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Recruitment CRM should be the FIRST system used to drive sales, source candidates, convert leads... but often, it's a dumb system, a data dump, "just another bit of recruitment kit" preventing phone and face time. Our clients agree with our mantra "CRMFirst" and want to ensure that their recruitment software is implemented to deliver the 4Cs - candidates, client, colleagues, and cash.
Recruitment CRM - AKA the Sales-Prevention Software
Maybe you’ve had your Recruitment CRM for longer than you’ve had most of your employees and you’re hearing lots of the same moans and groans:
it’s not working
it’s always crashing
I can’t find any candidates in it
my 1980’s Atari felt more up to date
there is no management info because no one’s using it!
The decision has been made to replace your recruitment CRM. You’ve spent 6 months sourcing a new one, another 6 months implementing it and would you believe it, 6 months later and you’re still hearing the same old moans and groans.
How can you give BAU (business as usual) the best chance of success?
Business as Usual Starts Before BAU
It may sound obvious, but many Recruitment CRM projects struggle at the embedding phase due to inadequate post go live planning. It’s not surprising. There is a HUGE amount to do during implementation and the project team are normally spread thin focusing on getting the new system in a fit state for go live.
There are many strategies to planning and managing BAU (business as usual). My favourite is having a BAU project team involved mid-way through implementation. Their responsibility is to plan, support and manage the embedding of the CRM into business over the next 12 months. Their job is to make sure that your investment returns! (ROI)
“That’s a big investment“, I hear you say. However, what is the cost of a disgruntled workforce being negative or the disruption of losing many people or the lost opportunities of your current and future clients? And with 2/3 of job leavers quitting due to lack of training, and the average 10 person recruiters wasting £100,000 per year on replacing leavers, something has to change.
Investing in the BAU is almost more important that the implementation process itself; underestimate the BAU support requirements at your peril.
Management are THE Key to Success CRM Change
Management don’t need to know how to use the CRM, right? WRONG!
Management / Directors / Team Leaders all need to know exactly how everyone should be using the system so they can support and train their teams at go live and beyond.
All too often, “Super Users” are trained to deliver this message but they tend to be sales administrators, busy consultants or new recruits. They don’t have the status within the business to try to invoke change or persuade the biggest billers why they should change their habits and behaviours!
The adage of “Coming from the Top” really is true when you’re managing CRM Implementation Projects. These are not technology projects, they are Change Management Projects and the only people who can change the business are the leaders and managers of that business.
It’s All About Communicating Expectations
When a recruiter hears the following “We are going to change the CRM”, what they really hear is “Yippee, a new CRM. It’s just like upgrading my car; it will be shiny and faster and way better than what I had, oh and I know how to drive so it will be easy to adapt!”
This can lead to my personal favourite user statement “The previous system was so much better/easier!”. No, the previous system which was built on highly suspect 1980’s technology that continuously failed and you always complained about, was more FAMILIAR. As a project team, you have to prepare users for change and this starts not at Go Live, but much earlier during the implementation phase.
Key Rules when Implementing a New Recruitment CRM
Ensure you tell everyone that CHANGE is coming and everyone needs to get on-board!
The system will not be perfect from day 1, everyone needs to prepare to communicate issues and be ready for CHANGE!
There will be BUGS (potentially a lot and for a lot longer that you’d like!) Live with them whilst the project team sorts them out!
Get SLAs (service level agreements) in place – ensure you respond to EVERY issue and communicate an update or fix to the business (if it warrants it) or the individual on a pre-agreed timeframe.
We work with Recruitment and IT leaders to deliver an ROI and sales-led recruitment technology strategy. Our mantra is “CRMFirst”!
HIIT Us, Recruiters!
Our high intensity interval training (Recruitment HIIT) helps recruiters source, convert quicker and develop healthy pipelines. Recruitment HIIT is an exciting recruitment training platform for recruiters to speedily learn skills to be more successful with Adapt, Bullhorn, LinkedIn, Job Adverts, Inbound Sales, Digital and Email Marketing. Try Recruitment HIIT for free, or arrange a call with me - press one of the magic buttons below.
TRY RECRUITMENT HIIT FOR FREE
READ ABOUT HOW WE DELIVER RECRUITMENT TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY
BOOK A CALL TO DISCUSS RECRUITMENT TRAINING
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Lisa Jones
Blog
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Recruitment leaders who want to get ROI from their recruitment tech, have marketing deliver viable candidates and leads, and make sure that their recruiters are super-productive, need to listen to this recruitment podcast…Oh! And if as a recruitment leader you are looking to hire more recruiters, this podcast has a couple of great ideas to help you with your own recruitment strategy. Straight Talking - No Messing - Advice for Recruitment LeadersDo you know the value of your business?A buyer will typically be looking at 60-70% of profits coming from temporary or contract recruiting. Do you know how many of your recruiters quit last year simply because they did not have the training to do their job?Do you know what your marketing function should be doing to generate the 4Cs? (Candidates, clients, colleagues, and cash?)In this episode of the Recruitment Leaders’ Podcast, I'm delighted (understatement!) to be talking to Greg Savage. He offers some "straight talking - no messing - advice for recruitment leaders who want to be more successful".I talked to Greg about:What are the main changes he feels have happened in the recruitment industry?What are most recruitment leaders doing differently at the moment?Where is the “danger”?What are investors who are looking to buy your business looking for?What does he think of permanent dominant-recruitment businesses?What could add the most value to your recruitment business? And devalue it?How can we attract the best recruiters?What 3 things are crucial for recruiters to be trained in?What are the three skills every recruitment leader is going to need in the next 3-5 years?This is seriously one of my favourite recruitment leader interviews and I think every recruitment leader (current or budding) will benefit from spending 30 minutes listening to this and planning their strategy.We talked about how there isn’t enough process around recruitment CRM systems. Listen to this episode of the Recruitment Leaders' podcast to hear more.And for recruitment marketers who want to demonstrate and deliver ROI from their marketing efforts, check out our blog post on connecting recruitment sales and marketing.Listen to this Recruitment Leaders' Podcast!Thanks, Greg, for being such great guest on my Recruitment Leaders’ Podcast.Listen and subscribe to the rest of Barclay Jones’ Recruitment Leader Podcast Series on SoundCloud or find us on iTunes!HIIT Us, Recruiters!Our high intensity interval training (Recruitment HIIT) helps recruiters source, convert quicker and develop healthy pipelines. Recruitment HIIT is an exciting recruitment training platform for recruiters to speedily learn skills to be more successful with Adapt, Bullhorn, LinkedIn, Job Adverts, Inbound Sales, Digital and Email Marketing. Try Recruitment HIIT for free, or arrange a call with me - press one of the magic buttons below.TRY RECRUITMENT HIITBOOK A CALL TO DISCUSS MARKETING TRAININGREAD ABOUT OUR MARKETING TRAINING
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Joni Smith
Blog
F**k Corona! Time to Get Fit, Recruiters!
Prior to today, 60% of recruiters found it hard to deliver results day in and day out. Who knows what the figure is now? We are all on one almighty pit stop! BUT the race is still on - you've not been retired!The recruiters that we work with are shell shocked - there is no book on the current situation. Every day is a new day, with data and news to either make you smile or frown. For those of us who have been through a recession, it's flipping tough - BUT there will be an end to it, and you will be defined by how quick you get out of your pit stop, and get back on the track! This blog is perfect for recruiters who need to focus during this distracting time, and to up the ante and get back in gear!Corona will be smashed! Where will you be when it is?Five Ways to Be Your Best Recruiter Self! I’ll give you 5 tips that will boost your mood, your results, and (ideally) your pay packet! Be Recruitment Fit - A survey of 2,500 companies found that those with “comprehensive training programs” have 218% higher revenue per employee and 24% higher profit margins. So, set dedicated time aside every week to improve your skill, whether you’re new to recruitment, or been in the game a little longer. Ongoing learning will really set you apart from your competitors. This is the time to really “gen up”! Don’t waste it. And don’t wait for your manager to tell you to train yourself. Take control! Know Your Market: 61% of sales prospects said they would be more responsive if they were provided with relevant information. So, you need to know what’s going on in the market. What are you doing to keep abreast of current affairs in your clients market? Do you know what’s happening globally, nationally, or even in their local town that may be effecting their ability to grow business? Yes, the obvious news is the big C word, but there is more than this going on – aim for What’s Your Plan? As the old adage goes, failing to plan equates to planning to fail! This is where too many recruiters go wrong. They land a great job to fill and hit the phones straight away, with very little direction. allocate time to think about options - where might your candidate be now? where might this go wrong - what might I struggle to find - plan for this! Be Consultative Not Sales Driven: 51% of sales leaders focus on increasing customer retention through deeper relationships. Sales are important, but your clients and candidates want to know that you understand their needs. This is SO important right now. Learn what they need. What are their current pain points? What are the key skills that they are struggling to recruit for? Now that recruitment may be on hold (or the total opposite) what can you offer in terms of advice. What are your candidates' motivations? What ignites a fire in their belly about their current role? Find out what their plans are beyond Corona! Actively Recruit At All Times. Just because you don’t have a role to fill right now or you’ve already got your short list together, it doesn’t mean you can sit back and relax! Absolutely not! Recruiters spend, on average, nearly 1/3 of their work week (about 13 hours) sourcing candidates for a single role. Great Recruiters are always recruiting. Make sure you regularly use your CRM to source great candidates which can be built into a search / shortlist ready to go when you win new business. Again, Corona has created a pit stop - use this time to train and network like you mean it! Get cracking with your best practice. Be the recruiter you've likely always wanted to be, but ironically candidates and clients have got in the way! :-)HIIT Us, Recruiters!Our high intensity interval training (Recruitment HIIT) helps recruiters source, convert quicker and develop healthy pipelines. Recruitment HIIT is an exciting recruitment training platform for recruiters to speedily learn skills to be more successful with Adapt, Bullhorn, LinkedIn, Job Adverts, Inbound Sales, Digital and Email Marketing. Try Recruitment HIIT for free, or arrange a call with me - press one of the magic buttons below.TRY RECRUITMENT HIITREAD ABOUT OUR RECRUITMENT TRAININGBOOK A CALL TO DISCUSS RECRUITMENT TRAININGPS. F**k stands for funk ;-)PPS: Lisa is running a webinar for recruiters and recruitment marketers who need to stay focused on - click here for more info about how sales and marketing can work together and be smart in this turbulent time.
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