Important Advice When Working With Recruiters

Working with recruiters is a great way to find the perfect job, whether you are unemployed and in desperate need of a job or if you’re employed but looking for another opportunity. It can be quite tough to navigate finding a job and luckily recruiters can definitely help you out in the process. However, you must understand that recruiters do not work for you, they work for employers who are their clients. Recruiters are often happy to work with you though, provided that you fit their needs and meet the criteria for the position the employer is looking for.

If you’re unemployed, be prepared to put a positive spin on your status. Often when you are unemployed, employers see this as a red flag. Luckily, you can work with this unfair bias by remaining active and productive while out of work, like volunteering, consulting, and project work. Here are five important pieces of advice when working with recruiters:

1. If you’re unemployed, be prepared to put a positive spin on your status. Often when you are unemployed, employers see this as a red flag. Luckily, you can work with this unfair bias by remaining active and productive while out of work, like volunteering, consulting, and project work.

2. Work with a recruiter or executive search team who specializes in your field. Most recruiters specialize in specific industries as well as job functions, so it would be in your best interest to work with someone who specializes in your specific industry and function. Also, in the long run, you tend to have the more successful and productive relationships with said recruiters.

3. You shouldn’t really worry about the way the recruiter is paid (retained or contingency) because you don’t really have much control on which you work with. Retained recruiters are usually paid upfront regardless of their search, while contingency recruiters get paid when they make a placement. Retained recruiters tend to work with executive candidates who generally make $200,000 or more.

4. Improve your LinkedIn profile (as well as profiles on Monster, CareerBuilder, etc). If you’re looking for a new job, make sure to keep your LinkedIn profile updated and is as comprehensive as possible. Recruiters will often take to the networking site to look at the profiles of fit candidates. Also, allow your privacy settings to be seen by the public as well as make sure you are currently open to receiving InMail, which is often the method recruiters will use to contact you.

5. Never agree to pay money to a recruiter/recruiting agency for the use of their services. You shouldn’t trust a recruiter who ask for payment from the candidates – do not use!

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