It’s time for our fifth installment of the series, well it is actually a good piece past time. Last time I wrote, it was December 1st and it was in the 70’s. It has been 11 days since I wrote the article on "consideration." I’m going to choose as my excuse the fact that during the intervening time our temperatures here in Atlanta have gotten down into the teens. Since yesterday it was in the low 60’s and today we should have more of the same, I am sufficiently thawed out to continue the series. You will recall [if it hasn’t been too long] that I am writing a series that was inspired by my friends over at ItzBigBlog who wrote on the Candidate Bill of Rights. I did a critique of their series in on of my own that focused on Candidate Rights. This series is designed to help job seekers understand how to interact with recruiters so that their relationship will be solid and fruitful. Today’s topic is "consistency."
Consistency – Decisions to accept or reject offers will be made on the basis of facts and parameters discussed with the recruiter prior to the candidate receiving an offer. There will be no eleventh hour “gotta haves†that are sprung on the recruiter.
There will be some of you, probably job seekers, who will have no idea what I’m talking about in the sentence above. There will be some of you, great recruiters, whose stomachs will turn as you remember the candidate who managed to go through every interview with flying colors and when it came to offer time, sprung the fact that he wouldn’t move to the company’s headquarters and all along planned to use the offer as a bargaining chip to get the company to allow him to commute cross country. There will be others, some recruiters, who have much too much familiarity with the topic because they don’t work to avoid it. So let me explain it to you simply. Job seekers who enter into the process of obtaining a new position through the efforts of a recruiter must be truthful about all aspects of what it would take for them to accept an offer.
There is an onus on the recruiter to delve deeply into all aspects of what would make an acceptable offer for the candidate. The great recruiter knows his candidate very well, what motivates him or her to look, what the candidate dislikes about his or her current work situation, what they do and don’t like, what they need more of and what they need less of. The great recruiter will probe about any family situation, special needs for kids, whether or not there is another wage earner to be considered. The great recruiter will understand what kind of company culture the candidate is looking for, what his career goals are and what the company must provide in terms of growth opportunities. The great recruiter has spent quite a bit of time getting to know what it is that qualifies a company as a good fit for the candidate. Yes, you heard me right, but for those not paying attention, I’ll repeat it –
"The great recruiter spends quite a bit of time getting to know what qualifies a company as a good fit for the candidate."
And the recruiter does this up front. Why you might ask? Well it is simple, the recruiter doesn’t want to waste time – not your time, and especially not his time. By digging deep in the beginning to find out what it is the job seeker is looking for, the recruiter can stop the process at any point in time that he sees the job seeker is not going to make a good candidate. It will save him time and it will ultimately save time for the job seeker as he won’t be introduced into situations with potential companies that wouldn’t turn out to be a good fit anyway.
So what is it that is required from the candidate? Simple. Be honest and consistent about expressing what it is that you want in a next opportunity. Know what compensation is acceptable, know what your geographic limitations are. Know the culture that is most likely to fit your personality and make you feel comfortable. Understand what kind of community you can live in and what kind you can’t. Understand the myriad of things that will effect you and your family’s lives as you look to change career positions; express that to your recruiter. Here is a bonus for you. If he isn’t interested, it’s time to get a new recruiter, this one is broken. Now if you don’t have a handle on all the particulars involved in your job change, you owe it to yourself to find out what they are. You should do some heavy exploration of what makes you tick as a professional before you spend your own time and effort on seeking a new position. It will save you time and heartache. It will also help keep your resume from looking like you were hired on at a temp agency and none of the clients appreciated your work. If you spend the time to understand what you want, a great recruiter can be a superior asset in helping you land the career position of your dreams. But you must be consistent in what you ask him to pursue on your behalf.
What about the recruiters who don’t start digging up front? Well my advice would be not to work with them. Either they don’t’ understand how to do their job, or they don’t care about what’s important to their candidates. Either way, they won’t be of much value to you as a job seeker.
Series – 10 Ways to Make Recruiters Love You
1) Confidentiality – Recruiters are entitled to have confidentiality and security of the information shared with prospective candidates regarding the companies with whom the recruiter is working and the positions which he is trying to fill. Any sharing of information with colleagues or co-workers should only be done with express prior permission of the recruiter. (read the entire post here)
2) Credibility – Candidates that apply for positions or express interest in a position during recruitment will do so and substantiate that he or she is willing to accept a new position based upon the criteria that is outlined to the recruiter. This means that a candidate is ready, willing, and able to commit to a job change for an acceptable offer. (read the entire post here)
3) Accuracy – The resume and all other documents presented to the recruiter accurately depicts the experience, work history, and accomplishments of the candidate. All items will be a true representations of fact. (read the entire post here)
4) Consideration – Decisions to accept or reject offers will be made on the basis of facts and parameters discussed with the recruiter prior to the candidate receiving an offer. There will be no eleventh hour “gotta haves†that are sprung on the recruiter. (read the entire post here)
5) Consistency – (today’s post)
6) Follow-Up
7) Preparation
8) Respect
9) Communication
10) Information