A growing trend is for recruitment consultants to become 'business partners' with their clients. This is replicated in the new/remodelled HR function. Building a close relationship with a consultant will enable them to develop a very detailed understanding of your company's culture resulting in a more effective result for your business.

The professional recruitment field has changed considerably over the last fifteen years, with recruitment consultants being regarded less as a 'necessary evil,' and more as an integral part of the HR function in modern business. Many employers recognise that professional recruiters, used properly, will lead them to the most sought after candidates, who are a source of competitive advantage. These developments have benefited many professional disciplines, with senior HR management invariably driving the process.

There has been widespread recognition of the increasingly strategic role played by HR. The dramatic increase witnessed over the last four years in the demand for human resources professionals, and the expansion of our HR Executive team, dedicated to servicing senior HR appointments, (attracting salaries over £60k) is by no means a coincidence.

A number of considerations have prompted this move. In the absence of any nationally recognised executive recruiter for the senior HR market, employers have had little choice other than to entrust their recruitment needs to established, generalist search and selection organisations. This has frequently proved a less than satisfactory arrangement, as the expertise offered by these organisations often does not extend beyond the sectors within which they recruit -very much out of step with the 'transferable ' nature of HR skills. Our decision to establish a dedicated Executive HR team is based on the desire to build on our national HR business, but also to satisfy the expectation of a premium-offering for both candidate and client.

The advantages to employers and candidates are three fold. When recruiting executive-level HR professionals, you are seldom constrained by the need to recruit within a specialist industry/market sector. Indeed, it may be desirable to draw a shortlist from another sector, if cultural change is an issue. It is therefore the responsibility of the recruiter to provide the means for sourcing a wider choice of candidates across all business sectors.

Alternatively, notwithstanding the transferability of HR professionals, consultants are encouraged to accumulate knowledge of key business sectors. This enables them to talk about your business and not just the recruitment process, whilst providing an enhanced service to candidates.

A growing trend is for recruitment consultants to become 'business partners ' with their clients. This is replicated in the new/remodelled HR function. Building a close relationship with a consultant will enable them to develop a very detailed understanding of your company 's culture resulting in a more effective result for your business.

The HR profession now has a stronger recognition as being an integral part of modern business and therefore can look forward to a very exciting future. Many senior practitioners believe the recognition is long overdue, as the business environment is becoming ever more complex. It is increasingly becoming the case that innovative business strategy in isolation, is not enough. Given the growing globalisation of business, combined with the frantic pace of mergers, acquisitions and joint venture activity. The lack of a flexible HR strategy in line with broader corporate objectives, will seriously handicap even the most well thought out commercial venture.

The establishment of the Executive HR team is a response to movements in the business and we anticipate this pattern will continue.