Bee Talents

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO and founder of Whites Agency. We’re a digital agency specializing in SEO as well as social media, content marketing, and other things. 

We target enterprise companies like large organizations, mostly from Poland, but also from other countries in Europe, the States as well as others.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Bee Talents?

At the time, we were much smaller than we are now and we had no HR team whatsoever. We were struggling to hire people because we didn’t have much knowledge about the process and there was a lot of work to do. We hired Bee Talents to help us with the process.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We outsourced hiring to Bee Talents, with the goal of hiring four or five people at the same time. They handled the whole process with initial calls and first talks with potential candidates. Along the way, they showed us how it was done in a professional way through some transfer of knowledge at the same time.

In hiring four or five interns, there were a lot of applications. They handled the whole process and I believe they also arranged the classifieds. They reviewed all the applications that came through, and they chose some of them for initial calls. The team delivered several candidates for me to choose from. In the end, they delivered pretty good candidates and we chose from that group.

What is the team composition?

At that time, I believe there were four or five people. I believe they are larger now, with 20 people or more. We were mostly in touch with Maciej (Co-Owner & COO) who handled our account and did most of the job himself. 

We also worked with the founder at the beginning and at the crucial parts. She also showed us how the process would look, the key points as well as KPIs, and what would make it successful and smooth. She was more responsible for transferring the knowledge to us. Maciej was responsible for handling the process with the candidates.

How did you come to work with Bee Talents?

We had a mutual connection, and he recommended Bee Talents to me as he knew that we were struggling with this process. The founder was at the beginning of starting her own company.

How much have you invested in them?

It was a few thousand dollars.

What is the status of this engagement?

I don’t remember exactly when it was, but I believe it was in the summer of 2016 and it lasted two or three months.

We felt it was a crucial part of our business as a whole so we decided to internalize the process.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

In general, the cooperation was successful as a result of hiring the right people. However,  they also helped us understand how crucial the recruitment and hiring process is and how it could be done. I believe the value was great and the value for money was even better. 

We were completely happy with the decision to work with Bee Talents as well as the results we got. They helped us hire the right people at the right time.

How did Bee Talents perform from a project management standpoint?

I was also very happy about the project management aspect. They showed us how smooth and organized the company could be. We had been on the market for a couple of years, and with their previous experience from larger organizations, they demonstrated a higher level than what we were doing at that point.

What did you find most impressive about them?

There are a couple of things. I was in contact with Bee Talents even after we finished our cooperation and we stayed in touch. They are very dedicated, and they try to think from our perspective and our business perspective. 

The team worked to understand our situation, goals, objectives, and so on. We felt like Bee Talent was a part of our team and that’s what differentiates them from other companies, especially other HR companies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could have charged more. They learned that lesson and they do charge more at this point. My experience was purely great, so there is nothing that comes to my mind when it comes to areas they can improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Talk to them and make sure that they understand your business. Also, make sure you know who you’ll be working with because, in this business of B2B services and the consulting business in general, it is important to know who actually will be working on your account. 

I don’t know their whole team, but everyone I have met was great. Make sure there are senior people on their side and not junior people. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Rebased, a software development agency that focuses on Ruby on Rails and JavaScript. We create bespoke software, and we maintain, develop, improve, and rescue existing projects that have proven to be viable business models.

We’re brought in after the startup or MVP phase has ended, and the concept is validated. We make products work not for 100 users, but 100,000. We focus on complicated products that are worth developing further.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Bee Talents?

Bee Talents has looked for experienced and battle-hardened developers for us. Developers that work on startup or early-stage products are fine, and it’s fine to have a software built by a developer with 2–3 years of experience, in order to validate an idea and build the first version of a software.

In order to take that software further, we get into scaling, maintenance, high availability, high data volume, and high usage problems where we need a way more experienced developer. We require developers with at least five years of professional experience, and that had soft skills as well.

The developers working with us have to be not only good at technical aspects and at identifying pain points and business requirements but also have excellent interpersonal skills. They have to be assertive but polite and respectful. They needed to be good at working with others.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had an initial call to discuss the specifics of our work and how we differ from other software development agencies. We’re usually brought in as an augmentation of existing in-house teams, and often as more experienced developers that can take the projects further.

The developers needed to be able to organize brainstorming, gather requirements and basically help the existing team achieve better levels of software quality than they’d had before we stepped in. We weren’t looking for genius coders who couldn’t talk to people. This is how we described the perfect candidate to Bee Talents.

We described how we work and what some of our projects look like so that Bee Talents had enough information to pitch candidates. We needed to prove to them that we were going to give them enough challenges, but also enough support to grow further and have some interesting challenges in their careers.

After that, we started the process of finding candidates.

For them, combing through people is always a case of the same-kind complexity. They have to search through hundreds of LinkedIn profiles, reach out to 20–30, and recommend 10 for us to talk to. They prefer to have contracts that span recruiting 2–3 people, which equate to 2–3 success fees for the same amount of work.

After giving out invitations through LinkedIn, Bee Talent handles the first phase of interviews, basically early screenings focusing on the person’s language abilities. Bee Talents checks how comfortable the person is with using English. They also do the first assessment of the person’s soft skills, looking at whether they’ll fit into the team and work properly with other people.

After they’ve greenlighted all the fields we’re looking for, they’ll send the candidates to us. We handle only the technical part of the interview, after which we make a decision.

What is the team composition?

Our main points of contact are a recruiter and an account person. I know that there are other people on the Bee Talents side doing the initial reach-out, including a language expert.

How did you come to work with Bee Talents?

I trained CrossFit with one of the people who later became a sales associate of Bee Talents. It was essentially a personal connection. I’d also heard about Bee Talents before because they were founded by Aleksandra (CEO), who was already well-known and respected in the development community.

It’s kind of rare to have a recruiter that’s respected among developers. There’s an incredibly low signal to noise ratio when developers are getting lots of offers from recruiters, which are usually completely unfit to their experience and technologies.

Aleksandra had worked for a well-known software company, so she already had the social capital to attract clients. Everybody we talked to about Bee Talents was happy with them, so we decided to give them a chance.

How much have you invested with them?

As far as I remember, their fee is a single monthly salary of the developer we’re hiring. Half or a third of that is paid upfront, and the rest is paid after signing the contract with the developer. This might sound small since other recruitment agencies request two salaries, but we’re a company that pays a lot.

Bee Talents is happy to get a single month’s salary as a fee. For us, the ballpark is €4,500 (approximately $5,100 USD) per person. I believe we recruited two people in 2018 and three in 2019.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our first collaboration was between December 2017–January 2018. The second collaboration was in 2019, and we’ll sign another contract with Bee Talents the next time we’re going to be recruiting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We first went to them to recruit two people, and Bee Talents was so good that we went to them again the next year.

Their contracts are exclusive in that they’re going to be the only recruiting agency working with us at that particular time so that other agencies don’t interfere. They’ll allow us to have our own independent recruitment process running in parallel, and the developers we find that way aren’t subjected to the fee.

The model works, and no one’s trying to outdo or cheat the other side. We have a healthy, honest agreement, and it works. We’ve done it twice, and we were happy with the entire process.

I’m always super happy with their services. Whenever we had a hiccup, or there was something that had to be communicated differently, we told them, and they immediately adjusted their communication process.

They respond very well to feedback, and I can’t find anything bad to say about working with Bee Talents. That doesn’t happen very often in my case. Working with Bee Talents has been a breeze so far, and I hope they keep up the good work.

How did Bee Talents perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re happy not just with the quality of people they’ve brought to us, but the communication is also great. Our contacts are on our Slack channel dedicated to recruitment where we bounce ideas back and forth.

They’re responsive, and they send nicely-formed emails about the candidates. They have a well-defined template for the candidate assessment results, with sections for their soft skills, language skills, areas of improvement, and their recommendation level.

We’re definitely going to work with them again.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’ve talked to quite a few agencies, and Bee Talents was the first one that listened and properly identified and understood what set us apart from other development companies and what our expectations are. They found candidates that fit those requirements. This is something I haven’t found with other agencies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t find anything they could improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I advise clients to give it a try. They should set up a call and see if there’s a common vibe–if they think and communicate in a similar way.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the leader of the HR and recruitment department for a software house.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Bee Talents?

We wanted to quickly hire developers, but we didn’t have the capacity to hire many people at the pace we wanted. They’re enabling us to reach out to more candidates.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’ve worked on four different recruitment projects since starting our partnership. It’s been their responsibility to support our company in many recruitment processes, as we search for remote Ruby on Rails development teammates. They reached out to candidates for us and sent recommended candidates to our team. That allowed us to focus on a smaller pool of applicants.

What is the team composition?

We’re working with several dedicated consultants on their team. 

How did you come to work with Bee Talents?

They were recommended to us by one of our employees, who had a great experience with them in the past. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $5,000 on their services.  

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since July 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Because of their services, our company only had to interview 29 candidates to make four hires. I was pretty impressed, and they made sure there was still a wide candidate pool to choose from.  

How did Bee Talents perform from a project management standpoint?

All of their consultants were well-prepared for the recruitment process and knew what they were doing. They were timely as a company. We established a Slack channel as our main source of communication, which allowed us to speak pretty quickly. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Our relationship has grown over time. For instance, they invited us to participate in a webinar on remote work with them. They’re a very specialized agency in IT recruitment. They’re dedicated to each recruitment effort, and their expertise helps them be effective.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d love for them to begin approaching international candidates.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CTO of Alfreð

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Our company creates a platform for users to advertise and search for jobs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Bee Talents to accomplish?

• Find candidates for a Software Engineering roles
• Screen candidates for Software Engineering roles

SOLUTION

How did you find Bee Talents?

Online Search

Why did you select Bee Talents over others?

• High ratings
• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Bee Talents were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

BeeTalents did a lot of things to help us find the right person for our job: Understanding our needs: First, they talked with us to learn what kind of person we were looking for. They wanted to understand what the job was, what skills were needed, and what kind of person would fit in well with our team. 

• Posting the job: After they knew what we needed, they wrote a job description and posted it online to get the word out. 
• Looking for candidates: They used their connections and job websites to find people who might fit the role well. 
• Interviewing: They talked to a lot of people who applied, asking them questions and learning about their skills. Then, they picked the best ones for us to meet. 
• Keeping us in the loop: They were really good about talking to us and the people who applied. They set up all the meetings and told us how things were going. 
• Choosing and starting with the new person: In the end, they helped us pick the right person. 

So, the main things they did were understanding what we needed, getting the job post out there, finding people who might be a good fit, interviewing them, keeping us updated, and helping us pick the new person.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We were able to find and hire an experienced software engineer.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Everything was delivered in a timely and professional manner.

What was your primary form of communication with Bee Talents?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They have a lot of experience and connections.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Bee Talents could have done differently?

No, All of their work was accomplished to the highest of standards.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm working in it outsourcing company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Bee Talents?

Our company is growing, so we need IT HR well qualified specialists. Through 1 day training ,we could help us to reach necessary knowledge about recruitment in it sector

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

good opinion, available terms

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

I was one day technic training program. There we some useful exercises and cases. We got the presentation and certificates. The atmosphere was very nice, the trainer stay even longer then it was planed in the training schedule

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

one-working on backoffice

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

It is to early, but the informations are very usefull and helpfull at work.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We communicated all day, it was effective, any problems

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

suitability; elactic program, well qualificated coach

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

honestly not really

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am Recruitment & Account Manager at EonD Experise on Demand

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Bee Talents?

Advanced training in sourcing.

SOLUTION

How did you select BeeTalents and what were the deciding factors?

Company found through Google search. The choice was determined by the portfolio of available services (dedicated trainings for recruiters), very good communication.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

BeeTalents prepared a tailor-made training program for our team of recruiters, based on a prior analysis of our team's training needs. The offered training program matched our needs, additionally the training was prepared and conducted in English.

How many resources from the BeeTalents team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Account Manager and Training Manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

Thanks to participation in the training, our team began to use new channels for sourcing candidates, which has an impact on greater efficiency and speed of project implementation.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They had good communication at every stage of cooperation.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Unique, specialized and very practical knowledge that the trainer conducting the training had. The training consisted of a lot of very practical knowledge.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the main recruitment specialist at Jobhouse.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Bee Talents?

Our Company hired Bee Talents to conduct sourcing training.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We select bee talents by elimination and the deciding fact was profesionalism and consistent communication with a trener.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We were taught various ways of sourcing.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We cooperated with Head of Recruitment in Bee Talents and Project Manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

That was a trening not a project it is difficult to point outcomes.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We managed to communicate in aquite fluent way.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Good marketing

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Time managment during the trening

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am an HR specialist for an IT outcourcing company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Bee Talents?

We wanted Bee Talents to find for us an IT recruiter for our internat HR department.

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

We had a good cooperation in similar thing before.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

It was a very good cooperation.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with one person form Bee Talens contacting us intensively on regular base.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

We have a new reliable employee we were looking for.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Their communication was great!

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No idea.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a recruitment team leader in a software agency - Netguru. We design and develop web and mobile applications for our clients worldwide, focusing on outstanding user experience.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Bee Talents?

Recruitment

SOLUTION

How did you select this firm and what were the deciding factors?

Quality of work Price

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

Bee Talents was responsible for conducting end-to-end recruitment processes at Netguru for given roles (tech and non-tech positions).

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

2-3 recruitment specialists

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the engagement that demonstrate progress or success?

Bee Talents managed to fulfill many positions in a given timeframe.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Collaboration was very effective. The team was responsive and eager to help.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Proactiveness

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

None