5 Things Recruiters Hate

There will be a point in your life when you are likely to deal with a recruiter. Before we begin, it would be apt   to state that there are 3 types of recruiters. These are: in-house recruiters, retained recruiters, and contingent recruiters. We will give a brief explanation of each type below.

In-house recruiters are usually employees within a company whose job is to search for and hire suitable candidates for job openings. This recruiter may have other HR duties or talent management responsibilities - but their main role is that of recruiting.

Retained recruiters are specially hired to look fill a particular vacancy, perhaps one related to a field in which they are specialized or have had adequate experience. This type of recruiter is on a payment basis with one or several companies.

Contingent recruiters are rather different, and perhaps, the most competitive of the three. A company may distribute a role to several recruiters, where, only that recruiter who manages to fill the role gets paid. This means that contingent recruiters may tend to be a bit aggressive and, if anything, under heaps of pressure!

Muovo has found the article below of considerable interest which outlines five factors that tend to put most recruiters off, thereby creating tension between you and the recruiter and ultimately, endangering your chance of getting that job.

Keep in mind time is of great essence to recruiters; they are likely looking at dozens of candidates at the same time, and are usually working under extremely tight deadlines. Following the proper protocol with recruiters is hence essential in building a relationship and common courtesies (no matter what the circumstances) can go a long way.

To cut a long story short - avoid these top five recruiter frustrations:

1. Unreasonable expectations.  
Remember that recruiters are, in reality, working for the company to find the perfect candidate for their post. That being said, they will assist you through the hiring process only if they identify you as a good potential for the position!

2. Outdated resume.
As an executive who may have seen hundreds of resumes in your career, wouldn’t you find it annoying to look at a candidate’s resume only to find out that it is not up-to-date? It is a real time waster for the recruiter. Even if you submit an up-to-date resume originally, and down the road you need to add a newly acquired degree or certification, or additional recent accomplishments, be sure to send the recruiter an update.

3. Embellishing expertise.  
One way or another, experienced recruiters have a way of drilling down to the skills and talents of an executive candidate to verify them. Don’t oversell yourself and put you and the recruiter in a position where neither of you will win. After all, the real you will be showing up for the job and unrealistic expectations may set you up for failure

4. Poor phone reception.
Executives and most levels of job seekers are using cell phones as their main contact number these days. While this is very convenient and avoids the possibility of young children answering a home phone, lost messages, or even worse, use of an employer’s phone, it is important to consider cell phone reception. There is almost nothing worse than trying to conduct a conversation with a recruiter with every other sentence being 'Can you hear me now?' Be considerate to the recruiter and make sure you are in an area where you receive good phone reception.

5. Unethical practices.
If you are frustrated by a recruiter who does not return phone calls or emails, and think that by trying to connect directly to the company your possibility of being considered as a candidate is better, scratch that idea. Companies hire recruiters for a reason. They rely on recruiter expertise and may not have the time or internal resources to conduct a talent search themselves. So neither recruiters nor companies appreciate candidates trying to scale the wall to avoid the proper channels.

A recruiter’s job is challenging trying to match the perfect person for a job opening every single time. Understanding how to work with them can make it easier for you and ultimately could result in a new position.

Good luck!

Courtesy of CareerHub

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Mistakes To Avoid When Writing A CV

Muovo receives several applications from candidates every day. Although there is an increased awareness with regard to the appropriate writing of a CV and covering letter (or resume), there are still a lot of mistakes that keep cropping up from our candidates' CVs. 

Always try to create a CV with a particular job in mind, and tailor your career objective, skills, and interests to that job. Remember that an employer is most likely to spend 15 or 20 seconds on your CV (especially if it's a large company). This is why first impressions are imperative, which gives you the task of attracting and grabbing the attention of your employer as quickly as possible. 

However, there are really no short cuts when creating a winning CV. Some of the most memorable, or rather unusual, job applications that have crossed our desks (some of which I had experienced personally), included:

• Candidate with a pink CV and white font in italics!
• Candidate calling his work 'state-of-the-art' (he was a Social Marketing Director) and inviting the hiring managers to interview him at his office.
• Candidate saying that one of his hobbies was 'to sleep when it rains'.
• Candidate applying for an accounting job saying that he was 'detal-oriented'.

Of course, these are not things that we see every day (and hopefully so!) and CVs of this kind are immediately dismissed from any consideration. However, there are other mistakes that we do see on CVs on a regular basis, and which also urge an employer to automatically dismiss the application. 

The following is a list of things that you should NOT do when writing and sending a CV:

• Don't do your CV in a rush.
• Don't leave gaps in your work experience.
• Don't send a resume or a CV with typos.
• Don't send a CV without your correct email address or contact number (mobile, phone or fax).
• Don't send a long CV. A good CV should be 1 or 2 pages long maximum.
• Don't decorate your CV. And don't use flashy or colourful font style and size either!
• Don't include a photo of you drinking, smoking, or wearing a see-through dress.
• Don't lie on your CV.

That's all for today. If you have anything to add, feel free to comment!


Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Be Careful: You Might Be Killing Your Job Prospects!

Although there has been an increased awareness these days regarding appropriate etiquette and behaviour in a job interview, there are still a couple of mistakes that many candidates still make during the whole interview process.
Muovo believes that the following article could be of invaluable help to many of you out there struggling with the tedious job hunting process. The list below includes some errors, first published by JobSeekers, that many candidates do, which might kill your prospects for a future job:

1. Having errors in your cover letter or on your resume.This will instantly turn the employer off. The resume and cover letter review is the first screening that an employer does of the potential candidate. It would be a good idea to get someone to proofread your resume before it gets in your potential future employer's hands!
Read The Covering Letter and Your Job Application

2. Stumbling into an interview late.Of course, this not just rude, but it will also show that you are not punctual and probably not responsible enough to assume the role you have applied for. Of course, it might be the case that you got held up in traffic, or your car broke down, or had an accident...but make sure you will phone in at least 15 minutes before to inform your interviewers that you might be arriving a bit late.
Read 7 Things You Should Never Do During An Interview

3. Arriving for an interview unprepared. 
This is a major mistake that many and many candidates do. It shows a lack of interest in the job and a basic disrespect for the person interviewing you. Average preparation time for a successful interview is about six hours. Figure you are studying for the ultimate final, the one that makes all of that education pay off. What is involved?

First, you need to know yourself and your goals, ambitions, strengths, and weaknesses pretty well to make yourself get through the interview successfully. Do an inventory of who you are. Secondly, do some research on the company. Figure out what technical information you might need to study. Study old notes from past training and classes, and find current articles on the company and the industry. Finally, put it all together. Why are you qualified for the position and what do you need to share about yourself in the interview to get the job? Make sure you have the right answer that will send brights smiles over your interviewers' faces.
Read Are You Prepared For Your Interview?

4. Rambling on in the interview about irrelevant information.
This is a waste of the interviewer's time. Remember that the employer does not want to hear your personal life, from childhood up to the moment of interviewing, but is more interested in how you can are qualified enough for the post for which you are being considered.
Read

5. Failure to maintain good grooming and personal appearance. A sloppy appearance in an interview indicates to the employer that you are careless and unprofessional. It is absolutely required that you have a professional looking interview outfit and that you maintain it by having it dry cleaned regularly.
Read What Colour Should You Dress In For The Interview?

6. Failure to maintain a positive attitude.
This is perhaps the hardest one to remember after you have been rejected by multiple employers. It takes three to six months minimum to find a job. Looking for a job is a full time job! You will have to devote all of your efforts to the goal of getting a job if you expect to get results. You will have to be utterly positive for the entire search. If you walk into an interview with a dejected look, you have blown the interview before you even open your mouth. You must truly believe that you do not qualify to be permanently unemployed and that the perfect job will come along. It will help if you burn off stress with some serious exercise plan that you execute each and every day. And each and every time you walk into an interview, you must say to yourself: "If this job doesn't come through, something better will." And you must believe it!
Read Think Positive And Find A Job!

Any comments? Muovo would like to hear from you!

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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Be an Attractive Employee. Focus on the Future.

Are you about to renew your employment contract, or renegotiate some working conditions? You probably (and understandably so) would want to keep and improve your current conditions. If anything, why not increase the pay?

This might sound very plausible to you, but your employer may not be as eager about your ideas as you are. He or she will, of course, seek to minimize costs while increasing productivity. This being said though, the employer and the employee do not have to be at loggerheads, with one of the parties wanting more for less while the other wants to give less and get more.

On the contrary, both should recognize the need of each other, and respect the other’s place in the company. Any employer without good employees stands no chance at gaining the productivity they desire; similarly, an employee needs the employer not only for the job and the pay being provided to him, but also for the invaluable experience gained on the work, which he would need if he is to further his advances later on.

The challenge an employee could face here is the use of the past as support for their claim for better future conditions. The issue then is that the past is the past (for better or worse) and businesses operate focused on the future. It would be apt then for employees to bear in mind their past good performances, while considering the future needs of the business. 

By focusing on how they could help fulfill the future needs of their company, they are directly or indirectly fulfilling their own needs as employees. As an employee who focuses on the future problems of the business you will be valued and seen as 'attractive', which will most certainly assist with your job prospects.

And finally...seek to be a solution, not a problem!

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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2 Ways You Might Be Sabotaging Your Job Search

The following article is taken from a newsletter sent by Marc Cenedella, founder of TheLadders. He talks about ways you may be sabotaging your own job search (perhaps without even realising it).

1. Your e-mail address 

What e-mail address do you use professionally? 

More than 45% of new users, says Marc Cenedella at TheLadders, use gmail.com. Given the international recognition and widespread use of gmail, having it as your address is a smart move that also sends the message that you ae up-to-date with the times. 

What's before the '@' sign is important too. 

However, common 'household' or 'joint' email strategies such as 'jimandnancy@', 'smithhousehold@', or 'huxtablefamily@', are not good e-mail addresses to use for your professional job search. Professionals are accustomed to writing directly to other professionals. Requesting that they e-mail your spouse or your children when contacting you is discomfiting and unprofessional. 

The best email address is your first name, dot, followed by your last name, at gmail.com:

[email protected]

If that's taken, then for the purposes of your job search, add next year's number to your address:

[email protected]

You're probably going to be using this e-mail address into the New Year anyway and starting now makes you seem ahead of the times!

2. Can a stranger read your resume? 

Print out your resume. Take the top third and rip it off. Hand it to somebody you do not know. 

Can they tell you, without asking you any additional questions, what you want to do next? 

For a lot of subscribers (in this case on TheLadders), the answer is no. The reason is that you are trying to do the wrong thing with the top third of your resume. You are trying to tell people about your character and your abilities and your many, many different skills and your flexibility and too many things! 

You know what the person who is reading your resume is trying to find out? 

'Does this gal, or guy, want this job that I have to fill?' 

Having spent time on your review, they know that you want a job. But is it this job that you really want?

Make sure you highlight work experience that is relevant to the job you are looking for, and get rid of any other unrelated experiences that are only there to clutter your CV. 

Start by writing the position you are applying for, or the job you want, at the very top of your resume. 

If they cannot tell, by reading the top-third of your resume, what you want to do next, then you're never going to get to the next step. 

Good Luck!

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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5 Ways To Stand Out When Applying For A New Job

Hundreds, if not thousands of candidates have probably applied for the same role. HR managers are often faced with the difficult choice of choosing the ‘best’ employee in a selected period. The following tips could better your chances of getting an interview:

1. Apply For The Right Job!
Yes, this might sound silly, but you do have to start from somewhere! However, remember that clicking on “Apply” for every job you see posted isn’t getting you any closer to finding one. Check each posting carefully for the skills and level of experience required and ensure you have them or can explain why you are a viable choice anyway. Mention these items in your cover letter and resume so that recruiters will see you as a serious candidate.

2. Clean Up Your Resume
Keep the look of your resume simple and professional. Use active verbs, avoid using personal pronouns, and check for errors in punctuation, grammar, and spelling, since any one of these can turn off a potential employer.

3. Follow Up  Once you’ve sent in your resume, don’t sit back and twiddle your thumbs waiting for somebody to call. Most HR departments are so swamped with incoming requests and resumes that they may not give a second thought to yours. Use an email or a phone call to ensure your resume has been received and forwarded to the right people. Get in touch with the prospective employer and follow up again after a week or so. Doing so puts you ahead of the hundreds of others who don’t.

4. Be Interactive, Engaging, and Responsive
One of the best ways to stand out when applying for a new job is to have pleasant and quick interactions with HR and hiring managers. Be enthusiastic on the phone during phone screens. Reply to all email and communications sent by the company in a timely manner and avoid rescheduling and delays in replying.

5. Always Be Prepared
If your interview will be conducted by phone, be sure to schedule it far enough ahead so that you can prepare in advance and research the company. Write down common questions, job-related facts, and specific statistics you can present. Rehearse these with a friend or career coach. Although this may sound tough, remember that you are not doing the company a favour by being interviewed, so try to be as accommodating as possible to their scheduling requests.

Courtesy of Recruiter Daily

Nikita Pisani at Muovo

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