Working with recruiters (part 5)

Once you meet with a recruiter, assess his/her knowledge of your field. Use this knowledge in deciding on the type of relationship you want with this recruiter. One example I often mention in the classes I teach: In 2000, I saw a job ad asking for someone with 5 years of XML experience, and 15 years of JavaScript experience. The problem? XML did not exist until 1998, and JavaScript did not exist until 1995 (when it was called LiveScript). Whoever wrote the ad had no clue what they were talking about.

Don't sit back and leave your future entirely in the hands of a recruiter. Be sure to keep looking for a job on your own to the degree that your schedule allows it. To avoid problems, however, be sure to require a recruiter to get your permission before sending your resume to an employer. The recruiter should tell you the name of the employer, and honor your wishes to not pursue employment with that employer, should you feel that way. Also, be sure to inform your recruiter of any companies to which you will be sending your resume on your own.

About eighteen years ago, one recruiter sent my resume to an employer that already had my resume as a result of my own job search. The employer told me what happened, and said that they would inform the recruiter that they already had my resume. They told me that, should they hire me, they would not consider me to have been presented by her. When that company eventually did hire me, the recruiter was not compensated. At that time, I was two years out of grad school, and she was an experienced recruiter, but we both should have known to avoid a situation like that.

If one recruiter is not getting you as many opportunities as you'd like as quickly as you'd like, then consider engaging more than one recruiter. Why not have more people working to help you find a position? Different recruiters know about different openings, especially retained recruiters, who typically have an exclusive agreement with a company for a particular opening or for all their openings.

Inform each recruiter with whom you are involved that you are pursuing other job leads, and that some of those will involve working with other recruiters. Use judgment in giving more details.

To be continued….