Tesar-Reynes

10 Tips for Pinging the Recruiter

Every couple of days I get a call from a person who is out of work or thinks they are at the edge. They are either alerting me to the fact that they are going to send me a resume or they are following up on one they sent.

I have no problem with the phone calls. It permits a moment to chat, it gives them a chance to position themselves and it allows me a moment to set their expectations.

What drives me nuts is the pushy type that wants to take 10-20 minutes to tell me about every accomplishment in their career before I can get a word in edgewise. They seem to think they have some mystical power to convince me that they are truly wonderful and I will magically find a job for them. Once their initial pitch is done, they will usually demand to know the state of the job market and expect me to tell them where to look…preferably without relocation.

At the end of this monologue they say, “Do you mind if I stay in touch?”  For some I know this will be a call every two weeks or less.

Nobody has ever asked, so here is how I would like to be treated:

1. Call me up and ask my e-mail address

And feel free to find out if we work in your area of expertise.

2. E-mail me your short summary

E-mail me a short summary of your background/positioning to find out whether you fit our practice.

3. Send Me Your Resume and Cover Letter

If you do decide to send me something, send me your resume and cover letter, and ask me to briefly tell you what the job market looks like.

4. Follow Up In a Week

Call me in a week if I have not responded to the receipt of your information.

5. No Need to Follow Up Twice

No need to call me after that for follow up. Top of mind awareness does not work with good search firms, honest. If you fit our practice, you go into our database. We don’t scan resumes for key words; we take the time to code each background to make each person unique.

6. Let Me Call You

Allow me, if you fit the specs, to call you and discuss the position. The first thing I do when I get a new search is go through our database to look for the most qualified candidate. Our home-brewed software allows us to screen by over 150 variables.

7. Call Me Back

If I call, please remember to call me back promptly. If you don’t we put notes on your file. That sort of note does not help you future candidacy.

8. Send Us Your New Resumes

If you update your resume, send us a new copy.

9. Notify Us of Your New Positions

If you change positions or addresses, let us know, so we can stay in touch.

10. Need Advice? Give Me a Call!

If you want advice on another job you are considering, by all means call. Our viewpoint will always be as objective as possible. The only way we get referral work is by people respecting our opinion.