It seems logical. More agencies, more CVs, faster hire. What could go wrong? Quite a lot, actually. 🎣
The Australian IT market is smaller than it looks. A senior Salesforce architect in Melbourne or a cleared cyber engineer in Canberra may get the same job sent to them by five different recruiters in one morning. Here is what that does to you.
1. Your role looks desperate
When candidates see the same job everywhere, they assume something is wrong: the team, the manager or the budget. Your employer brand takes a hit before anyone has interviewed.
2. Candidates get “burned”
Agencies race to submit CVs first, sometimes without proper conversations, sometimes without the candidate’s full consent. You end up with duplicates, ownership disputes and annoyed candidates who feel like a commodity.
3. Quality drops
When an agency has a 1 in 10 chance of filling a role, it cannot invest much time in it. You get speed over screening, and the first three profiles an AI search throws up rather than people who have actually been vetted.
4. Your story gets told ten different ways
Each agency pitches your role in its own words. Salary, flexibility and even the job title can drift. Candidates compare notes, and trust drops.
5. You spend more time managing agencies than hiring
Ten briefings, ten sets of feedback, ten sets of terms and a lot of chasing. Your hiring manager’s calendar quietly disappears.
What works better
- One or two specialist partners per skill area, with clear accountability and service levels
- A single, consistent role pitch that represents your brand properly
- Exclusivity for a set period (for example, two weeks) in exchange for committed delivery
- Measured outcomes: time to shortlist, interview to offer ratio, and retention after six months
How we work
When we take on a role, we commit to it properly: a real brief, targeted search across our 220,000+ LinkedIn network and over 1,000 candidate conversations a day, and vetted profiles rather than keyword matches. First profiles typically arrive within 24 to 48 hours.
👉 Try it on your next hard-to-fill role. Share your requirement. For high volume hiring, our RPO service can replace a panel of agencies altogether.
Employer
Employer
