‘I Don‘t Want an Okay Candidate‘: Stark HR‘s Cristine Sauter Shares Her Secrets for Consistently Making Placements

Cristine Sauter didn’t mean to become a recruiter. Not at first, anyway. In fact, she kind of stumbled her way into the HR field.

“I was an administrative assistant at a consulting company and business was booming,” Sauter recalls. “One day, the HR manager asked me if I could help her sort some resumes, which I happily did. The next day, she asked me if I could help her with scheduling interviews. A few days later, I was asked to conduct assessments and do some interviews. Before I knew it, I was participating in recruiting fairs. One day, without even realizing it, I was an HR person.”

Employers should be thankful Sauter’s career led her down this road. As a member of the team at HR outsourcing firm Stark HR, Sauter provides clients with an HR team that can work in their favor, no matter where in the world they operate. While Stark HR offers everything from compensation and talent management to compliance, Sauter is in charge of the firm’s Human Capital Division, which means she specializes in recruiting, training and development, and outplacement.

Meanwhile, as a recruiter on the Recruiter.com Job Market Platform, Sauter consistently puts great candidates in great roles. It’s clear Sauter is a natural when it comes to making connections between top talent and the innovative companies that need their skills.

Focusing on What She Loves

Cristine Sauter

Sauter has a passion for placements. “I love recruiting,” she says. “I love the thrill. I even love getting a ‘no’ because it pushes me to become better. Most of all, however, I love getting a ‘yes.’ My favorite four words are, ‘Congratulations, you are hired!’ To hear that and experience the candidate’s happiness is really something that makes my day.”

While placing candidates may be the most exciting — and lucrative — part of the gig, it is not the only part. As Sauter notes, “When you are trying to do recruiting all by yourself, you have to split that time between recruiting and finding positions to fill.”

“One can only work so many hours per day,” Sauter says, which is why she decided to join the Recruiter.com Job Market Platform in the first place. Recruiter.com takes the work of finding positions and clients off of Sauter’s plate so she can focus on the part of recruiting she loves most.

“I don’t have to worry about chasing new clients,” Sauter says. “They are there. This allows me to do what I do best, which is find the right candidate and close the deal.”

Sauter’s Three-Part Formula for Success

Sauter’s passion for placements is a major driver of her success on the Recruiter.com Job Market Platform, but she also has her unique career experience to thank. Sauter spent roughly a decade working on what she calls “the other side of the recruiting business”: outplacement.

“[I was] dealing with mergers and acquisitions and plant closings, and I had to find positions for those we were firing — which we did with an 85 percent success rate,” Sauter says. “After almost 600 outplacements, we developed an expertise in understanding what the candidate has to offer, which helps us a lot in interviews.”

Sauter recalls how this background “came very in handy” during a recent project: “We had to hire a full manufacturing plant in 90 days — 120 employees to be recruited and trained within that period of time. We achieved that in 60 days. Today, we close most of our openings within two weeks’ time.”

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While other recruiters may not be able to copy Sauter’s career trajectory, they can follow her three-part formula for consistent recruiting success:

1. Become an Expert: “You need to understand what the client really wants and needs. Ask your client directly and read the job description carefully. See what that position really does. Watch videos, read similar job ads, and check out how competitors advertise that same kind of position (you will often find different titles used for the same jobs).”
2. Be Flexible: “I work on the candidate’s availability, meaning that if they are only available before 8 a.m. or after 6 p.m., I make sure I adjust my agenda accordingly.”
3. Have High Standards: “I don’t want an ‘okay’ candidate. I don’t mind if I can only send one resume to the client, but I make sure it is the best candidate for that position. Whenever I start reading resumes or sit down for an interview, I have a clear vision of what to expect from the candidate, and I don’t settle for less.”

As a final bit of advice, Sauter stresses that success in recruiting depends in large part on marketing yourself well.

“A happy hiring manager is likely to hire your services again,” she says. “A happy candidate can take your name to other companies. They may even become a client! Your reputation can help you land more positions and find more candidates. So, stay focused on both sides. Treat hiring managers and candidates with the same attention and respect. It will pay off!”