your contact is at a similar level and in the same team, salary is another area on which it can be hard for your friends to advise.
Impartial advice
Ultimately, it will be your decision and you will make up your mind according to your own criteria. Of course, you will want to discuss things with your family and friends, but it can certainly help to have advice from a recruiter that knows the firms and the market well and understands all the issues.
Unadvertised positions
The vast majority of law firm jobs are never formally advertised. Often a firm isn't actively looking for a new recruit, but as a trusted recruiter we'll hear: "we're not looking….but if we see someone with [X] we'd be very interested". Sometimes a firm doesn't even know it needs someone until the perfect CV lands on the right partner's desk. A good recruiter will work with you to identify all the potential opportunities.
Anonymity
A good recruiter should be able to make ‘no names’ exploratory investigations with firms on your behalf. This approach makes it much easier to re-apply at a later time if the firm(s) you are interested in have no current opportunities. Direct approaches are much more likely to be ‘one shot’ only.
Offer negotiation
Your recruiter can also help when it comes to offer negotiation. It is often hard to negotiate an improved package directly with the law firm concerned and it can be more comfortable to conduct these delicate negotiations through a trusted intermediary.
Recruiter influence
Being honest and putting aside the other benefits of using a recruiter for one minute, a very strong candidate for a particular position is probably just as likely to get an interview by applying directly as he or she would by using a recruiter. Most law firms have a pretty good idea of what they're ideally looking for and when they see it, they are keen to snap it up.
However, there are numerous occasions where a good recruiter can make a real difference to a candidate's chances of getting that all important foot in the door. It may be that, say, your experience, academics or age are, on the face of it, likely to work against you for a particular job vacancy. There is only so much 'sell' you can do on yourself and it is in these circumstances that a good recruiter's strong relationship with a particular client can make all the difference.
We're not trying to say that we can get anyone an interview for any job, but our advice and opinion is valued by our clients. If we think that you are right for job (notwithstanding the fact that you might not have the perfect profile), you can bet that we'll be doing our utmost to convince our client to see you.
One final word on the subject of direct applications: if you want to really, really upset your recruiter, the easiest way is to let them tell you all about a new role and give you lots of advice and inside information about the firm, say thank you very much and then go off and send an application to the firm directly. Fortunately, this sort of behaviour doesn't happen very often, but when it does, you're likely to find a frustrated and less than happy recruiter at the other end of the phone!
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- I want to use my personal contacts
There is no doubt that personal contacts can be useful when it comes to securing a new role - we've all been taught the benefits of networking after all - but before making a direct approach to a contact it is important to think carefully about the realities of the situation. Just because your contact is a senior individual within your target firm does not necessarily mean that he or she will have any influence on your individual recruitment decision. Most of the larger commercial law firms have increasingly formal and centralised recruitment processes and decision making is becoming more and more transparent. Your contact might be reluctant to interfere and may be less than delighted to have been put in that position. Personal contacts can also sometimes find it embarrassing to give bad news and, in these circumstances, you will rarely receive full, frank and constructive feedback.
At the end of the day, it's up to you to decide whether a direct approach to a personal contact is likely to help your cause; there is no doubt that sometimes the approach will be welcomed and it can work out very well. However, if you are in any doubt, we would suggest working with your recruiter to make the best use of your contact without risking putting them in a compromising position. Our usual approach would be to make the application on your behalf in the usual way, but mention to our client that you have a personal contact at the firm whom they may wish to approach for an informal reference. Nine times out of ten they will take up the opportunity.
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- Wouldn't I be better off talking to lots of recruiters, rather than just one?
Some lawyers believe that if they speak to lots of recruiters, they will have a greater chance of hearing about that perfect job. More recruiters, means more clients, means more jobs, or so the argument goes. The reality, as always, is not quite so simple.
In some markets, such as the legal in-house sector, organisations tend to instruct one recruiter on a particular recruitment assignment. Given that no one recruiter will be instructed on all (or even most) of the in-house jobs that are active at any one time, it probably does make sense for a candidate to register with a number of reputable agencies to ensure that they hear about a reasonable selection of new jobs.
The private practice market is very different. Most commercial law firms will rely on a number of recruitment agencies to help satisfy their recruitment needs as no single agency is able to provide access to the entire candidate market. This means that a number of the better and/or larger agencies will inevitably have been instructed on (mostly) the same jobs.
This means a number of things. Firstly, if you are comfortable that the recruiter you would like to use has a good reputation and strong client relationships in your target market, you can be pretty confident that they will be instructed on most, if not all, of the jobs with the firms you are likely to be interested in. Secondly, if you instruct lots of agencies, you will have lots of recruiters calling you about exactly the same new job.
If you are a lawyer who is interested in hearing about jobs from Adelaide to Aberdeen, with high street firms and international giants, we would suggest that there is real value in talking to a number of agencies to ensure that you are getting the wide market coverage you require. However, if your geographic parameters are limited and you are fairly clear on the type of firm you would like to join, then if you choose carefully, you should be able to find a single recruiter that is more than capable of providing full coverage of your target market.
From our point of view, our hard work is more likely to be rewarded if we are handling all your applications for you, rather than having to 'share' you with another recruiter. For obvious reasons, we prefer it that way.
Clients, too, often prefer it when one recruiter is handling all the applications for a prospective employee. They accept that candidates will often want to talk to a number of firms before making their decision, but they do want to be confident that the playing field is level and that the whole process will progress smoothly.
With one trusted recruiter in the background helping to move things along deftly and sensitively, the chances are that both you and your prospective employers will feel more comfortable and in control.
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- A recruiter's loyalty is only to its law firm client
It is true that our law firm clients pay our bills at the end of the month, but we simply won't get paid if we can't attract the high calibre candidates our clients seek. Our reputation would quickly suffer if we did not treat all our candidates with the respect and professionalism they deserve and we would soon struggle to satisfy our clients' needs. The honest, open and professional approach we adopt with our candidates is not only more satisfying for us, but it also ultimately serves our long term business interests. Recruitment is a fairly unique business, but at Career Counsel we really do take our responsibilities for both clients and candidates very seriously.
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- Recruiters are only interested in the commission
We won't try to pretend that we recruit out of the goodness of our heart - you wouldn't believe us if we did - but we do genuinely want the best for our candidates. Of course, we're running a business and we do, ultimately, get paid by results, but we get as much satisfaction from a job well done as we do from our commission cheque. We are looking to build long term relationships with our law firm clients and the chances are, if you are happy with your choice, they will be too.
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- What happens if my new job doesn't work out?
Most recruiters have rebate provisions for the rare situations where, for whatever reason, a new recruit does not work out and decides, or is asked, to leave his or her new firm soon after starting. Generally the rebate period lasts for 3 to 6 months and the firm receives a percentage of the recruitment fee back from the recruiter (but you don't need to worry about the financial part!). Clearly it is in all parties' interests to get the fit right in the first place and, thankfully, these unfortunate situations are extremely rare. However, should you find yourself in a difficult position with your new firm, we would work with you and our client to try and resolve the situation amicably. Should this not be possible, we will do all we can to help you secure a new position elsewhere as quickly as possible.
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- How much will it all cost me?
For candidates, the recruitment service costs absolutely nothing at all. Our law firm clients pay us commission, which is calculated as a set percentage of your first year salary. We do charge candidates for some of our specialist psychometric and career counselling services, but these are all entirely optional. Our rates are extremely competitive and we will always let you know in advance if a particular service does incur any fee.
