How To Work Successfully With A Recruiter

The job market has changed drastically the past few months, and unfortunately not for the better if you are in the market for a new position. Aside from job boards and networking, recruiters can be a good resource to use in your search. However, there are many misconceptions of the recruiting industry and how the process works. Below are some tips I can share that will help you in working with a recruiter.

Be an open book: Disclose everything possible about your experience and background. This is the person who will be representing you and your information in the beginning stages to get you in the door. Leaving anything out could get you rejected. Do not withhold important information, it will get discovered too late and you run the risk of losing both the position and trust from the recruiter.

Communication: Have clear lines of communication with your recruiter. Provide him/her an email address that you check often along with a cell phone. Try to respond within 24 hours; in today's market, lack of a response in 24 hours communicates that you are not interested and it is quite possible that the recruiter will move onto another candidate.

Flexibility: Be ready to understand that sometimes the perfect position and company may not exist. If a position or company has almost everything you are looking for, make sure to communicate why you might be hesitant about the opportunity. Chances are, the company may provide something that they recruiter is not aware of at that time.

Feedback: Give it. Whether good or bad recruiters need it. Simply ignoring the recruiter because the position was not exactly what you want does not motivate them to search for another.

Negativity breeds negativity: Just that. If a few weeks pass without any leads on a position, don't get upset. Believe me, it is a recruiters motivation to fill open positions (potentially with yourself), but sometimes there is only so much they can do in a week. Remember, recruiters have more than just you as a candidate.

Work with them: I had a candidate once send me a list of firms that she was interested in, but needed help getting her foot in the door. Apply online and she would have to go through Human Resources and she was senior enough that it would warrant the President as a contact. Rather than give the potential employer the impression she was desperate, she asked that I call. She would also keep me abreast on any information she heard about open positions. Needless to say she was a priority candidate.

Understand the business: Most permanent placement recruiting firms work one of two ways: retained or contingency. Retained search firms are looking to fill specific positions they have been retained for, but will have many contacts in the industry with past clients and information they receive while recruiting. Contingency search firms will typically work with more clients per person and be more apt to heavily market your resume.

Recruiters should make about 200 - 300+ calls per week in addition to sending out information, email, and any other task they are responsible for. Additionally, it is not uncommon for a good recruiter to receive 80% rejection. Understanding how to work with a recruiter rather than a recruiter working for you will greatly improve your chances of seeing a successful and fruitful relationship.

Justin Roy is Principal / Chief Operating Officer at SullivanKreiss, a recruiting firm that works with architects, engineers, planners, and landscape architects. You can reach Justin at 312-602-9639
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