Groom & Associates

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a consultant at a consulting agency. I’ve been helping with talent acquisition lately.

What challenge were you trying to address with Groom & Associates?

We had a client who needed to get contractual workers to join a project. Essentially, we created a network of agencies that we work with. They’ve been helping us fulfill job posting and contractual resources.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I’ll create descriptions, then send them out to a network of agencies including Groom. They’ll come back to me with questions and candidates. Afterward, I work with the hiring manager to see if they’re suitable. Together, we’ve filled two roles together and worked on other contractual roles.

What is the team composition?

I work with four people over there. I send things to two of them, and they’ll communicate with the others.

How did you come to work with Groom & Associates?

They were given to me as a contact once the project already started.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began work in May 2020, and are still working together.

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

They’ve provided a number of candidates, which is great to show those we work with. Secondly, we often get feedback from hiring managers about the CVs they receive. From a qualitative perspective, the CVs they provide always receive positive feedback.

How did Groom & Associates perform from a project management standpoint?

They are very good at communication. They always ensure that they get the right people in the right positions. If you have any questions, they’re always online to answer.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very quick. They’ve gotten CVs to us within two days.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d love to fill more roles with them, but that’s the fault of other projects, not them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re looking to staff people, I’d recommend them.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a restaurant business that offers catering services, corporate functions, and wedding services. I am the maitre d’ and floor manager of the restaurant, and I’ve been here for about 19 years. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Groom & Associates?

I do a variety of tasks including organizing weddings, and that’s essentially why we came into contact with Groom & Associates four years ago. We received a very favorable review from one of the top food critics, and overnight we tripled our business, so we were quite busy. 

We got to a point where we needed to have somebody dedicated to sales, corporate events, and weddings because they represented a huge chunk of our business. It was outside of our realm, so we decided to look for a little bit of outside help, and that’s the reason we collaborated with Groom & Associates.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were looking for a sales coordinator to handle a large volume of sales, so we got them and called them up. We went to their office and explained to them what our needs were and what we were looking at. The restaurant industry tends to be a very low paying industry, so they walked us through what it would cost us to get what we needed in the experience that we wanted to have for the position. 

They also walked us through how they would go about finding candidates including the interview process. When we hired them, we made it clear that we need to get the project done very quickly. 

What is the team composition?

I spoke with two people, but I dealt directly with Miriam (VP of Sales and Marketing). I also spoke a couple of times with recruiters. 

How did you come to work with Groom & Associates?

We used Google to find recruitment companies and we identified top companies. Based on their reviews, we called the top three companies and we found that we had a really good rapport with Groom & Associates. When we went to meet them, everything worked out well. Above all, we were happy with what they offered us.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent in the ballpark of $10,000–$11,000, not including the taxes. We paid them 20% of the salary of the person we hired and I believe the salary was about $55,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from September–October 2019. The recruitment process approximately lasted four weeks. 

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

The team set up something that we were comfortable with. They did due diligence and we were super happy with their work. We were in a little bit of a crunch time, but they got the project done really quickly.

The sales coordinator position was a new position in our company and we didn’t really have any specific reference for it. Other than that, we were satisfied with the staff they helped us recruit. That person was so much better than the other person that we had. 

How did Groom & Associates perform from a project management standpoint?

They were fantastic and they were fast. We didn’t have to follow up with them because they always called us. Groom & Associates always informed us on what was going on. Everything was seamless. They were also very open about what we wanted and how we wanted to do the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Not having to deal with a lot of things I don’t know — that’s what impressed us. The project was non-dramatic, simple, and straightforward. Moreover, they were efficient. In my industry, that was a very welcome attribute because we had so much stuff all the time that we just want to move on from anything that we were dealing with.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

If their price point was less, we would be happier, but none of the companies that we called offered us a lower rate. Other than that, we appreciated that it didn’t take a lot of interviews to find who we were looking for. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very direct about what you want and expect to have a seamless situation once you do that. I’m the type of customer that won’t stand for not getting the engagement that I want — I think that also contributed to the partnership's success.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a freelancer that works in online marketing — I offer SEO and Google Ads campaign management services. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Groom & Associates?

I needed assistance for some of my clients’ needs, so I hired Groom & Associates to find the right candidate.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team helped with all the basic admin and assistance work for the role I needed to fill. They had five candidates for me to interview and we went through all the CVs and resumes. I picked someone based on their skillset — I matched that based on the salary and experience.

What is the team composition?

There were two people involved but I only dealt with one team member.

How did you come to work with Groom & Associates?

I had heard good things about them before and was referred to them

How much have you invested with them?

The cost was $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January—March 2020.

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

The resource they found for me was a nice fit — maybe it wasn’t a perfect fit but it was the best based on what I told them. I could have given them a more clear role of what I needed, but with what I explained to them, they provided the best candidate. 

How did Groom & Associates perform from a project management standpoint?

They were responsive and communication was very fast. The project was managed correctly and they gave us feedback when needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They had many candidates to choose from. Their customer service was great and their team was quick to answer me. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could have helped me with the Excel brief — it may have been too simple.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Spend time looking at the profile you want to submit. You have to see this as how you can help them help you. Maybe you could put forth a more complete profile and really think about who you’re trying to hire. Give them the most information you can.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I have used the services of Groom & Associates for more than 10 years now, stemming various roles and sectors, including non-profit and for-profit.

For what projects/services did your company hire Groom & Associates?

We sought their services for various roles: event management, project management, call center agents, Executive Director. Groom & Associates would take care of the pre-interview screening, testing, providing quality candidates.

What were your goals for this engagement?

Finding the best candidates, quickly.

How did you select Groom & Associates?

We wanted to work with an highly experienced firm that could provide a high level of service. Groom & Associates experience and reputation did not dissapoint.

Describe the engagement in detail.

The scope of services provided included recruiting, screening, testing, reference and background checks.

What was the team composition?

I had an account manager that was was my main contact.

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

Over 10 years+ I have always been pleased with the results. Groom & Associates always demonstrated a good understanding of the mandate, a deep knowledge of the labour force situation, provided quality candidates and were always pleasant and professional.

A real partner in recruiting.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective in delivery quick and quality results.

What did you find most impressive about this vendor?

Personal approach. Knowledgeable. They get the job done.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing comes to mind. When you use eh same provider for ,ore than 10 years, it's because you get results.