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Without it, success comes only by chance, but with it there can be no failure.

It's therefore beholden upon every security manager with a responsibility for recruitment to ensure that the recruitment consultant of choice understands and follows these important steps.

Qualifying a 'live' vacancy
The recruitment consultant must initially qualify that a prospective vacancy is 'live'. Statistics show that vacancies are often lodged with agencies for the purpose of information gathering with respect to market conditions, salary surveys and tender bids.

A thorough and informative job specification should be created by the hiring manager outlining the role, responsibilities and remuneration of a particular opportunity. Without this the recruitment consultant will be unable to fully qualify the vacancy and should be reluctant to proceed.

Armed with a professional job specification the recruitment consultant will happily progress, and lay the foundations for the delivery of candidate information. How would you like the CVs presented? Do you need to see CVs prior to interview? Can I block book some interview times? This stage is vital for the development of the relationship, and my advice to the hiring security manager would be to lay the law down here, and to be specific about what it is they really want.

Time is usually the restrictive factor, and remember that it's certainly one of the key drivers for the recruiter. Turn this to your advantage, and set tough but realistic timeframes in which to operate. Allow your time to be pre-booked but not wasted.

Demand full and accurate information on all candidates, and insist that the information is presented in your preferred format. Recruitment is an expensive process so you should always demand a thorough service. If you allow corners to be cut at this stage, it will set a precedent for the future.

At this point, the recruitment consultant should seek exclusivity. This is a significant development in the relationship that should come with both time and constant service delivery. It would be more sensible for the security manager to develop relationships with up to three recruiters, and to decide over an agreed period of time which has performed the best. Consistency is the aim, and this can then be rewarded through exclusivity.

In addition, sole agency means clear visibility of earning for the recruiter. What better opportunity to negotiate favourable terms and conditions of business?

The agreement of terms of business should be cemented in writing as soon as possible. In doing so, the hiring security manager has agreed to expenditure for budgeting purposes, and the recruiter has a confirmed incentive to work harder, faster – and to achieve the ultimate aim. Both parties have acted professionally, and know where they stand.

Devising the Recruitment Plan
Devising the Recruitment Plan is the next phase. This should list all activities along a dateline that shows initial assignment acceptance through to the candidate's formal offer of employment. It's a useful reference point for all concerned, and should be agreed and signed off by the security manager and the recruitment consultant. Most importantly, it will clearly indicate and highlight when things are not going to plan, and can be used effectively as a safety net for preventing errors.

The recruitment consultant must then really go to work. He or she will search, refer and headhunt until they have a list of suitable and relevant candidates to present. Each recruiter will have a different style and approach, and they should be allowed to go about their business unhindered.

However, the hiring manager must be confident that the recruitment consultant has the correct and most up-to-date information concerning the organisation. In addition, the security manager must be comfortable that the activities of the recruitment consultant will not bring the company into disrepute. My advice would be to ask what techniques are to be used, and what information is to be presented – and then to state categorically what you will allow (and, alternatively, what's not permissible). After all, this is your company and therefore your responsibility.

The interviewing phase is next up, and is without doubt the most vital part of the process. The security manager must be confident that all the information they have been presented with is accurate, and that interviewees bring with them all of the necessary proof.

By necessary proof, I mean P45s, P60s, pay slips, previous employer references and educational/vocational qualification certificates should all be presented without exception, and interviewers must follow the same interview process for each applicant.

Questions should be predetermined, and the interviewer must remain flexible in terms of his or her needs. The hiring manager and the recruitment consultant must work together in this matter, and time should be allocated for accurate feedback and debrief at each stage if the vacancy is to be filled by the best possible person available.

Hiring managers are often reluctant to provide feedback to unsuccessful candidates for fear of giving the recruitment consultant an advantage. This is madness! Accurate feedback will enable the recruiter to refine the search, and thus present better candidates.

The offer of employment
When the preferred applicant has been identified, the offer of employment is duly made. This should be easy and problem free if the 30 Steps of Recruitment have been adhered to. The candidate will have been presented with all the necessary information concerning the role in question, the remuneration details and future career prospects.

In addition, he or she will have been pre-closed, and closed at every significant stage, and the offer should merely be a confirmation in writing of what has already been agreed.

If an offer is made and is then subsequently rejected, it means that the recruitment consultant has cut procedural corners or that the hiring security manager has moved the goal posts. Either is wholly unacceptable conduct, and will inevitably result in failure.

The final phase of the process concerns candidate aftercare. It is beholden upon the recruitment consultant to maintain contact with any successful applicants. He or she is safeguarding their efforts, and ultimately the commission that they have earned.

In doing so, they can also safeguard your recent purchase, and provide you with information that will reduce staff turnover and promote better working conditions.