A detailed advise on how candidates can work well with executive recruiters.
You came across a recruiter and handed in your cv with them, but now they’re not answering your e-mails. Maybe your background is perfect but you do not make it past the phone screen. How is it that you’re “a bad fit” whilst you are so evidently ideal for the position?
JRG Partners talked with several recruitment consultants, and also job seekers, to know more info on the nitty grits of the procedure of dealing with a recruiter. We’ve come up with a checklist of points that may allow you to discover the issues and resolve them.
Job hunters often see recruiters as an unpleasant requisite in the job hunt process, considering them as the people who don’t react and don’t really recognize exactly what hiring companies require.
It turns out that various candidates have misunderstandings about the basic role of a recruiter. “They do not understand that we really don’t work for them,” said Tanya, a headhunter at JRG Group in Boca Raton, Florida. “We work for the client” — the employing company.
Here are some common scenarios in which job seekers can find themselves in. We verified with hiring consultants at our end to find out what is going on.
Example One: You think you are a perfect fit for the position, however, the recruiter isn’t responding to your application or your follow-up phone calls and e-mails. Potential red flags while Work with Recruiters may include :
1. You’re not qualified for the job.
Like it or not, your work knowledge does not fit the criteria. It could be that the hiring company requires eight years of sales experience and that your 10 years in sales isn’t attractive. It’s likewise possible that you just did not read the posting closely, or at all. “When a job seeker disregards certain conditions such as a listing that needs local candidates only or has degree criteria that don’t match up, it becomes apparent that they have been responding to postings without reading them,” said Tanya G, a partner at JRG Partners, a retained search firm in Florida. “It’s a total waste of time for everybody associated and frustrating for a recruiter.”
2. You’re a very good fit, however, not an ideal fit.
“3rd party recruiting companies receive a lot of money to find individuals that a corporation looking for staff can’t themselves,” according to Tanya G, manager of sales, efficiency and performance at JRG Partners. “And between 20 to 30 % fee being paid to the recruiter, corporations need to make sure that they employ the exact right individual.” In many cases, almost perfect isn’t good enough, especially nowadays that recruiters are able to pull from a significant applicant pool.
3. Your recruiter — and/or hiring company — is not efficiently communicating the job specifications.
Occasionally recruiters aren’t able effectively to communicate what their client wants, due to their own limitations or their customer’s insufficient specificity. The bigger the firm, the higher red tape there is, states Tanya G.
4. Your email headline may be delaying the process.
An Effective subject line in an email should reference the position you’re trying to get, as against a “Hello” or “Intro,” Tanya says. When a recruiter is working through 100s of e-mails per day, it makes his/her life simpler if he or she receives a clue about the contents of the email message.
5. Your resume may not be expressing your narrative at a glance.
With so little time to spend on every resume, try to make it easy for recruiters to locate what they’re seeking: your previous employer and position, your tenure there, and the three best highlighting points based on the job you’re applying for. If a quick examination does not deliver an engaging narrative, Tanya says it’s likely that your job application won’t make it beyond the inbox.
6. Misspellings of any sort turn away some recruiters.
Typing mistakes may leave an impression that you do not pay attention to details. Thoroughly double check or even triple check your application and resume. Better still, have someone with an eye for detail proof it. Turn to technology and try using a tool like Grammarly to proofread your resume and cover letter before submitting it.
7. A general application letter could be your undoing.
Recruiters might assume the deficiency of uniqueness as sluggish and/or uncaring, Tanya says. Modify each letter towards the particular company, sector and position to which you’re applying.
8. Misusing superlatives may be getting in your way.
For instance, calling yourself the ‘best’ or ‘greatest’ with no supporting proof can be sensed as boastful. “It suggests the job seeker is too sure of himself and could be tough to work with,” Tanya observed. “A recruiter could develop a story in their head past they even get you on the telephone.”
What should you do? Not much if you’re not qualified, but applying to get a specific job and making sure that you’ve dotted all your “I’s” and customized your resume cover letter will at least ensure that you’re getting the focus you are entitled to.
Example Two: You didn’t make it past the recruiter’s phone screener.
9. Your basic attitude may be a mismatch with the hiring firm.
For example, your professional yet serious demeanor does not work in a position wherein a feeling of lightness and humor is considered a priority for managers, said Tanya G, a staffing specialist at the JRG Partners group in Florida. Don’t take it personally. The longer a recruiter has worked with the hiring company, the better he is able to evaluate your candidacy.
10. You did not listen to the questions.
During the phone screening and interviewing, less is often more. Irrespective of whether the cause is nervousness, self-absorption or other limitations, candidates at times supply far more info than a question warrants, according to Tanya G, a recruiter with JRG Partners, a retained search firm in Florida. Tanya said she often asks applicants to give a quick overview regarding their career, probing for details later in the process. “I am always shocked at how many candidates that launch into an extensive and very long response,” Tanya said. “It can put me off and certainly raises the question of whether or not this applicant will interview well with a client.”
What can you do? Try following up with the recruiter to ask her why you’re not an ideal fit. He/She should certainly provide a tangible reason. If he/she does that — and if you trust his/her assessment — let him/her know you would like to get considered for future positions.
Example Three: You met the recruiter in person, however now he/she does not think you’re ideal for the job position.
11. Your work style might not be suited to the position.
For instance, the recruiter may decide that you flourish in organized work settings, but the hiring firm requires someone who functions best in an unorganized environment. Yet again, recruiters who have placed candidates with the hiring company have a very good sense of who would be successful there. It’s well within an applicant’s rights to inquire about how long the recruiter has worked with a particular firm, said Tanya.
12. Your personality may not be a match for certain firm’s or department’s culture.
For example, you could think your ambition and assertive personality could only be an asset, however, it may indicate likely issues at some organizations. “If a candidate has career ambitions and I pick up that they may not have perseverance before they see growth or will undoubtedly be badgering HR in terms of advancement, then, they might not be right for certain companies,” Tanya said, adding that smaller organizations are generally more focused on personality than large ones.
What can you do? Talk to your recruiter and identify precisely why you are no longer in the running. Obtain as much info as possible and ask if there is anything concerning your particular abilities that you could develop.
Example Four: The recruiter is vague about why the employing company does not wish to proceed with your application.
13. He/She does not have full information.
Recruiters agree that at each and every point through the application, the recruiter should report particular grounds on why he / she (or the hiring firm) doesn’t consider that you’re a suitable applicant for the job. However, recruiters don’t always have that information if the engaging firm is reticent to disclose it for professional or other grounds, said Tanya.
14. He/She is reluctant to discuss regarding personal eccentricities.
If the recruiting firm is worried, for instance, by poor personal cleanliness, the recruitment agency may withhold the information if it is not productive.
What can you do? Strike a friendly tone when probing for details. Help the recruiter understand that you value his feedback and would appreciate any information he’s able to supply.
