With many years of experience in the finance staffing sector, I’ve seen firsthand how competitive the hiring landscape has become. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the financial services industry is projected to have close to a million job openings annually through 2033. This is great news for job seekers, but for companies, it means an ongoing challenge to keep their hiring efforts sharp and effective.
On average, job postings in finance attract anywhere from 25 to 45 applicants, and as businesses grow, so does the volume of hiring. In 2023, nearly 70% of recruiters reported increased hiring activity. This means more applications to sift through, more candidates to evaluate, and more time-consuming interviews. I know from experience that balancing all of this and running your business can feel overwhelming.
That’s where partnering with a finance recruiter can make a real difference. Having someone with industry-specific knowledge to support your hiring needs not only helps you find higher-quality candidates but also reduces the time and effort you have to spend on the process. In this post, I’ll share the benefits of working with a finance staffing expert and how to choose the right recruiter for your unique needs.
What Is a Financial Recruiter?
A finance recruiter publicizes job listings, fields applications, sources candidates, screens applicants, and delivers the top talent directly to you. In most cases, the recruiter is not responsible for the final decision on who to hire; the later-stage interviews and ultimate hiring decision falls to you. However, the right recruiter should serve as a trusted advisor and can make the process significantly easier, saving you time and labor. They may also help develop job descriptions, advise on recruitment strategy, and provide input to the hiring manager, drawing from their industry expertise.
A finance recruiter is a specialist in the field, so they can pinpoint what to look for on a candidate’s resume and know the right questions to ask to identify certain skills, especially niche or hard-to-find professionals. This is valuable if you lack financial expertise or if you have a specific need but are not sure exactly what skills are necessary to fill it.
When hiring, a finance headhunter helps companies achieve the best balance between skill and value. Since the hiring organization pays headhunters, they prioritize the company’s needs in the hiring process. Since they understand the requirements of both the hiring company and the candidate, they serve as an effective liaison between them.
What to Look for in a Finance Recruiter
Each staffing agency has its own process for sourcing candidates and policies for working with clients. Here are nine things to consider when searching for the right finance recruiter.
Expertise
Ideally, you want a headhunter that has specific expertise in finance. After all, one of the primary reasons for hiring a recruiter is to have an expert involved in the process. Ask how long the firm has been recruiting in the finance industry and how many candidates they have placed in roles similar to yours. They should be able to cite several success stories in addition to sharing case studies or providing references from other companies in your field.
Related: Finance and Accounting Hiring Challenges & How to Overcome Them
Talent pool
Another benefit of working with a recruiter is to gain access to a pool of candidates you would not normally be able to reach. This includes passive candidates not actively searching for job openings like yours.
Does the firm you’re considering have a pipeline of candidates with the skills you are looking for? Are they using the most up-to-date methods to attract them? How do they stay ahead of industry trends? The right finance recruiter should be able to speak comfortably about the strategies and channels they use to source and attract niche candidates.
Success metrics
Searching for your next great finance hire?
Our recruiters are ready to deliver.
There are a number of metrics that can be used to measure recruiting success, but here are a few key benchmarks that will give you a good picture of a staffing agency’s effectiveness:
- Percentage of sources resulting in a hire: 80 to 90% is a good range to shoot for
- Average length of employment: Longevity matters; a high hiring success rate is meaningless if the average candidate leaves after only a year
- Average search duration: How long does finding and placing a winning candidate typically take?
- Client retention rate: How many clients come back again and again?
Look for a finance recruiter that is not only open about these figures, but eager to share them with you.
Accolades
Industry-specific accolades can indicate a finance recruiter’s expertise and reputation. Because a third party awards them, they may carry more weight than a marketing pamphlet or even a client testimonial. Look for recognition from hiring industry bodies like the American Staffing Association or the Recruitment International Awards. Accolades at the local and regional level, like ‘best staffing agency’ within a municipality, are also noteworthy.
Compliance and regulatory knowledge
Finance roles commonly require compliance with specific regulations and industry standards. To help you hire effectively and mitigate risk, a finance recruiter should have a thorough knowledge and understanding of these principles and how they apply in your line of work.
Availability
It is important to make sure you and your recruiter are on the same page about how much communication you will have and how you can expect to reach them. Will you have full visibility into the talent pipeline and regular check-ins during their search, or will they only contact you when the top candidates have been identified? How many other clients are they currently working with?
The “right” answers to these questions will vary depending on your level of need and your comfort in handing off the hiring process; the key is to ensure that your expectations for the partnership are aligned with theirs before deciding to work together.
Terms of engagement
Your partnership with your finance recruiter may include specific terms—either on your end or theirs—that govern how certain situations will be handled. For example, do they have an off-limits rule? This states that they agree not to recruit anyone away from your company for a set amount of time. Do they offer a volume discount if you plan on using them to source for many positions over a long-term window?
Another example is a replacement guarantee, under which they will provide a new candidate or pool of candidates if one of their hires does not work out. Finally, do they work with your competitors? You might want to include a stipulation that they can’t work with certain direct competitors for a set time window.
Budget
It is a good idea to lay out your budget expectations earlier rather than later in a conversation with a potential recruiting partner. The right firm will provide an appropriate mix of experience and value.
Bear in mind how all of your recruiting metrics interplay with costs. For example, if it takes you a long time to hire on your own, your average cost-to-hire grows with each passing day. A higher up-front investment in a staffing firm saves you money in the form of a shortened time-to-hire over the long term.
Keep rising costs from getting you down with our ‘Reducing Labor Costs’ eBook.
Learn from our experts on how to streamline your hiring process.
Technology adoption
It’s hard to ignore the impact emerging technologies like artificial intelligence have on talent acquisition. Partnering with a forward-thinking recruiting agency can help your organization stay on the cutting edge and capitalize on every advantage new technology can offer you in reaching and hiring the best candidates.
Where to Find a Recruiter
Now that you know what you are looking for in a finance staffing partner, where can you find one? Here are three places I recommend to look for a finance recruiter.
Ask for recommendations
Personal recommendations are the number one most trusted source of information when choosing who to do business with. Turn to colleagues in your network to get the scoop on which recruiting firms have delivered on their promises. This is one of the best channels for finding a recruiter because you are more likely to get honest feedback—both positive and negative—than if you relied on the firm’s references alone (though those are certainly a valuable source of insight, as well).
Use a recruiter directory
A recruiter directory is like an online Yellow Pages for staffing firms. Directories can help narrow down your search by industry and geographical location. The Wall Street Journal has an extensive list of free and paid recruiter directories. Some directories, like ClearlyRated, include their own rankings and awards to help you identify top-performing agencies.
Turn to Google
Google is a great place to turn not only to find recruiting firms but also to find out what people really think of them. To get an accurate gauge, look for a staffing agency with a decent number of Google reviews. A firm with only a few reviews may need more clientele, expertise, or both.
Attract Top Finance Talent with 4 Corner Resources
If you are looking for expertise, value, and accessibility in a staffing partner, look no further than 4 Corner Resources. Our team of finance headhunters specializes in sourcing candidates for roles like accountant, auditor, credit specialist, financial analyst, and more. We will leverage our collective industry knowledge to track down hard-to-find skills that will help you overcome your financial hurdles.
Our more than 60 five-star Google reviews demonstrate our longstanding record of helping both candidates and hiring managers find staffing solutions that exceed their expectations. We boast a 1.8 to 1 submit-to-interview ratio, a 1.4 to 1 interview-to-hire ratio, and a 92% client retention rate.
Schedule your free consultation and start hiring better, faster, and smarter with 4 Corner Resources today.
