Top Ten Myths around RPO

I’m certain there are more than ten myths that surround this always touchy subject within every HR/Recruiting department, but we’ll try to confine it the most pernicious.

One of the most surprising things that I encountered when I entered the brave new world of recruitment process outsourcing was the pervasive antipathy of recruiters to the services of our industry. Now notwithstanding the outsourcing/right-sourcing argument we talked about earlier, when I, or any RPO vendor for that matter, show up for a meeting with the CFO or SVP of HR and there’s recruiting staff present, we can sometimes get same sense of “welcome” that Tomás de Torquemada must have had when entering a new town during the Inquisition. In other words, it can be a bit chilly.

But like many things that are new (if something that’s been around for 25 years or so can be considered “new), I’ve also come to understand that what people don’t like about RPO is not RPO itself, but rather what they think RPO is. It’s the perception more than the reality.

So although this topic has been done before, it obviously has not been done to the point of actually becoming part of our great collective recruiting subconscious and so we’ll do it again. Let’s dispel some of the myths that are associated with RPO:

#10) You’ll lose your job

Hardly. To lose that intellectual capital and organizational memory is self defeating for both the client and the RPO vendor. But companies turn to RPO in part because the existing process and existing infrastructure isn’t working. So part of any (successful) RPO engagement is to do a thorough review of that process. So it is hardly surprising that on occasion, part of the challenges that an organization is facing lies in the fact that they have the wrong people in the wrong job. Sometimes, those scenarios are egregious. And they aren’t all that surprising when recruiting departments in all too many companies are considered necessary evils, rather than strategic partners to be used for competitive advantage. One of the nation’s largest and best known financial institutions, in fact, made it a policy that employees who were about to be involuntarily terminated could avoid termination if there was an opening in the recruiting department. So objectively, the company’s worst employees were those who were tasked with bringing in the best talent available to work for this prestigious institution. So yes, if it is determined that ineffective recruiters are part of the problem, there is an opportunity during an RPO engagement to address those issues.

The flip side of this question is “will you keep your job if you don’t look to RPO to augment your existing process?” Given the successes and the ROI that RPO has demonstrated, it is not a stretch in the least to suggest that there are far more recruiters who have lost their jobs, and recruiting directors and VP’s that have lost their positions, for not thinking strategically and addressing those issues that RPO can assist with. By trying to keep everything in-house, and not looking to “right-source” those areas which were not core, organizations looking for more effective leadership had no choice but to look elsewhere.

And no, that doesn’t mean if you don’t engage RPO you aren’t strategic and will lose your job. As we’ve said before, this is not for every one.

But not to engage RPO because you feel you’re job is in jeopardy, is exactly the wrong way to think. By demonstrating your willingness to look at your function strategically, and by building the business case and demonstrating ROI, by managing your vendor/partner once engaged, and by reviewing and reporting whole new metrics and performance that you may never have had the ability to demonstrate, only then can you sit back and not worry whether you’re position is in danger. When you’re a valued partner to the business, and understand business issues outside just filling open requisitions, you not only ensure job stability, but have taken your “seat at the table”.

While I don’t sell RPO any longer, I firmly believe it has its place and is one of those tools you need to consider as you look to creating a more strategic vision within your recruiting function.

Next up… #9) You’ll lose control.

Michael