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 Outdated resume.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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