Do you struggle to get your consultants on the phone? Are they hesitant to arrange face-to-face meetings with clients? Are you tearing your hair out because you don’t understand why?
Here’s a little insight into why you may be struggling and how you can go about implementing change.
Last week, myself and Alex attended the Recruitment Agency Expo in Birmingham’s NEC. Known as one of the UK’s biggest networking events of the year, it was a valuable opportunity to get to know some of our industry leaders, hear about the evolution of the industry and chat to service providers about their revolutionary ideas.
As an experienced freelance writer, I’m well accustomed to interviewing artists in the music industry for featured articles in a print publication. However, when presented with the challenge of wondering around the Expo solo in order to interview attendees for future blogs, it was a daunting prospect. It’s not because I’m unaccustomed to meeting people face-to-face and therefore lack certain skills, it was because I was entering a situation unprepared. As part of a generation rooted in the uprising of social media, we’re often pigeon-holed as being inexperienced when it comes to face-to-face interactions as we’re used to hiding behind a screen. Though, as an individual who’s always been able to access information online, talking to someone in order to find out information is, perhaps, a bit alien.
Here’s 3 things managers can do to help their consultants feel more confident picking up the phone and arranging face-to-face meetings:
1. If you fail to prepare, you are preparing to fail
Role play is a great way to get your team to practice in a safe, inclusive environment. Have fun with it, grab some doughnuts and gather everyone round in the boardroom.
They’ll get a better idea of what questions need asking and how to source useful information that will aid their recruitment process, building their confidence.
2. Give them time to process what is being asked of them
I’m sure there are many of you reading this now that were told to get on the phone from the start, with their client in one ear and their manager in the other! Don’t push your consultants to run before they can walk, slowly build up their confidence rather than getting it knocked down too soon.
3. Research
Encourage your consultants to do their research before picking up the phone. This will enable them to have a solid foundation of knowledge before entering a conversation with someone they haven’t spoken too before, so they won’t be caught off guard.
This will also help them build strong relationships with candidates and clients, as it will show that they’re interested, rather than just trying to sell sell sell.
So next time you’re feeling frustrated with your team, just bear in mind that it’s not because they don’t want to pick up the phone or arrange a meeting, it’s because they feel unprepared. Here at the Gym, we’re advocates of continual professional development and we love training consultants to practice every day in order to succeed, in fail-safe environment.
