Saving £25,000 by hiring directly through cord

"cord is definitely better than other approaches I’ve used in the past"

James Stonehill on cord
James Stonehill, Co-Founder & CTO at Clerq

2

direct hires made

£25,000

saved in recruiter costs

cord usage

2 direct hires
5 positions
1 user
Greater London

About Clerq

NLPatent is an AI-powered patent search and analytics platform. They use their own custom-trained LLM to make patent searches easier. Their product lets you search for patents simply by describing your invention in natural language rather than constructing complex boolean keyword queries.
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Our Goal

We needed a platform to help us organise our recruitment process and source candidates, given that we didn't have a dedicated recruitment team.

Our Situation
Strive to Organise
Before discovering cord, our main hiring challenges stemmed from not having a dedicated recruitment team, a common issue for small startups like ours. This lack of resources made organising the recruitment process effectively quite challenging. We faced difficulties in sourcing candidates, lacking the structured mechanisms and resources that larger companies with specialised recruitment teams have at their disposal. Therefore, we found our recruiting efforts more time-consuming and less efficient than we had hoped.
Using cord

Control Over the Recruitment Process

What I really appreciated in cord was the level of control it offered over the hiring process. Unlike outsourcing, where we had little involvement, cord enabled us to be more hands-on. This level of control was essential, as it enabled us to customise the recruitment process according to our specific needs and preferences, focusing our efforts on identifying the right candidates for our startup. The quality of candidates on cord was notably high, and I appreciated the ability to screen for quality ourselves. We were able to establish our own standards and filter candidates based on our unique requirements, which was crucial for making informed hiring decisions.


Active Candidates and High Response Rates

The access to active candidates on cord was a game-changer. It saved us from the time-consuming process of engaging with passive candidates who might not be interested in new roles. Knowing that the candidates on cord were actively seeking opportunities meant we could focus our efforts on those more likely to respond. What’s more, the response rates from candidates on cord were impressively high. Most candidates I reached out to responded to my messages, and even if they weren't interested in our positions, they were prompt in communicating that. Additionally, the response times were quick, and I often found candidates scheduling interviews within two to three days of my reaching out to them. This efficiency greatly accelerated our hiring process by improving our time to hire.


Efficient Communication with Message Templates

The message templates on cord significantly enhanced our communication with candidates. These templates streamlined the process of reaching out, especially when dealing with a high volume of candidates. They provided a balance between efficiency and personalisation, enabling me to swiftly send out messages while still retaining a personal touch. The templates facilitated quicker and more empathetic communication with candidates, allowing me to offer them extra information and feedback, regardless of whether their application was successful or not. This feature not only saved time but also ensured that candidates received prompt and clear communication from us, meaning that we could quickly schedule interviews with candidates we wanted to progress through the hiring pipeline.

Our Result

We successfully made two direct hires through cord, significantly reducing recruiter costs and streamlining the hiring process.

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