The Hindu Business Line : Cuts, kickbacks hit recruitment industry

LOOKS like kickbacks and cuts are not the preserve of politicians alone. Thanks to the great talent crisis in India Inc, a new scam is brewing in the recruitment industry.

Malpractices such as recruitment of unsuitable talent, sharing of revenues between recruiter and hirer, headhunting from one client to fulfil the needs of another and re-recruitment of a candidate recently placed is becoming fairly common nowadays, according to search firms. According to Mr Kris Lakshmikanth, CEO and Managing Director, Headhunters India, "It's not very rare to see `certain consultants' working hand-in-glove with the HR team of some client companies."

He said in some cases, resumes sent to the client's recruitment team gets channelised to certain favourite recruiters and the same candidate gets recruited after the validity period that his firm has put in expires.

Rerouting resumes to favourite consultants is just one of the battles we are fighting, said Mr Anjan Dutta, Principal Consultant, Career Graph. There are also instances where the client's HR team and recruiters share the recruitment revenues.

"The problem is that the industry is so fragmented and disorganised. There are a lot of mom-and-pop kind of recruitment stores who are here to make quick money. At the end of the day, hiring companies have to take a call on the kind of recruitment firm they want to work with," said Mr Gautam Sinha, CEO, TVA Infotech.

At a conference of executive recruiters from across the country held recently, participants called for a code of ethics for the industry. "The recruitment industry itself is short of talent. But we have decided that we shall not headhunt from another ERA (Executive Recruiters' Association) member. We also have decided to share information on clients that are indulging in rerouting of resumes, using our resumes after the validity period and indulge in sharing revenues with recruiters," Mr Dutta said.

According to Mr Sudhakar Balakrishnan, Director and COO, Adecco Peopleone Consulting, these problems can be tackled by drawing out sound service level agreements with all the conditions spelt out clearly. "In addition, recruiting companies and hiring organisations should have proper induction programmes and training in fostering better relationships and of course, ERA can influence clients to ensue that certain code of ethics are being followed."

More Stories on : Economic Offences | Human Resources

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Chill in isolated pockets as fresh westerly system inches close

Cisco ties up with Bharti, VSNL for joint marketing

Hybrid vehicles steal the show at Auto Expo — Exports may touch $25 billion in next decade: Kamal Nath

Clause 49: ONGC may be asked to convene EGM

CCEA defers decision on NLC disinvestment

Record cabinet meetings in 2005

One year up: FBT chips away at drug companies' profits

8 pc of Maruti fetches Rs 1,567 cr — Average price at Rs 678.24 per share

TCS Q3 net up 5.6 pc at Rs 753 cr — Impact of Re fluctuation Rs 46 cr

Nasscom wants SEZ sops given to STPI units also — `SMEs now at a disadvantage'

TRAI seeks data on `lifetime' offers

Cuts, kickbacks hit recruitment industry

Average returns lag for most Sensex stocks