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The Feasibility of Using Recruitment Agencies
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The Feasibility of Using Recruitment Agencies

on 03 November 2020

Private recruitment agencies started operating commercially in Malta in the 1980s, offering recruitment services of a general nature, and in 1995 specific legislation was introduced to regulate the duties and obligations provided by such agencies and there are currently more than thirty local organisations that have a licence to provide recruitment services on a commercial basis. Most recruitment agencies provide specialist recruitment services, such as accounting, finance, IT and gaming, whereas there are still a number of recruitment agencies that provide general recruitment services. The rise in popularity of recruitment services may be attributed to the overall general success of such organisations to identify and source appropriate human resources to client organisations within acceptable timeframes and in a much more efficient way than had such organisations sought to recruit new employees using traditional recruitment processes.

Advantages and Disadvantages of using Recruitment Agencies

From a client organisation’s point of view, a significant advantage of using Recruitment Agencies is the fact that these organisations are specialised in understanding business requirements and sourcing potentially suitable candidates. Moreover, most recruitment agencies will carry out the initial screening of candidates and ensure that client organisations only meet those candidates that may potentially fit the organisation’s needs.  From candidates’ point of view, being registered by a recruitment agency means that the candidate is being recommended for employment, which for all intents and purposes, is at least equivalent to a reference from a reliable source.

Both client organisations and prospective candidates also benefit from two key factors. First of all, confidentiality is key, as recruitment agencies guarantee this to both client organisations and candidates. More importantly, client organisations are saving on time, effort and resources that would otherwise have to be devoted to the recruitment and selection process if a recruitment agency is not used; similarly prospective candidates get to know of career opportunities that may possibly not be advertised through other means. On the other hand, since recruitment agencies are outsiders to the organisation, they are at a disadvantage in interpreting business requirements unless they are made aware of these.

Costs and Benefits of Recruitment Agencies

Whenever an organisation considers carrying out the recruitment process itself, there are a number of inherent specific costs that are normally incurred up to first interview stage. When considering these costs, one has to also remember the additional costs that would be incurred if:

  1. No suitable candidate is found from the above recruitment and selection process

  2. A suitable person is employed yet for any reason this person leaves the organisation within 3 to 6 months

  3. If one had to take a conservative estimate of the guarantee offered by leading recruitment agencies, one can safely say that this guarantee would equate to at least one-third of the total estimated cost of €2,400 that is an approximate opportunity cost of €800.

Considering the costs involved in the recruitment process, and without considering the possibility that undertaking this process may not result in filling the respective vacancy, the total cost that an organisation is incurring when carrying out its’ recruitment amounts to approximately €3,200. This is excluding potential opportunity costs, such as the lost income, output or performance that the organisation is incurring from the unfilled position. If such opportunity costs were included in the total cost estimate and equated against the placement fees of recruitment agencies, clearly the financial benefits of using recruitment agencies are significantly greater than the cost involved. One has to also consider the fact that leading recruitment agencies operate on a no-placement, no fee basis; in other words, if the client organisation does not employ any of the prospective candidates put forward, than there are no fees charged by the recruitment agency.

Recruitment Agency Fee Structure Types

  1. Decision and preparation of job requirements

  2. Cost of collation of job requirements, administering the recruitment process

  3. Preparation of person specification and job description

  4. Preparation of advert for media

  5. Preparation of advert in media

  6. Placing of advert in media – contact with media

  7. Cost of advert in media

  8. Receiving, acknowledging and sifting through CVs

  9. Checking of CVs and references

  10. Letters of regret to unsuccessful candidates

  11. Scheduling of interviews

  12. Carrying out of preliminary interviews

  13. Decision on who to shortlist for 2ndinterviews

  14. Selection Board Report

  15. Personality assessments, background checks

  16. Letters of regret to unsuccessful candidates

  17. Updating of internal records on recruitment

Additionally, it is also a fact that when the same recruitment agency is used repeatedly, a business relationship and better understanding of the organisation is developed by the agency, which is subsequently able to provide a personalised and even more efficient service.  Further financial benefits may also be obtained if the organisation decides to use the same recruitment agency on an exclusive basis.

All these facts prove the feasibility of using the services provided by recruitment agencies, who are undeniably becoming a fundamental business partner to turn to for all Recruitment and HR requirements.

Reasons Why You Should Use a Recruitment Agency

​The evolution of technology has changed the work force and its values with focusing entirely on individuals’ needs for achievement, recognition, and appreciation and job challenges. Much of this is because of the creation of new ideas that occur in the digital world at a rapid rate. Many of us have been educated and trained to think we need to follow a career path, when the real lesson is that in this new ever-changing world anything is possible. Taking into consideration that by being creative, co-operative and being part of a network can unleash new opportunities with no guidelines, processes or best practices hence the list of opportunities is endless.

Over the years companies in general have been conservative with recruiting and retaining their existing employees, but today’s market is at play which makes us view the world of work differently moving forward.

Employers are obviously concerned with the way the market is changing as they are finding it difficult to find qualified employees which seems to be an increasing problem. Employers are nowadays becoming more frustrated as they are not receiving as many relevant applications as they did a few years back. Moreover, when a potential candidate does apply and eventually goes through the interviewing process and lands the job, the candidate might have another offer or two in their hands.

Evidently companies are having to take this ever-growing change in their stride and deal with the other challenge of retaining their existing employees at the same time. Especially, the younger generation have strongly shown that they are interested in opportunity and advancement. They do not want to just settle in the same position for the long haul, they want to know where they are going in the next few years. Where does this trend come from? The low unemployment level is undoubtedly causing this as the demand is much greater than the supply.

Most people do not want to work for companies where they do not think they will fit in. As a leading recruitment agency in Malta, our role is to manage expectation and we provide a lot of information to potential candidates about the dynamics and culture of the organisation to ensure they would be a good fit. This is how we would add value to the organisation who would entrust us in assisting them with their recruitment as they would not waste time interviewing or recruiting the wrong candidate.

IT recruitment in Malta

​A recruitment agency’s main aim is to build long-term relationships with clients and candidates and bridge the gap between the two with maximum efficiency and confidentiality. With over a decade of experience within the recruitment industry, VacancyCentre has built a name for itself by growing its team – now specialising within its 6 core sectors, namely Banking and Finance,  Legal and Compliance, iGaming, Technology, Sales and Marketing, and Administration.

Over the years, with constant innovation and upgrades in the IT industries, employers’ needs have changed. From being able to recruit employees directly, the increasing demand for new-generation tech professionals, including developers, has made it difficult to select the right person for the right job with so much talent in one country. This is where a recruitment agency such as VacancyCentre comes in. Specialising in all levels of Information Technology including Entry, Junior, Intermediate and Senior opportunities, our specialized tech team make a constant effort to build relationships with a variety of applicants from different backgrounds, allowing for a wider range of suitable candidates for our clients. Some of the popular IT jobs right now are Java developer jobs and PHP developer jobs.

As part of the recruitment process, recruiters understand clients’ needs, add a web listing of your vacancy; screen applications; interview candidates; and short-list candidates to clients, all while keeping their commitment to providing quality services to clients.

In fact, most jobs nowadays require a certain level of essential computer skills, be it an Office Administrator with basic knowledge in Microsoft Office programs, or a Marketing Executive with knowledge of Search Engine Optimisation, basic Web Development and Social Media. In recent years, secondary and tertiary educational institutes have added IT skills as part of their curriculum, however anyone that had attended schooling prior to this time, would have had to choose to focus on studying IT to possess these skills unless they gathered particular expertise from work experience.

Luckily, there are a multitude of ways that job seekers and applicants alike can improve their tech knowledge, and in turn improve their chances at scoring new career opportunities. Evening part-time courses are one way to have practical, one-on-one tutoring in this regard. On the other hand, online courses are great for individuals that have full time careers and perhaps don’t necessarily have the means to get to classes at certain times during the day. There are both paid and cost-free courses on the internet – some of which are available through CodeAcademy, Udemy and Alison, amongst others – as well as free blogs that are focused around learning web design, programming and development.

Is it worth using a recruitment agency?

Of course, one of the reasons why people would want to change jobs is to improve the remuneration packages and many would try to bargain hard to obtain the best deal. One needs to be cautious though, because while it is important to improve the earnings, making unrealistic request may backfire with prospective employers, or the recruiters who are assisting them in sourcing the required talent. Recruiters are looking for people who are not just motivated by money, but by the prospect of working for a great company and making a difference.

Having said all this, it is evident that organizations require recruitment support. Using a recruitment agency does help in identifying and attracting talent, and reduces pressure on companies. Recruitment agencies are interacting with candidates, both who are actively searching for new opportunities as well as those who may not be thinking about changing jobs at the time but could be potentially a good fit for particular vacancies in Malta.

In recent years many organisations invested in their recruitment process and in some cases managed to attract the desired talent without the assistance of recruiters. We are nowadays seeing companies who never considered using the services of recruiters before but are left with no other choice but to turn to them now as they have struggled for months on ends to recruit. Some of those companies who had invested in in-house recruitment staff are not seeing the desired results and are still turning to the recruitment agencies to assist them with some particular vacancies.

Through extensive knowledge about specific sectors in the local market, recruiters would know where the talent is available. Generally, they have an established network of candidates and contacts. These are contacts they have established and built trust with over many years. If they are really good, they would have created a pipeline of potential candidates. Recruiters have built strong industry and functional relationships in order to solicit input, advice and to network their open jobs. They also have a good sense of which firms and skill sets to target for organisations’ openings. They know the value of each position and the market rate of pay. With that knowledge, they can help guide candidates through the process, both locals, and foreigners seeking jobs in Malta. All of this gives them a head start and the ability to jump-start the recruitment process. It certainly leaves you with the impression that jobs will be filled in a much timelier manner with ‘better-fit’ talent.

Why use the services of recruitment agencies Malta

​VacancyCentre (VC) is a well-established recruitment company in Malta servicing organisations talent resource requirements across a range of technical and specialist disciplines across key service industries within Finance, Compliance & Technology. Do not hesitate to email us at [email protected] for more information.

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