So when it's time to hire new talent, do you really have hours per day to comb through hundreds of resumes to see if two or three (on a good day) have some kernel of what you're looking for? And do you really have hours per day to sit and interview all of the possibles until you find the right one or two? and then pray that you made the right choice? No, you don't.

There are more dynamics in getting a good hire than merely making a decision to add to or replace staff, running an ad and then hiring the first one who seems like they might work out. Other steps in the hiring process are making certain you have the job specifications worked out, know what salary and benefits to offer, place your ad in the most advantageous venue so that you attract a good response and a reasonable cost for advertising. When you sandwich all of that (and some steps that I've omitted) into your regular routine, you'll quickly discover that you're spending your life at the office trying to do everything and not getting a lot completed.

A good recruiter is like a broker. Their fee is the savings you'll make for having them do the sourcing, screening, initial interview and presentation. As a broker, they'll also be selling the attributes of your business in order to make the right candidates interested in working for your fine business -- and enhance their careers by doing so.

The recruiter will interview you in order to find out what your business is about and what you're looking for in the ideal person for the job. Your recruiter will also be your counselor and mentor. A good recruiter will discuss which aspects of your ideal person are absolutely necessary and the skills they must have compared with "good to have" talents and background. Your recruiter will be your sounding board. You can also expect the recruiter to be on top of current employment laws in your state. They will advise you of what wording and practices are acceptable and recommend better ways of handling things that will keep you out of EEOC and legal trouble. If you hire international talent, your recruiter will need to know that so that they can keep you aware of the resources you need to stay on top of those niche hiring practices.

Part of their retainer will cover the initial advertising costs associated with attracting the right applicants. Since they specialize in your industry or in the particular type of positions that you're trying to fill, they will know of the more strategic places for sourcing, which will save you time and money. They will be connected with associations where people of this sort -- good people -- associate and can strike up conversations with the stars who would be a good fit for your company.

The recruiter knows the special inside information about your company that makes it attractive, the special nuances and quirks so that they can prepare the career seeker who is more likely to fit into the your corporate culture and prepare them to make a better presentation than if they went in cold.

After all of the advertising, sourcing, screening, interviewing, preparing and presenting, the recruiter will then do a background check on the person to whom you want to extend an offer.

If your recruiter offers a one-year guarantee, you can also expect periodic follow-up contacts with your new hire and you in order to make certain the fit is good and the communication that needs to happen is. What you want is to not have to keep filling the same position because things didn't work out. That's time consuming. What you want is to find the right person and keeping them on your team because they are the right person. The recruiter's goal is making a long-lasting, good fit; it's keeping their client happy.

All of that work taken off of your shoulders -- outsourced, if you will -- so that you can focus on your primary goal of running your business well and profitably. Count up the hours and days you save by using a recruiter, not to mention dollars saved in the long run, and you may come up with a few reasons for using a recruiter that haven't been covered here.