Recruiters — An information session
 By: Martin Buckland
What's the difference between a "headhunter," "recruiter," and "executive recruiter"? In short, nothing. They are an integral component of your job search. Have you ever considered using a recruiter?
In this article I want to provide education on how recruiters work and how they can play a part in your job search success. Today, next year, 10 and even 20 years down the road. You are the boss, you need to be accountable for your career, because today no one else will. Look after number one! The key to having recruiters assist you is to build relationships with them. They can be your eyes and ears for years to come. They will work with you, however, their loyalties are primarily with the company who pays them.
There are numerous misconceptions about recruiters. Often, people think that they are only hired to find candidates for senior level positions. Wrong!
If you are really proactive and serious with your job search, through networking you have most likely met someone who has worked with an executive recruiter. Ask them, was it a positive or negative experience? What were the results? Did job interviews occur?
In my private practice, I have established relationships with recruiters specializing in different careers across North America. In fact, my determination to open up communication channels between myself and recruiters now works two ways. They refer their candidates to me to rewrite résumés, they see the value and know the investment in having such a critical document prepared by a Master Résumé Writer. It's a win win situation and it can be for you! I refer my clients to them.
The misunderstandings about recruiters:
1. Recruiters only work for the candidates with salaries over $100,000 per annum.
Not true. Yes, there are specialists that work solely at the $100,000 level but their expertise is broad. The bible/directory of Executive Recruiters is published by Kennedy Information which provides a phenomenal list of 14,275 recruiters at 5,550 firms across North America with specialists in all professions and disciplines.
Recruiting firms vary in size from multi-national through small boutiques to individual recruiters operating on their own. Some firms deal with a broad range of disciplines, some concentrate in a particular industry: accounting, manufacturing, materials management or Sales & Marketing. At each large firm there are invariably specialty recruiters, experts in their field. For instance, within the material management discipline there will be experts in purchasing, inventory management, materials & requirement planning, physical distribution, traffic & transportation, logistics and packaging. Some recruiters prefer to build a network of hiring decision makers within a certain geographic region.
Bear in mind that a recruiter based in New York may be hunting for candidates to fill positions in Atlanta, Denver or San Francisco.
Where exactly do you begin? Find a recruiting firm that meets your defined needs, your level, your industry, your expertize. Use the Kennedy Directory of Recruiters, the Internet or word of mouth from a referral. Size of a company means nothing; it's the recruiting knowledge you are seeking. However, if you are considering moving overseas then a firm with a global reach would be a good idea.
2. I'm naive, how are recruiters compensated. All I want is for them to find me a job!
This is a good point. Knowing how recruiters operate is important; the more you know about how they conduct business, the more you will benefit.
There are two main categories of executive recruiters, segmented into how they receive their payment from clients:
One very critical element to understand is that the recruiting firm is paid by the client looking to fill a position. It's never, you, the candidate. I have had clients who were asked to pay money to a recruiter. If you are, run out the door; it's unethical!
Let me explain the two categories in more detail.
Contingency
A contingency recruiter is normally remunerated only after a successful search, once the candidate is placed. In other words, the recruiter works at no charge until their client firm hires. The contingency recruiter has a number of search projects on the go at one time. It's best when looking for a search firm to find a recruiter who has obtained exclusive rights to completing a contact.
Retained
You may find it more difficult to build relationships with retained recruiters, they are on the "hunt" for specific expertise as detailed by their client. They are the sole "exclusive" recruiter assigned to the search, their services are either paid up-front or in stages as the search progresses.
3. Recruiters should interview me anyway!
Wrong! They receive numerous resumes a day; their time would be consumed in organising and facilitating interviews.
Yes, give them a call. From my experience, it's often best to initiate telephone contact with them at the beginning of the day. Build a relationship with them, provide them with your well-rehearsed "one minute infomercial" and ask them how they can be of assistance with your job search. Most I have found that once the initial rapport and respect has been built, most recruiters will be able to provide you with advice on ways to optimize the search utilizing their services. They screen their potential candidates, providing them with the ability to create a list of the top few candidates to present to their clients.
What is the best method to deliver a resume?
From interacting with recruiters in my private practice the best methods is via e mail in MS Word. Virus scanners are so sophisticated today that the fear of viruses has diminished considerably. However, if you are uncertain, why not invite them to inform you how to dispatch your career documents?
Martin is a Master Resume Writer (MRW), Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW), Job and Career Transition Coach (JCTC), Certified Employment Interview Professional (CEIP), and Certified Job Search Trainer (CJST).
Martin Buckland is a Career Management Professional based in Oakville, Ontario. President of Elite Resumes, he is certified in resume writing, career coaching, job search strategies and interview coaching and is Canada's only Master Resume Writer. He has extensive knowledge of the best strategies to secure a job most effectively and is well networked with recruiters and human resource professionals across Canada. For more information on his services view www.aneliteresume.com.
|
