Ethical behaviour a draw card for recruiters, says Agri Talent head

Agri Talent managing director Kelli McDougall told conference attendees ethics came back to a fundamental belief in doing things right and treating people well.

Agri Talent provides permanent recruitment and executive search services for Australian agribusiness.

Ms McDougall said potential employees, especially millennials, saw if a company was acting in an ethical fashion.

"The millennials and the next generation are really guided by these behaviours," Ms McDougall said.

"They will look at your website and the messaging and they will decide where they are going to work, based on that - we see it more and more.

"If you can put more emphasis on that, you're going to attract a better workforce."

Living and breathing good ethics would result in better outcomes, and "you are going to make more money," she said.

As a recruiter, Agri Talent also wanted "dodgy providers" gone from the industry.

"If you have a business that is not paying people well, not paying them super, the right rates, not being compliant, of course they can offer a service that is cheaper - it's a no brainer," she said.

"But number one, don't engage with them and number two, call them out - we accept the behaviour we walk past," she said.

"We don't want modern slavery."

There was no compliance audit that could be done for someone's ethics - "it's that innate striving to do the right thing," she said.

She said Agri Talent understood the reason behind compliance.

"It's onerous, its expensive and we totally get that - but if we can have those ethics drive our behaviour and innately do the right thing, it's hopefully going to add to our productivity and profitability," Ms McDougall said.