In January 2023, I spearheaded a collaboration with Greater Manchester Collaboration to supply Social Workers for roles across children and adult services, and we have since become a valuable partner to them.

We have been leveraging the resources and know-how of our permanent recruitment specialists to improve the Collaboration’s staffing supply chain.

This project was a huge success for us here at Charles Hunter Associates, as it allowed us to grow not only our geographical presence in the North-West but also internally grow our division.

At the start of our partnership with the collaboration, we reviewed existing processes to uncover issues and any bottlenecks that might be hampering processes.

• One issue we identified related to communication and engagement with candidates. We found that feedback to candidates about the status of their applications was often delayed – running the risk of suitable candidates becoming frustrated with the process and dropping out before interview or job offer stage. 
• We highlighted this issue to the client as an action point requiring immediate attention, resolving it quickly.
• Our review also uncovered discrepancies in the pay rates offered by various entities within the organisation. It’s not uncommon for large organisations who have worked with a range of recruitment suppliers to have inconsistency in pay rates, owing to the complexity of administration.
• My team’s work helped facilitate a new pledge to harmonise pay rates for specific role types. This has helped create an even playing field for hiring across the organisation, with increased transparency around pay and placing them in a better position to attract and retain quality talent with competitive pay rates.
• Additionally, we’ve established regular update calls with managers, with the aim of finding mutually beneficial outcomes, along with improving overall feedback, communication and efficiency.