| Topic Name: |
Overexposure with recruiters |
| Message Name: |
Matchmaker, matchmaker... |
| Date Posted: |
02/12/2002 |
| In Reply To: |
I am thinking about sending a lot of resumes to company websites and IT directors, etc. at specific companies, since recruiters don't seem to be too effective right now. However I am worried that if the market picks up recruiters will once again be the way to find IT jobs, but by then all the companies will already have my resume and I won't be able to use the recruiters. Don't know if I've explained this correctly--any opinions? |
| Message: |
You have to remember that recruiters make money by getting their candidates hired. The more consistent the quality, the better the recruiter looks to their client company. Additionally, they gain a rep for being a "good" recruiter to place with, i.e., they'll represent you well and be your advocate throughout the hiring process. Sort of like a matchmaker, which they really are.
Why would a client company use their services? Mainly because they can't do it on their own. Or that the agency is such a high quality that they've become a trusted partner in the hiring process and has been retained by the client company.
However, with the boom of internet posting, how do you handle the inevitable collision of a self-entered resume and one presented by a recruiter for the same position? Or worse, what if two or more recruiters present your credentials for the same job? Who gets the placement fees?
Not knowing any better, I had responded to several recruiters who wound up forwarding my resume to the same company for the same job title but in different departments. Everything worked out in the end (I got the job in the department of my choice...) but not before there was some negotiating as to who was to get the fee. Companies may already have a standing policy about this.
What saved me from trouble was being up front with the interviewing manager when I was sure I had a lock on the job in stating that I've interviewed elsewhere within the company and under what circumstances. Keeping your recruiters well informed will also save you from this trouble. Be sure to let recruiters know that you have, indeed, registered with other agencies in your active job search which is something you have every right to do.
Recruiters are of two general camps: retained or contingent. If you can, work with the former. These have proven themselves with their client company by consistently placing good candidates without burdening the client. They can even serve as a resource for the job seeker. Get to be good buddies with these recruiters. Using a "dating" metaphor, retained recruiters can not only get you a date for the prom, but will advise you on what to say to the parents, how to dress for the occasion, what limo service is best, where to dine, what to order, and, if needed, where you can find a ring.
A word about company websites: they may not be as up-to-date as they can be. Recruiters might just have the latest information. For your target companies, use good research to discern if positions are really available. Read industry newsletters, company reports, job board postings, or other literature that might hint at what's really there.
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