Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

The other side of the hiring desk, pt 5: How often should job seekers follow up with recruiters?

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desk5P11457831aSo, you’ve read how NOT to follow up with a recruiter. But, what is the RIGHT amount of follow up? Here is another in my series of interviews conducted with my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Veracity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter.

How often should job seekers follow up with recruiters?

As far as how and how often to follow up…ask the recruiter you’re working with. I personally prefer a brief email once or twice a month. Remember, our job (and the way we get paid!) is to fill openings for our clients. If we have a job that you may be a fit for, we’ll be on the phone with you immediately!

During the interview process, how long it takes to get feedback or to move from one step to the next depends on the client and the situation. How urgent is the need? Who is an integral part of the process and is traveling/on vacation/otherwise unavailable? Unfortunately most interview processes do not move as quickly as anyone would like simply because there are so many people and variables involved.

There is no need to call your recruiter daily – when we have news, we’ll call you! There is nothing we want more than to fill a position. We do what we can to keep the interview process moving forward, and at the same time we must walk a fine line as we do not want to irritate our clients.

The candidates we enjoy working with the most understand and respect the process.

Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt!

 

The other side of the hiring desk, pt 4: How to work with a recruiter without becoming a stalker

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desk4cT10796880Today, another in a series of my interviews to share tips for impressing a recruiter! Our topic: following up. When does follow up become stalking? Here is some more advice from my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Veracity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter.

How can job seekers follow-up successfully. When does “follow-up” become stalking?!?

I’ve been dealing with this recently. I’ll start with an example of what *not* to do.

A candidate emailed his resume to me on Tuesday and called immediately “to be sure I’d received it.” He said that he wanted me to “find him a job.” I told him I needed time to review his resume against current openings and asked him to please give me a week before following up as I’m inundated with such requests.

He called the next morning and wanted to know if I’d reviewed his resume. I had not, and asked him again to give me a few days. I suggested that he follow up with me on Monday. On Friday he emailed stating that he would call shortly to “discuss what jobs I had for him.” I replied immediately stating that there is no need; I’d reviewed his resume and didn’t have anything for him at the moment and would keep him in mind for future openings. I suggested doing a search on LinkedIn for other financial services recruiters, reach out to them, and let them know the type of opportunity he’s seeking.

He immediately called and wanted to “discuss why I didn’t have anything for him.” I explained that my open positions are based on my clients’ needs and that right now his experience and skill sets are not a match for anything I’m working on. He proceeded to argue with me and kept telling me that he has “valuable skills” and will do “anything.”

I told him that if I don’t have a position that’s a fit, I don’t have it – and I can’t just pull one out of a hat! He became increasingly annoyed and wanted me to send him a list of my current searches so he could “see if he’s a fit for one of them.” I told him no, that I’ve got his resume, and I’ll keep him under consideration for future opportunities as they arise. He then offered me “a few hundred bucks” to find him a job. (We’ve covered this before…that’s not what recruiters do!!)

This job seeker was pushy and disrespectful. He acted with a sense of entitlement and frankly, based on his attitude and behavior, I would be extremely reluctant to present such a candidate to any of my clients.

Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt!

Next: How SHOULD you follow up?

The other side of the hiring desk, pt 3: How candid should you be with a recruiter?

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desk3T10850957You know you should be honest in your job search, but sometimes there is information that you’d rather keep to yourself. How candid should you be with a recruiter? More or less candid than you’d be with a prospective employer? How candid should you expect a recruiter to be with you?

Here is another in a series of interviews with with my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Veracity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter.

Watch this space for additional interviews to learn more about what goes on on the “other side of the desk.”

How candid should a job seeker be with a recruiter? How much candor should a job seeker expect in return?

If you are working with a third-party recruiter (executive search consultant, etc.) tell him or her EVERYTHING…this includes current compensation as well as any issues that may come up in the process such as a poor credit or criminal history, etc.

I know this is difficult for some people, but in order to work effectively this has to be a trusting relationship. Without complete candor it’s not going to work.

Remember, we’re on the same side. Our job is to fill our clients’ job openings.  If you get the job it’s a win for us as well. DUIs and bankruptcies are not always a deal-breaker, but they can be if not disclosed up front…not because they’re there, but if not uncovered until the background check results come back, the hiring manager may feel blindsided and question your integrity.

Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt!

The other side of the hiring desk, pt 2: What job seekers should NOT expect from a recruiter

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desk2T80071032It’s important to know what recruiters are thinking, what they do and what they do NOT do if you want to work with one successfully. Read another my series of interviews with my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Veracity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter.

Read on to learn how to be more competitive in the job market!

What should job seekers NOT expect from a recruiter

Job seekers should consider that internal recruiters handle a large number of resumes on a daily basis. Chances are, particularly in a job market like this, they are bombarded with hundreds or thousands of applications from the company’s website and other job postings. Recruiters sort through those resumes and applications in order to find the few that meet the specific qualifications for each particular job opening. That takes a lot of time! Unfortunately, job seekers should not expect personalized treatment until they are identified as good candidates.

Recruiters are not resume writers nor career coaches. Recruiters are not here to “find you a job,” help you change careers or to help you figure out what you want to be when you grow up. (Miriam’s note: that is what career coaches do!)

For candidates who are good matches for a recruiter – how should they go about finding someone who would be a good match?

I would suggest starting with your network. Ask current and/or former colleagues and others you know who work in your field who they’ve worked with in the past that they trusted and felt comfortable with.

You can also check with your current and/or former employer’s HR department to see which firm(s) they like and work with.

Finally, don’t forget about social media such as LinkedIn and Twitter. Use search tools on both sites to connect with and reach out to recruiters in your field. Your initial contact should be a friendly and courteous introduction with a brief explanation of your background and career interests. Very often, even if they don’t have anything for you at the moment, recruiters will be able to refer you to other recruiters and resources.

Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt!

The other side of the hiring desk, pt 1: Who should use a recruiter?

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desk1T10639243aFor the next few weeks, I will share a series of interviews I conducted with my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Veracity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter.

Who should use a recruiter? Who should not?

If you have had a stable, upwardly mobile career track in a particular field, are not a career changer and have specific experiences and skills that a particular recruiter sources, you may be a good fit.

It is easy to address the question of who should not use a recruiter. If you have been a job hopper, are trying to break into a field or are not particularly experienced or unique in your skill set, a recruiter probably will not be interested in working with you.

What should job seekers know about recruiters? Why do organizations use them?

The first thing to understand is that third-party recruiters (“TPR”) (i.e. executive search consultants, etc.) are paid by our client companies to fill a particular role or requisition for them. Our job is not to find people jobs; our job is to find the right person for our clients’ job(s).

Many times the reason a company chooses to go outside their internal recruiting organization and use a TPR to fill a job is that it’s a particularly difficult person or skill set to find, or maybe they are overloaded with openings and need assistance due to sheer volume.

There can be other reasons as well. Perhaps the recruiting organization is in flux, the need to fill the position is extremely urgent and speed is a factor, or perhaps the company’s recruiting strategy is to stay lean internally and supplement with outside firms as needed.

How do Third-Party Recruiters (TPRs) differ from internal/corporate recruiters?

TPRs don’t work for the company, we spend nearly 100% of our time on targeted search and sourcing efforts to find the right candidate for the job.

Third-party recruiters tend to specialize in a particular niche. For example, the majority of my work is in and around finance, accounting and banking/financial services. I have clients that may come to me for assistance with searches in these particular areas and may use other firms for searches related to IT, engineering, marketing, etc.

What should I expect from a recruiter and what can I gain from working with a recruiter?

As mentioned, our job is to help our clients (the employers) by filling specific openings. If we think that you might be a good candidate, there are advantages to working with a recruiter vs. trying to get in to a company blindly on your own.

We have relationships with our client companies. I have some clients I’ve been working with since 2001. I can help candidates prepare for their interviews with my clients, let them know what to expect in terms of corporate culture and provide specifics about the group and/or person they’ll be talking to – because I know them. Most TPR have placed other job seekers with the company and therefore have additional insight from those individuals.

Another advantage is that, while HR is dealing with potentially hundreds of applicants for each open position every single day that may or may not even get so much as a glance; we’ll typically present just 3-5 candidates for a given opening and those candidates will be thoroughly reviewed and considered.

Stay tuned tomorrow for more about what job seekers should NOT expect from a recruiter!

Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt!