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it is essential that you can be as comfortable and frank with the consultant as possible, and can establish a genial working relationship. You can normally tell from the first conversation with a consultant whether it's an agency that can work well with your company culture and ethos. A good consultant will often ask questions about the vacant job role and candidate search that might not have hitherto occurred to you. They should always request a meeting with you face to face to find out as much about you, your company and the working environment as possible. This enhances an agency's commitment to your company and allows them to better spot the kind of candidate that will fit in well with your group. When a strong relationship is established it can eventually arrive at the point whereby the consultant becomes so familiar with the type of person your company likes to recruit that even without a defined vacancy on their desk they can identify a candidate that would be an asset specifically to your company on registration and give you a call, alerting you to their existence.

As Katherine says, "if you want to get the best from agencies it is a two way street. You have to make the effort to build relationships with your consultants, so that they know the kind of personal qualities that you're looking for in candidatesyou have to give feedback on everything they send through.."

In the end, we consultants may not be perfect, indeed - I once attempted to exit a meeting via a small stationery cupboard, but did I find the right candidate for the role? Absolutely.

Learn more about this author, Rachel Flynn.
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