Full interview with Wattle Run Director Dr Jenny Fisher

Q: What did you notice about your business/role/team that made you realise you needed to recruit a new team member, could be any role/s we have recruited for in the past? For example, was a role vacant for quite a while, which was impacting your customers? Or putting more stress on other team members?

A: We sought assistance for the recruiting because we didn’t have anyone in the company who could fill the skill set we were seeking. We weren’t confident that we had the time or experience to sort applicants or to target the most appropriate applicants. There was a gap in the organisation and the critical tasks associated with the role were being left undone because other employees already had many demands they had to meet. It created enormous stress because while we knew the tasks had to be completed, there wasn’t anyone to attend to them. Attempting to address the “gap” consumed a lot of energy which should have been directed elsewhere.

Q: Did you try to recruit for this role on your own beforehand? If so, can you tell me a little bit more about what challenges you were facing with DIY recruitment? What problems were you running into?

A: Our previous experience with someone in the role wasn’t very fruitful. Their skills were not deep enough for the role and they weren’t a good fit for the culture. The cost to the company to accommodate that situation isn’t easily measureable – but it becomes very evident in the way a team functions.

To try then source an appropriate person to fit the role was very time consuming and confusing. Some applicants didn’t arrive for their interviews. Some were not qualified for the position but hoped that they would “wing it” to success. Some were overly confident and said that they could do the role but in reality didn’t have the skills.

Recruiting isn’t our core business. We needed to hand the task over to someone who could invest the time and energy into the task; someone who had the skills to discern which applicants were a good fit and had the experience to draw upon. This decision to hand the task over the a professional company freed us up to focus on other important company matters, especially when a company’s agility to respond to change and foresee trends is critical.

Q: Once we were able to help you secure a new hire(s), what did you notice about the impact that had on your team/business?

A: On numerous occasions we have had sought assistance from Recruit Shop. Enlisting their help has proven to be a very wise decision. Drawing upon the skill set of the people who work at Recruit Shop, reduced the amount of time wasted by the company on “false” starts and opened up a whole range of possibilities because Recruit Shop offered options that we hadn’t previously considered. They sent through high calibre candidates so we could concentrate on making a decision on which candidate “fitted” our company culture.

Q: What are some of the benefits that you’ve noticed since they started?

A: The successful candidates have performed beyond our expectations. While a judgement was made based upon the interview, once the applicant settled into our company, they revealed they had greater capacity and willingness to learn than was evident in the interview. A successful candidate creates a dynamic in an organisation that can build the culture and a trusting relationships among staff. The new staff communicate openly and honestly with others and share their knowledge willingly. As a result the knowledge in the organisation has grown.

Q: What impact has the new hire had on you?

A: The new people have reduced the stress on me because I am confident that they can do their work competently, that they have strong relationships with other members of the organisation and they are value adding to the team. I can trust them to work both collaboratively and autonomously if required.

Q: Have you noticed a positive impact on your team, or your business?

A: Absolutely. The impact of the right people working together is transformative – for the people who work here and for the future of the company. This has been our experience.

Q: What would you say was the best part of your experience with us?

A: The best part of the experience has been the company’s responsiveness, its capacity to actively listen to our requirements and ask important diagnostic questions about our business so that our needs were clarified prior to taking action. The communication from Recruit Shop was always prompt and respectful. On the odd occasion when it became evident that there wasn’t a satisfactory “fit” from the early applicants, the company was willing to “go the extra mile” for a successful outcome. We were also impressed by the company’s expertise in researching the market because sometimes we weren’t confident we knew exactly what range of skills we required for a position or what range of people were available.