9 reasons why honesty is the best policy when recruiting

• Candidates must be honest with their recruitment agency to ensure they can provide them with the best service possible. The basic information such as location, salary expectations and what kind of role they’re looking for are key to ensure expectations are managed, and the recruiter approaches you about relevant opportunities. Candidates should not feel hesitant to express concerns to their agency if they’re not being offered the right roles.

• Employers looking to recruit must be truthful when working with a recruitment agency. Job/person specifications must be realistic. If a client needs a certain type of applicant or a profile then let the agency know. If they decide not to give much information to the supplier it will more than likely break down at some point throughout the process.  

• Employers should remain honest when discussing hours, salary and basic duties. If you do/do not have flexibility on any of the above, let the agency know so they can shortlist correctly. 

• If a position is for a fixed time/temporary period, for example: maternity/sickness cover or a project related role, this must be made clear too. This is to avoid candidates getting carried away or applying under false pretenses.

• Some recruitment agencies opt to withhold details of the client name, and even location, when advertising/recruiting for a role. While this certainly helps shield recruitment activity from competitors, these details should be disclosed to potential candidates as early as possible, just in case they have had a bad experience with them previously or have already been approached about the opportunity available by another agency.

• Clients should give honest feedback about unsuccessful candidates and work closely with the agency to identify the right people to employ. This can improve the consultants understanding of the company, and the expectations they have for future references.

• Recruiters are often liaising with multiple candidates at any given time and making sure you are the first candidate they think of is essential. It isn’t always the best profile that recruiters think of first, the relationship they have built is extremely important. Being transparent and honest gives candidates the best chance to be a recruiter’s first call. A recruiter will usually go above and beyond their job role to help out these candidates.

• Security checks are also becoming more and more stringent and delving a lot deeper into the candidate’s history. Gone are the days of 2 references being enough to secure a role. Now companies are looking deeply into all previous roles, criminal record checks and even GCSE results. It is far too common that candidates provide information that they believe to be correct, without making 100% sure. This negligence will often be deemed as dishonesty and will normally result in an unsuccessful application. So be sure to double check your results and dates before placing on documents like your CV to avoid this mistake from happening. A good recruiter will always help a candidate look for solutions to a problem and normally would have had experience dealing with the same, if not similar, scenarios. 

Never be afraid to ask!