I run a recruitment agency, so it feels a bit odd to write this. But here’s how I’m thinking about it: if I were the client today — a company trying to fill a role, or one that needs hiring help again and again — these are the things I’d actually look for. Nothing fancy. Just what matters.
Talk to them first. See how they respond.
The most important thing for me isn’t the website or the company name. It’s the person on the other end of the conversation. When I speak to a consultant, I want to know: do they understand my industry? Do they get the kind of role I’m trying to fill? And how do they respond when I explain it?
It doesn’t matter to me whether they’re junior or senior. What matters is whether they’re genuinely eager to serve — whether they actually want to understand my problem. And you can tell. A consultant who only asks for the job description isn’t that person. A good one asks what I’m really looking for, the challenges, the reason I need this hire in the first place.
Recruitment is a two-way thing.
This part is on both sides, and I’ll be honest about it. A lot of the time, companies — even HR or the hiring manager — just want the agency to solve the problem, without spending time to explain what the problem really is.
But every company, big or small, established or not, has its own situation. The team you’re hiring for, the department, the role — there are usually things the manager or HR already know but haven’t said out loud. Maybe the last person left for a reason. Maybe there’s a gap a job description doesn’t capture. That’s something we have to work out together, hand in hand. Nothing is too small when you’re figuring out exactly who you actually need.
So a good consultant asks questions. Why is this role open? How long has it been open? If it’s been sitting there for months — why? They’re not being nosy. They’re trying to understand, because that’s the only way to know who will actually fit.
A good agency will tell you the truth — even the uncomfortable part.
Once we understand the role, sometimes a picture forms that’s hard to hear. Sometimes the job you’re describing is really more than one person’s worth of work. Then finding someone means either adjusting the role or increasing the budget — because you’re basically asking if there’s someone willing to do a two-person job. That can happen, but the pay has to make sense.
It’s the elephant in the room, and a good agency puts it on the table instead of quietly failing for three months. Same with expectations. If you want someone fresh with no training but your salary is below what the market’s asking, I’d rather tell you honestly. The market’s competitive. You deserve the real answer, and the tools to decide. Our salary guide is a good place to start — and if you need one specific to your industry and role, we can put that together for you.
So, how do you choose?
Honestly, it’s simple. There are tons of agencies out there. Pick the one that invests time before taking over your role — the one that spends a good ten, fifteen minutes just talking to you, understanding the real problem, whether it’s budget, expectations, or something else. That, to me, is what separates a good agency from one that just forwards CVs.
That’s how we try to work at JTE — across engineering, logistics, right through to your backend support and admin roles. We’re a good fit for clients who are open to a real, two-way conversation, so we can actually understand how to help. If you just want to throw a JD over and get results — unless you’re paying well above the market — it’s honestly not that simple.
So let’s talk first. That’s usually where the good hires start.