Love-hate relationship between professionals and recruiters
“I hate and yet love. You may wonder how I manage it. I don't know, but feel it happen, and am in torment”
- Catullus
Introduction
We've all seen it, or perhaps, even been in such relationships. Couples can't live with or without each other. The 'bad boy' that promises you you're the only girl in the world or that beauty that likes to flirt with you, makes you pay for drinks but says 'we're just friends, right?'. Sometimes you also see this type of relationship between recruiters and professionals.
As an industrial and organisational psychologist I sometimes see these types of relationships between professionals and recruiters. Because I feel that lack of knowledge is part of the problem I am writing this series on the love-hate relationship between professionals and recruiters. In this first article I will write about the advantages of having a good recruiter.
Unlike the unicorn, good recruiters do exist and good ones can come in handy. Although some might be annoying stalkers there are some that deserve some lovin'.
Why should you love recruiters?
- It's easy. A personal assistant that advises you on your career, checks your resume, makes you marketable and looks for suitable jobs? Where do I sign up?
- They know the market. They can distinguish between an organisation where you would fit and one you would not. Not only skill wise they can judge if it's a match but also culture and mission wise.
- They have a huge network of relevant organisations. Many big companies work with recruitment agencies because; 1) they cannot find the right employee themselves, 2) they don't understand the market, 3) they don't understand the professional. For this reason a good recruiter can:
- Get you in organisations you can't get in by yourself. Good recruiters have direct connections to hiring managers from companies you would love to work. Hiring managers see hundreds of resumes each month. You will increase your chances if you get introduced or recommended by a recruiter the hiring manager knows and trusts.
- They can advise you about your career. Advice like "stay for another year and brush up on your skills", "this job is not suitable for you just yet", "finish school first" or "I can't make you any promises but I'll do my best!" is honest advice and I trust people that are honest.
- Recruiters are hungry. Since they mostly get paid when they find you a suitable job they will work hard to seal the deal. As the rockstar that you are you can lie down, play some Ps4 and get hired.
- It saves you time. You can talk to 3 companies a week or have multiple recruiters talk to 30 companies for you. Because recruiters don't cost you a dime you can have 20 recruiters working for you simultaneously. Now you can finish that book or get your WoW mage to level 60.
- You will have less interviews. Going to interviews is a hassle. You need to prepare, check the profile of the hiring manager, wear grandpa's suit and shower just to realise during the interview you are not qualified. Recruiters tend to do some filtering for you which saves you taking that extra shower.
- Treat you nicely. For a good recruiter you're not just another candidate, you are a person and a customer. They care about your wishes and treat you like you matter.
- Follows up. Not only does a good recruiter keep in touch and asks you how you like your job he found you, he also lets you know if for some odd reason you get rejected.
Obviously there are also less lovable recruiters, some you might even 'hate'. How to recognise these and avoid them I will let you know in the next post. That's an exciting cliffhanger … right? See you next time!