The Grapes of IRP Advocacy: How to Stop Your Business Turning into a Dustbowl
Your recruitment career
He stands on barren land. A breeze hisses. It’s here “The Fault in Your Staff Recruitment Company” once stood. He knows its story like the grease stains that shade the palms of his hands.
He squats on his haunches and runs dirt through his fingers. It stows away on the wind.
“Hmm, shoulda been an IRP Advocate.” He shakes his head. “A shame. A real shame.”
Things are quiet down at the old Water & Hole. Old Man Jock snorts behind the bar – he ain’t much for fixing drinks nowadays. But he knows the business like no other. (They say he passed his Level 3 IRP Certificate with 99%, but his tongue never wags.)
Jock doesn’t look up when the Traveller comes in. His Outlook reminded him five minutes ago.
“Jock.” He takes up his pew.
“Traveller.” Jock spit-cleans a tumbler, but it’s waved away.
“Not today.”
“You been sniffing around that building?”
He nods.
“You got no business. That place had its chance.”
“Ain’t stopping me from thinking.”
Jock sighs. “Heck, I do it too.”
“You an REC Member, Jock?”
“Twenty years.”
“Really?”
“Give or take.”
“What you reckon about IRP Advocacy?”
The barman rests his paws. “You know how much I like Jafa cakes?”
He nods.
“I like IRP Advocacy even more.”
“Darn.” The Traveller laughs. “And you love your Jafa cakes.”
“Morning, noon, and night. Especially at night.”
“So, what makes IRP Advocacy so tasty?”
“Lotta things.”
The barman says all IRP Advocates get a fancy advocate logo to go on their documents; a nice certificate to pin on their wall, and free entry to the IRP Awards shindig.
“And most of all, a signed declaration setting out their commitment as an Advocate.”
The Traveller nods. “I could listen to you talk about the business all day, Jock.”
“I Love Recruitment,” he says. “You ever heard of the IRP Code of Ethics?”
The Traveller nods, but invites an explanation anyway.
“Say you’re a recruiter. You get your staff to sign up to it, and they promise to stick to the highest professional standards.”
“No funny business?”
“They play the game straight, Traveller. IRP Advocates want what’s best for their clients, and but must pledge to be the best in everything they do. It’s all about good recruitment.”
It became clearer than a prairie field after harvest. The Traveller was hungry for more, and Jock was only happy to oblige.
He told him how Advocates promise to have 25% of staff signed up to IRP membership right away, pledging 50% in three years.
“Good recruiters everywhere, Traveller.”
He says Advocates go out of their way to promote themselves on letters and business cards, and that they adhere to the best professional standards.
“Everyone loves a pro, Traveller.”
He agreed, but something still tickled him.
“What really happened to The Fault in Your Staff?”
Jock sighed one of his famous sighs, long like a tall glass of sarsaparilla.
“They didn’t sign up and blew their budget on a foosball table.”
“Foosball?!”
“Yep. And they played dirty. They spun those foosball men.”
“Nobody likes being spun around by recruiters, Jock.”
“Darn right, traveller. IRP Advocates play it straight. Strong wrist action, strong recruitment.”
They sat on the moment and let it set in. The Traveller grinned.
“Got something for you, Jock.” He reached into his britches and handed him a card.
“Well, I’ll be. You’re an IRP Advocate?”
“If there’s one thing I believe in, Jock, it’s being the best. That’s what IRP Advocates are. But it never hurts to hear a story about the bad eggs.”
“Nevermind the bad eggs, Traveller.” He threw a tea towel over his shoulder. “That IRP logo means you never have to worry about them folk.”
“Amen, Jock. Amen.”
The horror that befell The Fault in Your Staff is a tacit reminder: recruitment companies can’t skimp on quality. And there are few things that guarantee quality and strong returns like IRP Advocacy.
Being an IRP Advocate sends a message to your future clients and candidates: we’re not from the Wild West, we are the best.
To follow the Traveller’s lead and learn more about IRP Advocacy, click here.
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