When Nick Brand began working in IT recruitment 25 years ago, he quickly became very good at it. With an ability to place highly skilled candidates fast, he was earning eye watering commissions and enjoying the thrill of the chase.
But he became aware that there was a major flaw to the system. The fact is the vast majority of Recruitment ‘Consultants’ are simply sales people. In some cases, very good ones, capable of closing highly lucrative deals, but still essentially sales people.
And in sales, it’s not the people or the client who matter, but clinching the deal – a fact that has wider consequences when dealing with people’s careers. Contingency recruitment is basically ‘no win no fee’ – the recruiter doesn’t get a penny until the placement is confirmed. To get those placements fast, some recruiters might cut corners, be economical with the truth, and do not always have client and candidate best interests in mind. Led by the job spec and a “gut-feeling” of client preferences, recruiters make decisions that are often based around a lack of knowledge, preconceptions and in some cases, bias. Things get missed, mistakes are made, and at times information is withheld to ensure that placements are made.
And as much as recruiters like to claim they are experts in the field they are recruiting for, how can they really know an industry they don’t have first hand of. Especially one as technical as IT.
As Nick Brand, co-founder and CEO of OnSkil says:
“It never made sense that people like me stood between clients and candidates (both highly technical) and was tasked with translating their requirements, despite knowing very little about the technology involved.”
The best people to communicate what they wanted was the client or hiring manager. And the best people to explain their skills was the candidate. But with recruiter processes and bias stepping in, there were barriers to genuinely getting the best candidate for a successful placement.
That’s where OnSkil comes in.
This innovative recruitment solution ‘matches’ clients and candidates in an efficient, confidential and effective way that results in business success for everyone.
Nick explains:
“I wanted to create a platform, where only relevant candidates were connected to advertised jobs. However, once matched, I wanted the control to revert back to the client/candidate to retain human intervention within the process – a necessarily ingredient when dealing with people, even in an ever more, automated world.”
OnSkil empowers clients and candidates by cutting out the middle man. There’s no lengthy back and forth, and clients get access to a high-quality talent pool when they need them. By allowing candidates to speak directly to the employer, suggest amendments to things such as rate/salary, location, start date, etc to reach a mutual agreement, foundations are set for a stronger relationship.
The recruitment industry in the UK turnover reached £38.9 billion in the year to March 2019, with 86% of that coming from contract and temporary roles. That means a lot of money is being diverted from businesses and day rates. With OnSkil there is no commission and the job credits fees are a fraction of the usual fees and totally transparent. The result is faster and more efficient recruiting for IT professionals at a cost-effective rate. And they can do this because of the clever use of AI overlaid within the OnSkil process.
It’s not just about saving money – fairer and smarter sourcing comes with more accurate analysis of an applicant’s profile. We all know that humans have ingrained unconscious bias that can colour recruitment. OnSkil anonymise all CVs, only making details available once a suitable match has been found for both clients and candidates, ensuring that the hiring decision is made on skills and experience and protects everyone’s identity until a interview is arranged
Nick and his co-founder and wife Jane have been in the business for many decades between them. They know what hiring managers and candidates want. They see the opportunities when it comes to reducing cost and time overheads, but also know how important it is to find the right match for the business and the client. Yes, it might seem a bit strange that the recruiter has built a platform that effectively makes recruiters redundant. But what Nick and Jane have really done is shaken up a tired industry with innovative thinking that combines technology with human interaction to actually make recruitment better.
As they say, “Our vision is simple: starting conversations between candidates and clients to create happier, more productive and successful working relationships and permanently change recruitment for the better. “
