By Jim Wong, CPA | May 15, 2013


When you need to expand your accounting or finance team, finding the right candidate can be a daunting task.

Essentially, it comes down to two things: Time and money. If you don’t have the time but have the money or if you need to fill a position quickly, an accounting and finance recruiting firm could be a great option for your organization.

Vanessa Merit Nornberg, contributor to Inc. says, “Despite the fact I carefully consider where to advertise for candidates — I try to maximize the search dollars and get a good mix of potential applicants — it always takes me a long time to find people suited well to the company, and therefore, even worth interviewing.”

It has taken her up to five months to find the right hire, but recruiters have tended to be out of the question. “I figured they would be a waste of time and never be as good at sending me the right people for the job as I would be in reviewing resumes myself. They’re also too expensive for my small budget,” she adds.

However when she was ready to place her job ads again, a senior staff member offered her the name of a recruiter. Although she was skeptical, she tried it. “Listening would cost me nothing,” she said.

Nornberg found the recruiter was worth the money. Here are a few reasons why:

There was no risk. There are two types of searches: Contingency and retained. Nornberg went with a contingency search because there is no risk. If the recruiter didn’t find someone for her to hire, she wouldn’t be charged. With retained searches, the hiring company pays the recruiter upfront and typically works with them exclusively. Companies typically use these when they are hiring at an executive or senior level.

Accounting and finance recruiting firms vet the candidates. They send only the candidates they think are a good fit for your organization.

Recruiters save you time. It took Nornberg only one month to find the right candidate versus the five months using her old method.

They make sure quality candidate’s resumes are seen. For example, in Nornberg’s case she asked the candidate she hired why she had chosen to work with a recruiting firm. She told Nornberg, “Because recruiters make sure your resume gets seen, while submitting via the Internet is like sending your resume into oblivion.”

“If most people these days are thinking like my new hire, the recruiters will clearly have the best selection of candidates every time,” says Nornberg.

Hiring is not an easy task. It takes time, energy, and money. The fee for using an accounting and finance recruiting firm to find the right candidates can become much less when you save time in the process and have better applicants to choose from.

This article originally appeared on Clear Focus Financial Search.


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