A long-term perspective in the recruitment jungle
Nicolas Hurlin and Gwladys Costant, co-chairs of Luxembourg’s Federation for Recruitment, Search and Selection, say professionalism, ethics and best practices are critical to a well-functioning recruitment market that serves both businesses and candidates effectively.
What is FR2S and how do its members serve the job market?
FR2S is the Federation of Recruitment, Search and Selection in Luxembourg, the country’s only permanent recruitment industry body. Created in 2016, it now has around 20 members who uphold a code of ethics and a set of best practice – which is necessary, because it is a completely unregulated market.Professional recruitment firms bring expertise. At some point in their life, a candidate will ask themselves: what am I worth on the job market, in terms of skills, but also salary. A recruitment firm can answer those questions. A company might ask: what is my brand worth in the market? Are the jobs I offer attractive to candidates? A recruitment firm can answer those questions, too. Using an FR2S firm ensures that as a candidate, your data is completely confidential, while clients benefit from transparency on pricing, selection processes, and interview steps.
Are relationships with clients one-off or longer-term?
Our job is not about the short term – we are not in a transactional business, matching CVs to job descriptions for quick results. Our work is about building long-term projects that make sense for everyone involved. But the market is like a jungle now – LinkedIn makes everyone a recruiter. Companies poach directly from competitors, which makes candidates feel very desirable, because they are constantly being headhunted. They treat jobs like consumer goods, which leads to a bidding war on salaries, and people switch jobs not because of long-term projects, but because opportunities are there. We have expensive candidates who may not have built up their skills, and a salary bubble that affects Luxembourg’s competitiveness. Today, it is common to see someone with 10 years’ experience who has changed jobs 10 times. However, around the age of 35 or 40, it becomes more difficult for people whose careers have not been built on a solid long-term project.
“It is important that clients, decision-makers and HR managers know we are reliable partners, through every business cycle.”
What are the expectations of federation members?
Expanding the membership is clearly a goal, since we want to represent best practices in the market. Our members expect market insights, aligned values, methodology and ethics. Beyond that, the aim is to share market knowledge with companies and candidates, ensuring long-term alignment with clients, decision-makers and HR managers. It is important they know we’re reliable partners, through every business cycle.The federation is the only reference point on the job market, for both employers and candidates, and we plan to communicate more going forward. Members of the federation will have more influence than other firms. In the job market, there will always be strong competition across Europe, and a shortage of candidates, so companies will need recruitment firms that can identify the right person. When there are many candidates, picking the right one at the right time is what really makes a difference.
