Sometimes, when conversing with an applicant at a job fair or over the phone, we tend to get wordy with industry-specific language. The majority of people seem to follow just fine, but sometimes, I take a step back and wonder If the applicant-candidate-client trifecta confuses others. Occasionally, I find myself caught up in conversation with Walrath contacts who don’t have a thorough understanding of the staffing and recruiting industry as a whole; it certainly can get confusing, as each company in the region has its’ own unique procedure. At Walrath, it goes a little something like this:
We refer to those who’ve recently submitted their resume, but have not yet interviewed with our recruiters, as applicants. Following a thorough resume review which results in a potential match with one our openings, we set up an appointment with the applicant. Those who’ve been to our office and have formally interviewed with recruiters are active in our database and are referred to as candidates. We market qualified candidates to companies to fill specific positions. We refer to the companies that have open positions we are currently working to fill as clients. We stand in the middle, with the goal of bringing well matched candidates and the perfect fitting position together.
This past Monday, hundreds of applicants stopped by vendor booths and asked the question, “what does your company do?” We have our own answer summed up in 5 -10 seconds, but it can still be a little confusing to comprehend when the hectic atmosphere of a career fair spins in the background. The bottom line is this: industry-focused staffing and recruiting agencies like ours are looking for the right person and the right job, the perfect fit.