- Network, network, network! The more people you have made aware of your availability and qualifications, the greater the chance that one of them will mention your name to a recruiter working on an assignment along the lines of your interests.
- In most job searches sending your resume to recruiter firms is an appropriate part of your marketing campaign; it involves a certain expenditure of time and money but may bring results. However, be realistic about the chance of results. Most recruiter firms are inundated by unsolicited resumes; the larger firms get thousands each week, overwhelming the process of categorizing and logging in resumes, let alone matching them with current searches. A resume sent to a smaller, less well-known recruiter firm is more likely to be read, although the number of searches per firm is smaller.
NUGGET: When sending your resume to a search firm, be practical, not fancy. Address a brief, businesslike letter to a specific individual. Summarize your interests, your compensation range, and your views about relocating.
- Establish contact with recruiters who have placed colleagues in your target field or function. Understand that their current list of assignments may be in completely different fields; however, they may be aware of related assignments being worked on by other recruiters in their firm. Don't hesitate to call more than one good contact at a firm: communications within a firm, or even in the same office, are not always flawless.
- Research the contingency recruiters who specialize in the sectors of the job market you have targeted. Contact them early in your selling phase; they can be a source of market intelligence, and they may choose to market you. Be sure you understand the ground rules and maintain control.
- Contact recruiters with whom you have a special relationship, such as personal friends or recruiters who have worked for your current or former employer. They will no doubt be very supportive and may have some good advice. However, don't develop unrealistic expectations.
- For recruiters, time is money. Don't waste their time.
- You create a good impression with recruiters by being organized, by describing yourself in a clear, concise and objective fashion, and by dealing with them in a straightforward manner.
- Many people disqualify themselves during the initial telephone screening because they are not prepared and rely on their ability to extemporize. Prepare a script in anticipation of a recruiter calling, with a concise overview of your background, a skills summary, and a synopsis of your goals for this transition. You'll sound managerial and impressive in your comments.
- If you are dealing with a contingency recruiter who is interested in marketing you, proceed with caution and stay in control. Some contingency recruiters have very good contacts and are respected in the industries they service. A well-placed telephone call to a prospective employer could net you a job. However, if your resume is mass-mailed around the industry by a recruiter with a bad reputation, it can cause considerable damage to your marketing campaign. Insist on ground rules in advance. For example, you might insist that any firm the contingency recruiter wishes to contact on your behalf be run by you first. If you have already made contact with the firm, you'll avoid any conflicts over fees and preserve your straight-line communications with a potential employer.
- Most recruiters are hardworking and honest. However, as in any field, some recruiters behave irresponsibly and unethically. Learn the ropes and look out for yourself. Never let a recruiter submit a falsified resume on your behalf. Never let a recruiter pressure you into making a decision before you are ready. Think twice when a recruiter calls your spouse or significant other to plug a job he or she wants you to take. Most difficulties people have with recruiters are caused by poor communications, a lack of clear ground rules and erroneous expectations.
- Some recruiters are not above taking advantage of prospective candidates who permit them to be exploited:
- If you are working with a recruiter who repeatedly arranges interviews that you find ego-gratifying but seldom in line with your objectives, watch out! The recruiter may be using you to make a favorable impression on a client, even to string a client along until he or she finds a suitable candidate. You may elect to gain interviewing experience and exposure by taking such interviews, but examine your motives to be sure this is a good use of your times and energy.
- Recruiters may contact you as a source of information on other people in your firm. Thinking that you are the object of the recruiter's interest and trying to make a favorable impression, you cooperate fully, only to be dropped after the recruiter has obtained the necessary sourcing information. The recruiter's focus is more on the company you work for than on you, gracefully exit the conversation! For example, "I've got another call coming in. Please call me again if you have an assignment related to my interests. Good luck on this search."
- once the client likes a candidate, recruiters can be very persuasive in convincing him or she to take a position that is a force fit. Stay clear about your priorities and your goals for this transition. Don't compromise your objectives.
8. If you are unwilling to relocate or are highly selective about geographic areas, recruiters will find you less attractive as a potential candidate. However, if you do have geographical criteria, make them known to the recruiter early in the discussion. All too often search firms have presented a candidate and the client made an offer, only to learn that the candidate of choice has decided against a move to a new location. There is no surer way of alienating recruiter and client.
9. Recruiters do not pursue candidates who are employed by companies on their current list of clients. This seldom affects the job searcher but is another reason to contact many recruiters rather than just a few.
