Google search about corporate recruiters often leads people here.  As I've been too busy corporate recruiting to blog this week, I thought I'd share what it's like on a day to day basis.  Corporate recruiters are usually responsible for a vacancy from start to finish.  We are contacted by hiring managers when a vacancy is a twinkle in their eye - or when an employee has handed in their notice.  Corporate recruiters have to be very good at conflict resolution and expectation management.  The employee who has handed in his notice, will probably leave in 4 weeks.  The recruitment process will probably take 8 weeks minimum and probably closer to 12.  The hiring manager will be looking for a direction for his stress.... if you thought working in a corporate gave you an easy life, you thought wrong.

We help managers with the computer systems which allow them to advertise their requirement, create a job description and person profile, an advert, get it all submitted and then make sure that the advert goes out to the right people.  In the company I work for currently, we have a back office team located 300 miles away who do our processing, but sometimes admin assistants work directly with recruiters.

We make sure suitable CVs come in, help managers evaluate them (though I'd never make a choice for them), and then one of our assistants arranges the interviews, and sends the candidates all the details they need to attend.  Co-ordinating diaries for candidates, hiring managers and recruiters can be a challenge, and one I'm glad I don't have to do!

We meet with hiring managers to arrange an interview format, and decide how much help they need at interview.  Sometimes a hiring manager wants us to ask all the questions, sometimes just take notes.  I love interviewing, although colleagues have said they find it really boring.  It's probably not for you if you don't find people endlessly fascinating.  We help hiring managers make their decision, and then it's back to the system to raise an offer.  Making sure you have sign off for hires in corporates is very important, and can be hard work, so massaging each request through the layers of sign off, and then making sure an offer is created within an SLA is a big part of my job.

Eventually, someone starts and we give them their initial induction before sending them off to work.  There's nothing like walking into a department and knowing everyone there, and seeing them productive and happy. 

As a corporate recruiter I've handled as few as 20 jobs at one time and as many as 80.  Keeping 80 jobs, hiring managers, candidates, interview times, offer processes and starters straight, when your day is taken up with interviews, advising hiring managers and talking to candidates.  I live by my spreadsheet.  Recruiters tend to hate admin and reporting - we're much more 'fly by the seat of our pants' kind of people, but without the spreadsheet I wouldn't know which way was up!

Any questions?  Leave a comment!