7 Questions To Guarantee Filipino Recruitment Success

Looking at hiring Filipino talent and bringing them to Australia? 

Great choice. You’ll be hard pushed to find a more talented, loyal, and hard-working group of people anywhere around the globe.  

It brings us so much pleasure to consistently place skilled trades professionals from the Philippines into Australian businesses that are looking to grow with the best talent available.  

It improves lives and improves businesses. But how do you make it work for everyone involved?  

It’s not without its pitfalls, as you’ll know if you’ve tried going it alone – or with an agency that wasn’t set up for it. 

From our experience, there are seven main questions you need to ask any agency before hiring them to select talent from the Philippines for you…

1. Does your agency have their own talent pool of candidates? 

Why’s it important to ask this? 

The depth of the agency’s talent pool will go a long way to determining how quickly you can find the right people for the right roles.  

If an agency has just sprung up and is selecting from a limited group, it’s liable to slow the process down greatly; that’s if the right people can be found at all.  

If you’ve decided to go down the road of hiring Filipino talent, a lack of quality candidates or delays will be frustrating on top of all the other inevitable challenges. 

How do we answer this question? 

We maintain a talent pool of over 50,000 skilled individuals through Facebook and referrals; over 10 years in the business helps us select from a huge group of the best candidates. 

2. What in-house assessors does your agency have? 

Why’s it important to ask this?  

There are two main areas that need to be assessed with a candidate:  

• The professional skills – are they as claimed by the candidate on their CV? 
• English proficiency – are they able to communicate effectively in English? 

Unless the agency has the means to rapidly and accurately assess these, candidate quality may suffer and, again, delays will occur.  

Metal trades should sit a welding test, mechanics need to be tested for real-world aptitudes, and hospitality staff, such as chefs, should be assessed in a kitchen to ensure that they possess the skills claimed on their CV.  

And to test for level of English, the agency should have an in-house assessor who is familiar with Australian English requirements; candidates should sit an internationally-acclaimed English test. 

How do we answer this question?  

We have full-time in-house professionals to assess each short list of candidates: English teachers test for communication skills and we even hire industry professionals to confirm our candidates are up to the mark.  

3. How successful is your agency at bringing international talent into Australian organisations?  

Why’s it important to ask this?  

Australia is unique in many ways.  

Amongst other things, we have the highest  ‘bar’ for entry of any country in the world. We’re one of the toughest countries to migrate to, even on a short-term basis. 

The requirements and procedures for entry are very specific and generally quite rigorous.  

If the agency has no experience of the tough immigration policy here, it’s going to struggle to get candidates into the country – or at least suffer significant delays in the process.  

How do we answer this question?

We have a dedicated MARA registered migration team, who have been arranging Australian visas for Filipinos for over 10 years. Policies and procedures sometimes change but we see it as part of our job to stay on top of them.  

4. Do you offer any quality guarantees?  

Why’s it important to ask this?  

Agencies that offer a guarantee are prepared to back themselves and stand by the talent they find.  

It’s rare that you’ll be offered anything longer than a three or six-month guarantee, which doesn’t offer much protection for your organisation.  

How do we answer this question?  

We provide a two-year guarantee for our own talent. We can do that because we believe that when you develop strong relationships with both candidates and clients, you can ensure that matches are successful for both parties.  

In many cases, our clients enjoy lifelong relationships with their Filipino talent. 

5. Do you provide in-house coaching for candidates to pass the Trades Recognition Australia assessment? 

Why’s it important to ask this? 

Most candidates must sit the Trades Recognition Australia assessment before lodging a visa application. This is required by Australian immigration policy. 

The assessment is a technical interview so a candidate needs to explain their technical ability (as a welder, mechanic, or chef for instance) and provide answers to a broad range of technical questions, which would be a challenge to a lot of people – let alone in a second language. 

This creates significant challenges for Filipinos whose English is not at a great competency level.  

How do we answer this question?  

We have in-house expertise to coach candidates to successfully pass the test. 

6. Is there a single point of contact who coordinates all aspects of bringing a candidate to Australia? 

Why’s it important to ask this? 

The coordination required to bring a candidate from the Philippines to Australia is significant.  

It’s extremely challenging for agencies without the necessary experience and personnel to manage the process in a timely and efficient fashion.  

The three major areas that need to be coordinated are: 

• Abiding by the law in the Philippines for a skilled professional to leave the country 
• Skills testing through the Trades Recognition Australia assessment
• Immigration requirements to enter Australia 

Each area requires a range of information and documentation and there is some overlap. If things get missed in any area, it can cause great delays.  

That’s why it’s so important to have a single point of contact across all these areas.  

How do we answer this question?  

Our clients are appointed a client services manager who oversees the entire process from end-to-end. 

This means that as we move through the various departments (Trade Recognition Australia department, immigration department; and policies and procedures department), our clients remain informed of where the process is at by their client services manager who oversees the whole process.  

7. How is your agency involved once the candidates leave the Philippines?  

Why’s it important to ask this?  

When people move overseas to work, it’s a huge change and a challenge for them and their family back home. With these big life moves comes an inherent responsibility on the part of the agency to ensure that it works out well.  

Ask the agency: 

• What follow-up procedure do you have with candidates?  
• Do you see how the candidates are going?  
• Do you check if there are any family issues that could prevent them settling in Australia?  

In other words, check whether they take their “duty of care” seriously.  

If there’s no follow-up process, it’s a sure sign that something’s not quite right. 

How do we answer this question? 

We have a great deal of respect for Filipinos and honour all of our candidates. They come first. We consider our clients’ success is a by–product of our candidates’ success.  

So, once they board a plane to Australia, they all enter our Lifetime Relationships Program; and we have a commitment to help them settle here and even for their family back home to be comfortable.  

By asking these seven questions of any potential recruitment agency, you can whittle down the field significantly.  

Most agencies will not be able to answer positively to all seven questions. Only those experienced enough and with the necessary personnel to cover all bases will be left standing.  

If you have any further questions about hiring the best Filipino talent, get in contact with us here: sales@tprc.com.au