IT Hire Wire

I recently came across a string on Boston.com which discussed the best / worst headhunters. The person who began the discussion said “Doing a job search and so far most headhunters in Boston are no better than cheesy, used car dealers!”

Ouch.

So as a non-cheesy non “used-car-dealer like” Recruiter I would have been offended, if only my own mother hadn’t told me she hates recruiters. Thanks Mom! I love you too!

Seriously though, it seems as though many people out there have had terrible experiences with Recruiters so I thought I would use this as a forum to address a few of the common gripes people generally have about working with recruiters. Here is a very, very short list:

• You only hear from them when they have a job for you, if they don’t have an immediate need you never hear from you again.
• Non-existent jobs are posted just to get resumes – when they finally make contact with the candidate the job “no longer exists”
• They make promises they can’t keep

Let me begin this by saying that similarly to how there are some honest baseball players and some dishonest baseball players – there are some honest recruiters and some dishonest recruiters.

Good recruiting practices are dictated by ethics and relationship building. Bad recruiting practices are generally dictated by the “see what sticks” tactic.

The Relationship Building Tactic:

Good recruiters sincerely want to help you find a job. They want to build relationships, maintain relationships and stay in touch with both the manager and the candidate- they are looking at the big picture.

Good recruiting practices are about long term relationships – we contact candidates about current openings, if progress cannot be made then we stay in touch for future opportunities. Our relationships are our greatest resources – a good recruiter cultivates relationships rather than just scouring job boards. We stay in touch with our candidates so that we can continue to rely on the same resources time and time again. If you maintain good relationships as a recruiter you’ll never have to use a job board again (phew!). It’s mutually beneficial for both parties to stay in touch so that’s what we do – we build relationships.

See What Sticks Tactic:

The “see what sticks” tactic generally entails the following: Post jobs to get resumes. Call back on resumes. Submit said resumes. Meet with candidate so you can say you did.

Lather

Rinse

Repeat

A bad recruiter is a glorified paper pusher. They do not screen candidates, assess fit or even try to understand what type of job you really want. They play a numbers game and the equation looks something like this: more resumes = more submittals = more commission. Whether these resumes are qualified, available or interested that’s another story; but that’s what they do -they submit resumes.

While there are a lot of bad apples out there that can spoil the bunch, there are a lot of benefits to working with recruiters (the good ones not the bad ones!). We can truly assess if you might be a fit for an opening. If so we will effectively market you for the position. We will learn what positions you want to be considered for, market you for future openings and even market your resume for other openings you see posted.

In a good recruiter/candidate relationship a recruiter will be your resume reviewer, your interview coach and your career advocate. You should be able to rely on them as your career progresses and throughout your career. A good recruiter will be there for you, throughout the duration of your career (or her’s).

photo by bonkedproducer

Tags: Interviews, job postings, Job Search, recruiters, relationship building, Resumes

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