How to set up your own recruitment business & travel the world!

Dualta DohertyManaging Director

dualta@prorecruitmentsolutions.com

My wife & I became full time Digital Nomads on St Patrick’s Day last year with our recruitment business Pro Recruitment Solutions. As we approach 1 full year in business we have been reflecting on the tools that have made this possible.

At the time of writing this, predictions from the Digital Nomad community are that Generation Y and what comes after will have a different attitude to work so much so that some are saying that by 2035 there could be 1 Billion Digital Nomads (Location Independent Online Workers).

For a clear understanding of what it means to be a digital nomad and how to run your business in a way that promotes work life balance a good starting point is Tim Ferris’s Four Hour Work Week. Below are the other key technologies that I would recommend will help you in setting up a recruitment business that allows you to work from anywhere!

Website:

For all business lessons, whether they are technology or not, jump on to You tube and search for best practices. We use Godaddy for our domain name purchase and hosting because they are affordable for start-ups but if I could do it all over again I would probably use another provider as they have awful customer service. Search Wordpress for their latest templates and from researching your competitors’ websites see if you can make an improved and personalised version. There are lots of free website building websites out there – trust me they are not worth it and you will want yours to be custom made. Buy professional images or videos from Shutterstock, they have a massive selection which will give your website a slick feel.

Email:

Google Apps for Business can be a little tricky to set up but their customer service is excellent and the products on offer are amazing. Your emails will be accessible anywhere by Gmail however with a personalized finish e.g. dualta@prorecruitmentsolutions.com

Application Tracking System (ATS):

There are lots of cloud based systems out there, in my opinion the best is Bullhorn however we have Job Adder which is a close second (the functionality is increasing every day) and is a bit more affordable when first getting going.

Accounting:

We use Quick Books  as it is competitively priced and really easy to use. Our accountant is able to directly access this and both you and them can make real time amendments. Other considerations to keep high up your list will be choosing the bank which you wish to use for your business banking. Make sure they will be able to service all of your needs such as accepting international payments from different countries, finding out what their overseas charges are, credit limits etc.

Sourcing Tools:

LinkedIn is still the most important tool out there. We have opted for the Premium option instead of LinkedIn Recruiter (1/10 of the price) as with our combined network of approximately 40k + our searching ability is strong. We have also found that Inmails are losing their appeal given the amount of them being sent and as we are focused on headhunting/attracting passive candidates job advertising is not as necessary for us.  

Job Board Solutions – I was approached twice recently to share the cost of job boards for sourcing candidates.  I’m still in the experimental phase with this as our LinkedIn network is so strong however it can be a cost effective way to do it spreading out the monthly cost amongst a group as they can be very expensive.

Social Media Tools:

Hootsuite helps you manage all your social media accounts for a small monthly fee making it extremely easy to like and share relevant content with your network and followers. By jumping into it in the morning you can schedule your posts/content for the upcoming days which will then automatically go to your chosen groups/social media sites. Another cool feature is that it scours the internet and periodically posts interesting, relevant and approved content throughout the week.

Canva is another great marketing tool which helps users create images for your websites, social media, twitter campaigns, job advertisements – nearly anything! It is a mixture of free and paid images and gives you idea’s on layouts as well as allowing you to brand them with your company logo.

Freelance Support:

After listening to Tim’s 4 hour working week it led me to signing up to Up Work, an online platform of freelance workers where I made my first hire, a Filipino virtual assistant, and more recently a developer from Romania. Outsourcing is not for everyone and you really have to communicate clear instructions on the tasks you require to be completed. It will be a process of trial and error but it’s worth it in the long run.  

Phone Systems:

Voice Over IP (Voip) Solutions have changed the game making it possible to accept and make calls wherever you are. We use Vonage as our primary phone number which allows us to plug it into a modem wherever we go and their extension app allows us to make calls from our mobile as long as we have a high speed WIFI signal. If you are running a global recruitment business like us it is really important to offer your candidates and clients the ability to phone you on a local number which is then routed to your main line for this we use Spikko.  WhastApp & Skype are also useful for coordinating and communicating with clients and candidates so make sure you have professional accounts set up.

Hardware:

Sit Stand Desks are really essential with recent studies showing that sitting down or being sedentary as one of the biggest health risks in our modern day. These easy to use, foldable and transportable sit stand desk make it possible to work ergonomically from any location on any desk/table.

Lap Tops – Hard to beat Apples’ line of Macs & second screens however we have chosen stay with Windows and other brands as they are cheaper and more durable. When travelling and working in different places it definitely means more wear & tear than if you are based in an office.

Cables, Adapters & Plugs – Get 2 of everything because they will break or get misplaced or in our case be eaten by our dog (Claude).

Camera – More and more social media is being dominated by personal images & videos, so much so that blogging is now being over taken by vlogging (video blogging). A good camera will help you relate to your clients and candidates through corporate video’s and information sharing images.

This is a small selection of what is available out there for you so research and staying current is important. If you are interested in finding out more about top tips on how to get started as a digital nomad recruitment business, or an agency Recruitment Consultant looking for your next role abroad, then don’t hesitate to get in touch!

dualta@prorecruitmentsolutions.comwww.prorecruitmentsolutions.com+44 (0) 207 993 5659