I always receive a couple requests per week about locating a recruiter in a specific field. Occasionally, I am able to pass along a name or two. But much more often I do not have any recruiter contacts in that specific field. With this column, then, I would like to pass along some general suggestions about finding a recruiter.

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	Ask the recruiters if you are somebody they can or want to work with or not.

Before I start, let me say that the nature of recruiting has dramatically shifted in the last 20 years. Some of that shift is due to technology, but much of it is due to ''specialization.'' Twenty years ago, most recruiters worked a ''local desk.'' In other words, their searches were confined to a 50-100 mile radius. A few recruiters worked a regional desk, with searches extending out about 250 miles. (An interesting side note: Research has indicated that the bulk of an individual’s contacts are within a 250-mile radius.) There were a very few recruiters that did searches nationwide. Also, some recruiters worked a ''general desk'' — e.g., sales, IT, finance, etc. Today, recruiters are much more specialized, such as in an area like ''sales within the CRM space,'' HTML programmers, etc. Because of this, recruiters now work much broader geographic areas, with many even having a national desk. Many times you will see that recruiters don’t even work anything in their own backyards. So here are some suggestions for finding a good recruiter.

Network with friends, peers, and former bosses in the same niche. Many of these individuals have worked with recruiters and been placed by them in the past. In fact, many managers who do a decent amount of hiring have two or three recruiters they like to turn to that might not even be on the ''company approved recruiter list.'' These are usually the very talented recruiters who get the job done and whom the hiring manager can rely on.

Contact HR people, especially ones at companies you might have just been laid off from. These are the people that deal with recruiters on a daily basis. They will typically have a list of several recruiters and can tell you the ones they have had the best success with. If you have just recently been laid off from a given company, there is also a little guilt you can typically use to get some recruiter names.

Check with professional organizations that you are a member of. The best recruiters know that a professional organization is many times a big untapped resource. It is also a much quicker way to provide people with the specialties they are looking for. There are a couple of ways to use this resource. First of all, if the professional organization does job postings for recruiters, you can find recruiters in your field through the job postings. Many times the organization will also have a list of recruiters. All you have to do is ask for it.

Subscribe to high-end ''job organizations'' such as Ladders and Execunet. I don’t know much about Execunet, but Ladders has, I believe, a list of recruiters you can search under.

Use LinkedIn!!! Here is another great use for LinkedIn. Do a search under ''recruiter'' and your field — e.g., ''recruiter and telecom sales.'' Make sure you put the ''and'' in the search, not just a comma. You can refine this search as much as you like. Some of these recruiters will have direct links to their company’s websites. Others you might have to Google.

Do a general web search. Now, obviously you will receive several hundred thousand hits. So again, start narrowing it down by using your specific search criteria.

Use specialty boards. If there are specialty boards, such as Ladders, Career Crossroads, etc., or even boards just within your niche, search them for recruiter contacts. Many times they are found in the job postings

Stay away from the ''resume blasting'' services, unless of course you want to be called for every job you are way overqualified for or don't want.

Look at trade magazines. I had a friend who a number of years ago asked me if I knew any recruiters in the restaurant/food industry, the industry she was in. I suggested she look at the top trade publications, one of which at the time was Restaurant News. She found a couple of recruiters and, subsequently, a job through that source. Many times these trade magazines will also run jobs boards. I know at least three in the call center industry that do.

Use the Kennedy book of recruiters. This is the bible of recruiters. In their own words: ''Published since 1971, the famous "Red Book" lists 16,500 recruiters at 5,700+ search firms.'' Visit their website at www.kennedyinfo.com. The book costs approximately $60 (most libraries also have a copy), and an online subscription is probably about the same.

Join Gray Hair Management. If you don’t know this organization, they are a very good national networking group, and their lifelong membership is insanely cheap. They have all kinds of recruiters posting jobs. Tell them I sent you. It won’t get you anything cheaper, but it might get me a free book.

Use recruiter networks such as Top Echelon, NPA, and First Interview. There are others as well. The three listed here are candidate-friendly, free, and allow you to search for recruiters as well as post your resume. They are also confidential, so you do not have to worry about your resume getting out on the Internet.

If you start thinking creatively, you can probably come up with many additional ideas. Remember to research the recruiter and organization. Look closely at their website. Typically, it will tell you a lot about the recruiter and organization. Select five to eight prospects to begin with. Don’t blast your resume all over the place, and certainly don’t BCC it to a list. Recruiters know you are going to work with more than one firm. You don’t have to remind them. As a lot, we are also a bit paranoid. If we see something that is BCC’ed, we automatically assume it has been sent to 10,000 other recruiters (which is very time consuming to do with the list limitations most ISPs have). Finally, simply ask the recruiters if you are somebody they can or want to work with or not. Don’t be whiny or snively, just direct and to the point. You might just get a no in response, which tells you that it’s time to email another recruiter. And for heaven’s sake, stay away from the ''resume blasting'' services, unless of course you want to be called for every job you are way overqualified for or don’t want.

Here’s Wishing You Terrific Hunting,

Bill

About the Author

Bill Gaffney has had 17 years of experience as an executive recruiter and a career coach. He can be reached at 937-567-5267 or wmgaffney@prodigy.net.

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